[Old Interview] BYJ talked about "Hotelier"

This is the old interview of Bae Yong Joon when he talked about why he choose "Hotelier" as his next project after he had take a break for 2 years after "Have we really loved?".

original in japanese: it's koreal Vol. 5, 2007/05 p.40-41
scanned & posted by: miemi@byj gallery & rosiebaba@joonsfamily
translated into english: a sweet sister / bb's blog


Why Hotelier Now?


Days of Dieting and Studying

The first image BYJ thought of for Shin Dong Hyuk was, “slim, tall, sharp face and physique, refined.”

BYJ said, “I thought that I couldn’t appear with a weak body in front of the fans who waited two years” so the 180 cm tall actor thought that he would diet to appear taller and so over the course of two months, he successfully lost 8 kg (18 pounds) by walking or running daily and not eating after 6 pm.

He wore cold colors, blue or gray colored clothing (there are few men who can carry off this simple and polished fashion), frameless glasses, and short hair to create a clean image with nothing excessive. His partner, Leo who was short, contributed to the making of the Dong Hyuk slim, sharp image.

The director, who saw BYJ’s new look, had the idea to make Dong Hyuk’s appearance coming out of a Las Vegas pool as a way of showing BYJ’s physical transformation, but the filming was cancelled due to rain.

Eventually, the swimming trunks scene was put off until episode seven when Dong Hyuk grabs Jin Young as she falls into the pool.

There was one more thing that BYJ had to do before filming started. If he was to be an international M&A specialist, he would have to speak English fluently. He was considerably uneasy and requested a native speaker English teacher be assigned to him and he practiced his pronunciation even during filming.

The model for Shin Dong Hyuk is the president of Concord Venture Capital, Hong Seung-pyo. His American name is Frank Hong and Dong Hyuk’s American name is the same Frank. BYJ met with Hong a number of times and his impression was, “the reality of M&A is much more difficult.”

Shaking in Front of the Cameras

After HWRL, BYJ spent about two years attending the university; what was the reason why he chose Hotelier as his comeback role?

“It was because of director Chung Yong Woo. I like Chung Yong Woo’s adventurous style of always adding new elements. That’s why I decided to appear without regard for the role or content when I heard it was Chung Yong Woo.”

Senior Park Chun Fun’s words also seem to have had influence. He asked BYJ..."Are you aiming for 9 wins, 9 losses, and 9 knockouts? Or would you rather choose 100 bouts, 53 wins, 47 losses, and I chose the latter.

Rather than being particular about projects, I thought it was important to build varied experiences as an actor.”

Because most of the dramas that BYJ has appeared in have received high viewer ratings, he has been held captive to the hit mentality but the advice coming from his senior may have lifted some of the burden from his shoulders. But the two year blank period was not a short period.

“I was shaking in front of the camera. After a month, I was finally able to understand where I should position my eyes. I think you can see the tension on my face until episode four.”

The reason he was wearing black sunglasses was due to this reason!

The most distressing thing during filming was “right before filming the script would be completed or revised. I would receive the script at the filming site and the script would contain the lines for that scene only. I couldn’t memorize the lines and cheated which only resulted in NG.”

For BYJ, who liked to thoroughly prepare, this style of working did not match his way of working and was a source of stress. Despite the confusion, he said he learned to adapt with the help of his seniors and colleagues.

Hurling Wine Bottles at the Wall Until Satisfied

Dong Hyuk, as played by BYJ, was calm in work and passionate in love, capturing many female hearts. Especially the scene where he closed off the emergency door to talk to Jin Young garnered attention and the words, “Look at only me” became the phrase of the moment.

“It was a scene where I wanted to do my very best. I heard later that it was well received and that it became a popular phrase.”


What was the most memorable scene for BYJ?

It was the scene after they were about to be evicted from the hotel and Kim Seung Woo, general manager, brought a bottle of wine as an apology and Dong Hyuk hurled the bottle against the wall.

“I threw the bottle five times but it wouldn’t break, I didn’t think it was that unbreakable.”

Kim Seung Woo, who is also close to BYJ in his personal life, said, “He’s serious and doesn’t forget the efforts required of his image,” and just as he said, BYJ has transformed himself into the image of Dong Hyuk and showed us new possibilities as an actor.

After his appearance in Hotelier, BYJ said that “My greed as an actor has appeared.”

Previously, he disliked giving interviews but even at the filming sites, he actively replied to interview requests and appeared on talk shows together with his co-stars. For actor BYJ, Hotelier can be called a turning point in his career.