Actor Song Il-gook recently shared some heartfelt and cautious thoughts regarding his family background.
According to Nielsen Korea, the 26th episode of MBN’s ‘Kim Ju-ha’s Day & Night’, which aired on the 23rd, recorded a peak national viewership rating of 2.7%.
Song Il-gook revealed that as a descendant of independence fighters—including his great-grandfather, General Kim Jwa-jin, who led the victory at the Battle of Cheongsanri, and his grandfather, Kim Du-han—he grew up hearing the phrase “Do not do anything that would bring shame to your grandfather’s name” over and over again.
He also noted that he believes his casting in ‘The Hague’ was thanks to his family roots, expressing pride in his patriotic DNA. Song shared that he matured while participating in the ‘Cheongsanri History Grand March’, a commemorative project led by his mother, Kim Eul-dong, for over 10 years. He also emphasizes the importance of behavior to his triplets, jokingly warning them, “One mistake and five generations are gone,” which brought laughter to the show.
Song also recalled a time when he was preparing the Cheongsanri History Expedition. Kim Jang-hoon, someone he had no prior connection with, suddenly called him to offer help. Kim Jang-hoon even prepared the sheet music and a band to perform ‘The Pioneer’ at Ilsongjeong. Although local officials initially blocked the plan, they eventually rented a separate banquet hall to complete the performance, leaving everyone impressed.
Known as the “God of Historical Dramas,” Song shared a behind-the-scenes story from ‘The Legend’ (Haeshin), the hit drama that turned him into a star. He revealed that his family’s finances had declined due to their commemorative projects, and they were even on the verge of being evicted from their rented home. However, thanks to the massive popularity of ‘The Legend’ and the subsequent flood of commercial offers, he was able to clear all the family debts. He also mentioned the grueling schedule of traveling 900km round trip between Wando and Mungyeong every day, combined with the biting cold, which almost led him to turn down ‘Jumong’—the very drama that earned him the Grand Prize at the acting awards.
Lastly, despite having performed in musicals for 10 years, Song introduced himself as a “second-hand musical rookie.” He shared, “I discovered my love for singing and started around the age of 50. ‘Mamma Mia’ was a production I got into by auditioning myself.” He showed his pure passion for the stage, admitting that he failed auditions for several well-known musicals despite his fame. Ending on a light note, he expressed his dream of having a solo song in a musical, playfully adding, “My singing skills have improved a lot!”
