I Acted Once, and Now They Call Me a Genius - Chapter 55

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 55

 

If people knew that Park Myeong-jin was in charge of the drama for this season of 【I Am an Actor】, they would probably think this.

 

Ah, they say he’s Im Yeong-do’s colleague from when they joined the company… Did he decide to appear because of that friendship?

 

Wrong.

 

“Why is someone like you working with Writer Ryu?”

 

First of all, there wasn’t anything soft enough between Park Myeong-jin and Im Yeong-do to be called ‘friendship.’

 

The two were bitter enemies who would bare their teeth and growl at each other whenever they met. If Im Yeong-do had rashly asked Park Myeong-jin for help, Park Myeong-jin would probably have answered like this.

 

—Should I really be there playing children’s games?

 

Children’s games.

 

Honestly, that was exactly the level of Park Myeong-jin’s impression of 【I Am an Actor】.

 

Taking half-baked rookies who haven’t even debuted yet, giving them some story, and somehow packaging them to pretend to be actors—like some kind of role-playing game.

 

Well, that struggle might be somewhat entertaining… and could draw popular reactions.

 

But that’s all.

 

Taking people who have never even properly received camera massage and making them film a drama—nothing proper could come out of it. That was Park Myeong-jin’s thinking.

 

The reason such a Park Myeong-jin accepted Im Yeong-do’s proposal was purely one thing.

 

It was because of Ryu.

 

“200 million. I offered up to 200 million per episode to bring that person over. But they still rejected me. But what’s this? Why on earth is that person getting involved in these children’s games?”

 

“What. Don’t want to call it children’s games? Then don’t do it. There are plenty of other people who will.”

 

Im Yeong-do shrugged his shoulders, pretending to be relaxed.

 

Of course, it was a bluff.

 

Park Myeong-jin’s help was actually an essential element for the success of this program, just as much as Ryu’s help. Even though he found Park Myeong-jin disgusting to look at, he still acknowledged his abilities.

 

Park Myeong-jin gritted his teeth.

 

“Other people besides me? Right. Well, rookie PDs who don’t even know how to turn on a megaphone would say they’ll do it. Or washed-up has-beens would try to get involved too. But are you thinking of pairing Writer Ryu with those kinds of people? Are you crazy?”

 

“Why are you talking so much? Are you going to do it or not? Just saying that would end this.”

 

“…”

 

Park Myeong-jin couldn’t bring himself to speak.

 

Working on a project with Ryu was one of his long-held dreams.

 

Park Myeong-jin revered Ryu.

 

No, it would be fair to say he had faith in him.

 

Ryu was someone who, in Korea right now… was uniquely gifted at handling human nature to an almost unparalleled degree.

 

When he saw Ryu’s debut work during his days as the youngest PD… the thrill he felt then was still unforgettable.

 

Thanks to that, after making a name for himself by creating a hit drama right from his directorial debut, Park Myeong-jin sent love calls to Ryu every time he started a new project.

 

And he was always rejected.

 

Park Myeong-jin hadn’t even been able to see Ryu’s face…

 

“You, don’t tell me… you actually met Writer Ryu?”

 

“What do you think?”

 

“That damn smug smile… you met him. You did. Oh, dear God. Why the hell does someone like you get to…!”

 

Im Yeong-do smiled with satisfaction as he watched Park Myeong-jin cry out in jealousy.

 

Thinking that this moment’s memory alone would last him a lifetime without needing any side dishes.

 

“Well, I don’t know what’s in his mind either. Maybe he thought this would be interesting?”

 

“…Right. That’s just like him.”

 

Park Myeong-jin nodded with a gloomy expression.

 

Ryu was famous for his unique moves as much as his artistic works.

 

His mystique of never showing his face to the public was just the beginning – he refused all awards from various film festivals, and always brought works with shockingly unconventional subjects that he’d drop like bombs on the film industry.

 

So in fact, Park Myeong-jin had thought the day when Ryu would film a drama with him would never come.

 

After all, the drama industry wasn’t really the right place for such experimental challenges.

 

‘…Maybe this is the first and last opportunity.’

 

Thinking that way, he absolutely couldn’t refuse.

 

…No, even if this wasn’t the last opportunity, Park Myeong-jin wouldn’t have been able to refuse anyway. The chance to direct Ryu’s work was that enormous.

 

No director, no PD would want to kick away such an opportunity.

 

But…

 

“But will there really be actors in your show who can handle Writer Ryu?”

 

That was the problem.

 

Calling it child’s play wasn’t meant to put down Im Yeong-do.

 

Even the top actors in this industry right now struggled to digest the depth that Ryu put into his scripts.

 

So could these rookies who were just appearing on audition programs saying they wanted to become actors… really handle Ryu?

 

Park Myeong-jin already knew the answer.

 

It would be difficult.

 

“Yeah. If we’re lucky, a few decent kids will emerge. But that’s about it. They’re still amateurs at best, still rookies.”

 

“…Did you forget? Those amateurs and rookies have shaken up this industry more than once or twice.”

 

“If they were at the level to shake up this industry, they would have made it big already.”

 

“No. I don’t think so.”

 

Im Yeong-do looked straight at Park Myeong-jin.

 

“There are people who simply can’t shine because they lack opportunities. There are many who could sparkle brighter than anyone if just given the light. What this industry needs right now isn’t good actors, but good opportunities.”

 

“….”

 

“So you just need to answer this one thing.”

 

Will you do it? Or won’t you?

 

That Park Myeong-jin eventually nodded his head probably wasn’t all that surprising.

 

But even after promising to direct the drama, Park Myeong-jin couldn’t shake off his uneasiness.

 

He simply couldn’t stop worrying about the cast.

 

So even after filming for 【I Am an Actor】 began, he deliberately tried not to pay attention to it.

 

He felt that focusing on it would only cause him more stress.

 

Park Myeong-jin turned his attention to the cast when the TOP 10 was decided and the drama casting list was finalized.

 

“…These ten people?”

 

“Yeah. Have you seen any of their acting?”

 

“No. I haven’t even watched episode 1 yet.”

 

“Well, I figured as much. That’s why I brought this compilation of their acting scenes.”

 

His expression was quite confident.

 

That made Park Myeong-jin even more irritated.

 

This guy could be so carefree because he wasn’t the one directing. That’s what he thought.

 

But still, seeing him so confident… maybe their acting wasn’t completely terrible.

 

With that thought, the first thing Park Myeong-jin saw was none other than Min-hee’s video.

 

To be precise, it was the acting video Min-hee had shown during the preliminaries.

 

“Here, this is our female lead.”

 

“…She’s pretty. She must have stood out the most among the female participants?”

 

“Hmm… there’s one more, but this girl fits the typical female lead image the best.”

 

It was certainly fair to say that.

 

You could call it the typical female lead look. The cold, stoic aura surrounding her face was exactly the style that matched current trends.

 

‘And his acting too… not bad?’

 

Honestly, the moment Park Myeong-jin saw Min-hee’s acting, he was a little surprised.

 

He had been expecting acting at a much lower level than this. But if it’s this good… it’s at a level where she could compete without difficulty against most active actresses.

 

‘Her appearance lacks a bit of glamour… but that could be fixed with some proper management.’

 

She was exactly the kind of actor that gave him a good feeling.

 

By now, the entertainment companies that saw her are probably working quite hard to find her contact information. Maybe they’ve already made contact.

 

It definitely made sense that Im Yeong-do showed her first.

 

But…

 

‘Is this girl the best option?’

 

She’s not bad.

 

If he brought her to the field right now, she could definitely handle a decent supporting role.

 

With a bit more skill accumulated… it’s clear that even a female lead role wouldn’t be impossible.

 

But if you ask whether that’s the level to handle ‘Ryu’s’ works, that’s absolutely not the case. This can’t be the best option. There needs to be someone more capable.

 

But this might be asking for too much.

 

This girl was probably the best actor Im Yeong-do could show.

 

That’s what he thought…

 

Then Im Yeong-do showed Min-hee’s ‘Joy, Anger, Sorrow, Pleasure’ acting, that is, the acting that Yeon-woo and Seon-woo did together, and Park Myeong-jin’s expression hardened.

 

“Wait a minute.”

 

“Hm? What.”

 

“These two next to her… did they happen to survive?”

 

“You definitely have a good eye.”

 

Im Yeong-do nodded with a satisfied expression.

 

“That’s right. Both of them survived. The woman is Lee Yeon-woo, and the man is Kim Seon-woo.”

 

“…”

 

Park Myeong-jin fell silent.

 

They were much better than expected. He thought Min-hee was practically at a professional level, but those two next to her weren’t falling behind at all.

 

Especially…

 

“Kim Seon-woo.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Let’s watch more of Kim Seon-woo’s video.”

 

He didn’t know why.

 

It wasn’t particularly that his acting ability was superior to the other two… but for some reason, his gaze kept being drawn to him.

 

Im Yeong-do straightened his chest and nodded.

 

“Good. I’ll show you.”

 

Im Yeong-do pondered for a moment.

 

What video of Seon-woo should he show? But no matter how much he thought about it, there was only one thing to show. There wouldn’t be another video with more impact than that.

 

[Those in the Sealed Room]

 

Seon-woo’s mute acting.

 

Im Yeong-do played the video without any additional explanation.

 

What would Park Myeong-jin say after watching this performance?

 

‘You said only worthless people would come here.’

 

Though he had said it wouldn’t be the case, Im Yeong-do was actually scared of that too.

 

That’s why he had gone all the way to Cheongseong to bring the troupe members. The more high-level participants there were, the higher the potential of this program would be.

 

Looking back now… that was really a good choice.

 

Half of the current TOP 10 were from Cheongseong.

 

Hye-seong, Min-hee, Jae-won, Jin-wook, and… Seon-woo.

 

Im Yeong-do suddenly thought about it.

 

If he hadn’t gone to Cheongseong… and if they hadn’t been there, would 【I Am an Actor】 have had the same atmosphere as now?

 

No. It wouldn’t have.

 

They were practically playing the role of protagonists in this program.

 

Just look at Park Myeong-jin’s expression right now.

 

That mouth that had said it would be difficult because there were no proper people in this program just a while ago… was now trembling in shock.

 

Of course, the reason for that trembling was simple.

 

Seon-woo.

 

Someone might ask what’s so special about reacting that much to acting without a single line.

 

But precisely because it was acting without a single line, this reaction was inevitable.

 

If an actor could create this level of emotion and impact with just facial expressions… what if they really gave him a proper role?

 

PD Park Myeong-jin could more easily picture that in his mind.

 

How to use the actor named Seon-woo.

 

How beautiful the scene he would portray through that would be….

 

That’s why.

 

Park Myeong-jin, who had maintained silence for a long time after the video ended… soon lit up with fury and glared at Im Yeong-do.

 

“You, what are you.”

 

“What do you mean.”

 

“You….”

 

Park Myeong-jin maintained silence for a moment.

 

He had to choose words that wouldn’t make Im Yeong-do feel smug. He didn’t want to boost his ego even by mistake.

 

“Why the hell are you so lucky?”

 

And Im Yeong-do answered smugly.

 

“You should be grateful. I’ll share that luck with you this time.”

 

* * *

 

And so, on the day of the script reading.

 

Seon-woo finally faced PD Park Myeong-jin and… inwardly broke out in a sweat.

 

‘…The way he’s looking at me seems too intense.’

 

Did I do something wrong?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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