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IU, Byeon Woo-seok on starring in Korean rom-com 'Perfect Crown'
IU, Byeon Woo-seok on starring in Korean rom-com 'Perfect Crown'
Korean stars IU and Byeon Woo-seok are headlining the upcoming Disney+ romantic comedy series “Perfect Crown” that will premiere on April 10.
In the series, Byeon Woo-seok is Grand Prince I-an who becomes involved in a power struggle with other members of the royal family.
He is under pressure to get married and makes a deal for marriage of convenience with Huiju (IU), the heir to a Korean conglomerate.
“Perfect Crown” is a reunion for IU and Byeon Woo-seok 10 years after appearing in the 2016 drama “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo.”
This is IU’s next project after “When Life Gives You Tangerines” and Byeon Woo-seok’s new series after “Lovely Runner.” The series is directed by Park Joonhwa (“Alchemy of Souls,” “What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim”) and is written by Yoo Jiwon.
During a press conference for the series on April 6, IU and Byeon Woo-seok were joined by Noh Sanghyun, Gong Seungyeon, Yu Subin, Lee Yeon and Director Park.
The series is set under the premise of Korea being under a constitutional monarchy.
“So this show is about 21st century Korea under a constitutional monarchy. And it's not just about the different aspects of the stories that I really want to talk about. But I believe this show is somewhat different from the other shows you've seen so far. And it's going to set your heart a flutter. So, it's not going to be boring for one second, and I think you're going to really enjoy the show,” said Director Park.
IU said her character, Huiju, “has got everything except for the noble status that she desires. So we are under a constitutional monarchy and she is very frustrated that she does not have a noble status.”
“You know frustration is a key word that really describes who this girl is. You can understand why she's so frustrated about her status. She's very greedy. She has a lot of yearnings for things but she's also sort of adorable. She's a very three-dimensional character,” she said.
She added, “As I was reading the script, I thought Huiju was such a fascinating character, and I really thought it was a no-brainer. I wanted to be in on this project as Huiju.”
About his character, Byeon Woo-seok said, “The Grand Prince is the beloved royal of Korea, but he can't outshine anyone. He has a status where he can't outshine anyone. And the reason why I chose this show is because when I read the script I think it's really important that you can envision it in your head and I could just envision all the scenes in my head and I could really resonate with my character Grand Prince I-an's backstory. So yeah, I wanted to try fleshing this character out.”
Noh Sanghyun plays the role of Min Jeong-woo, the prime minister of Korea.
“He has a lot on under on his shoulders. So, he has a lot of responsibility. He knows how to control himself. And you know sometimes it's like he has icy cold water flowing inside his veins. So he is very cold maybe sometimes but you know he goes through a lot of emotional evolution within the show throughout the story line and you can see how he changes over time making him a very three-dimensional character as well. So that was something that I really liked,” he said.
Gong Seung-yeon is Queen Dowager Yoon Yi-rang.
“My character is the queen mother and she thinks the royal family is very important. So she puts herself behind. What she puts first is the royal family and the country. So she looks very cold from the outside, but she's struggling very hard to make sure that nothing falls apart. But it doesn't mean that she blindly wants to protect the royal family, but she has great faith and love for the royal,” she said.
Ratings
About what they expect in the ratings for “Perfect Crown,” Byeon Woo-seok said, “I think as for the viewership and ratings, you know, all I guess we can do is to do our best. And as for the result, it's really up to the audience to decide. But having said that, I would love to ask for all of your support and love.”
Speaking as her character Huiju, IU said, “Well, I've never done anything uh below number one. So, I think that our team, the ‘Perfect Crown’ team, we're only aiming for the absolute best, only number one. So, that was Huiju speaking. And then back to me, you know, as myself as we spend time these days promoting the series and I'm just so happy to see how excited people are to watch the drama series.”
She said, “And I know that it's currently under post production and all we can do as the cast members, you know,, we are going to do everything possible to promote the series. So, I'm really enjoying this promotion period and I hope that you show us a lot of love and support.”
When asked if he felt pressure for “Perfect Crown” after starring in “Lovely Runner,” Byeon Woo-seok said, “Well, I just have to say I'm so extremely grateful and I honestly, you know, it's not so much pressure that I feel. I just hope that you will continue to show love and interest and I'm going to do my absolute best to repay all of that love and interest.”
Chemistry
After 10 years, IU and Byeon Woo-seok have worked together again in “Perfect Crown.”
In “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo,” Byeon Woo-seok played the role of the boyfriend of IU’s character, Go Ha-jin.
On their chemistry, he said, “We actually have worked alongside each other. Ten years ago, right? And I feel like we have a chemistry that stretches over a decade and you can really see that chemistry flower in this series. And IU is, you know, she makes you feel at ease instantly. She's such a great scene part partner and she gave me a lot of advice as well. So, I enjoyed it so much.”
“I think that in, you know, this time around it was almost as if he was set on making up for all of that hurt, you know, 10 years ago because when we played that series, he was actually a boyfriend who cheated on me. That was his character 10 years ago,” said IU.
She added, “And now after 10 years has passed, we get to work alongside each other as main characters again. As Woo-seok said, it almost felt like he had been waiting for the entire decade to repay that because honestly over the past decade, it's not like we have been in touch since sharing the screen in ‘Moon Lovers,’ but it almost felt like we had been friends all along that time,” said IU.
She added, “So, it almost makes me feel like I want to do another project with him after another 10 years from now.”
