"'Historic Villain' Oh Hyun-kyung: 'First Man,' Filmed While Receiving IV Drip... Even Teacher Moon Young-nam Praised Her" [★ FULL Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

"'The First Man' was the most challenging drama in my life. Not only was the workload heavy, but I had an enormous amount of dialogue. Nearly two-thirds of the entire script was my lines, and I kept filming with the mindset of 'just push through' while receiving IV drips."

"I wanted to see how far I could go with effort, and it was meaningful to be able to show that well in this work. Director Moon Young-nam, who has been in contact with me since 'The Newlywed's Club,' praised me saying 'Hyun-kyung, you did well this time,' and I will continue to work hard and live with that spirit."

A total of nine months, including the preparation period. Actress Oh Hyun-kyung marked a defining moment in her acting career by portraying an unprecedentedly villainous role across a staggering 140 episodes in MBC's drama "The First Man." Originally planned as a 120-episode series, the drama was extended by no fewer than 20 episodes after Oh Hyun-kyung's unrelenting villainy in the show sparked widespread discussion.

Oh Hyun-kyung recently gave an interview to StarNews regarding the MBC daily drama "First Man" (directed by Kang Tae-heum, written by Seo Hyun-joo and Ahn Jin-young).

It is a drama depicting the fatal confrontation between a woman who lived another person's life for revenge and a woman who stole another person's life for desire. It is part of writer Seo Hyun-joo's "Number Series," following "The Second Husband" and "The Third Marriage," with PD Kang Tae-heum, known for "Kindly Mr. Seon-ju," "The Third Marriage," and "The Witch's Game," joining forces.

The character of Chae-hwa-young, played by Oh Hyun-kyung in the drama, is a former top star who is now the daughter-in-law of Dream Group chairman and the president of Dream Hotel. However, she harbors ambitions to push aside Ma (Chairman) (played by Lee Hyo-jung) and take over Dream Group. She is the "ultimate villain" at the center of all conflicts and serves as the main antagonist.

Chae Hwa-young abandoned her biological son, Kang Jun-ho (played by Park Geon-il), whom she had with a future heir to the Dream Group, in an orphanage so she could marry him. She then stole one of the twin daughters born to Jeong Suk-hee (played by Jung So-young), the true lover of Ma Dong-seok (played by Kim Young-pil), who is the son of Ma (Chairman), and passed her off as her own daughter, Ma Seo-rin (played by Ham Eun-jung). As time passed, Chae Hwa-young's evil deeds were exposed by Ma Seo-rin's twin older sister, Oh Jang-mi (also played by Ham Eun-jung). After learning that Kang Jun-ho, a chef working at her hotel, was the biological son she had abandoned, Chae Hwa-young fled from the police. In her escape, she ran over Oh Jang-mi with her car, but Kang Jun-ho threw himself in front of the vehicle and died, forcing Chae Hwa-young to face the cruel fate of having killed her own son.

The "first man" has concluded after a long journey spanning 140 episodes.

▶I started with a firm resolve from the beginning. I even wondered whether I could pull this off and what I would gain from it. But there was a desire to act. Over the years, daily dramas and mini-series came my way in equal measure, allowing me to try out various types of acting. When I worked on tvN's "The Bird That Doesn't Cry" before, playing the villain was extremely difficult. I found myself asking, "Why does this character have to live like this? Why choose a path that involves killing?" As a child, I would curse at such characters, but later I came to understand that they simply had no other way to survive. That realization ultimately allowed me to approach this role with enjoyment and take on the challenge.

How did you view the ending of 'The First Man'? Chae Hwa-young caused her biological son, Kang Jun-ho, to be run over and killed by a car, while other characters met with happy endings.

The ending was good. When I worked on SBS's "Mother's Choice" in the past, we showed an ending where someone followed behind while visiting a detention center, and this drama's ending was similar to that. This time, only her son could bring down Hwa-young. When Hyuk (played by Lee Jae-hwang) died, it seemed as if Hwa-young had completely lost her mind, and later, when Jun-ho's apparition appeared, Hwa-young's expression looked subtle.

Wasn't the role of Chae Hwa-young the most legendary villain in actress Oh Hyun-kyung's filmography?

▶I wondered if I could play the lead role and sustain a long narrative arc now that I am over 50. I saw this as an opportunity to prove that I can do it. I tried my best to show everything I could offer. The character had to be sophisticated and elegant, yet able to commit bad deeds without hesitation. "The First Man" was the most difficult drama of my life. Not only was there a large amount of screen time, but there were also an enormous number of lines. Nearly two-thirds of the total script belonged to me, and I filmed while receiving intravenous fluids. Still, I kept going with the mindset of "just do it." Since I worked with Eun-jeong in the 2024 drama "Suji-majin Uri," when news broke that she had been cast first, I immediately said I would join as well. There was pressure regarding ratings, but it was a relief that the response overseas was also positive.

Cha Hwa-young portrayed an outwardly beautiful villain, creating irony for viewers.

▶ It is not easy to secure sponsorships in daily dramas these days, but I was fortunate enough to receive several, and I wanted to showcase them on screen. Department stores have even told me that the brands I sponsored achieved strong sales figures. There were times during the dramas "High Kick Through the Roof" and "Gentlemen of the Magnolia Tailoring Shop" when I appeared particularly well-lit, thanks to their careful attention. This time as well, they paid close attention to lighting. In fact, filming was challenging as I lost weight down to 48kg, but the staff took excellent care of me. My meals mainly consisted of kimbap and eggs. I also practiced with the script very diligently.

It must have been physically and mentally very difficult to be stuck in a villain role for such a long period of about nine months.

She played a model mother and wife in her previous work, "Suji-mat-eun Uri," but took on an antagonist role this time. It seems the contrast is heightened because she portrayed a good mother in "Gentleman and Lady." She couldn't sleep well while acting, so she felt dazed. Those around her said it was impressive that she accomplished everything. I realized that how one can utilize their body varies according to age.

-What viewer reactions to the role of Chae Hwa-young do you remember most?

"I was exercising along the Han River when we met, and they reacted quite a bit. Most asked, 'Why did you do that?' Some said, 'Make it even worse,' while others remarked, 'It wasn't that bad, so I can't hate you for it.'"

-Chae Hwa-young met a tragic ending in which she was sentenced to life imprisonment and incarcerated after being convicted of numerous criminal charges, including the murder of Oh Bok-gil, the attempted murder of Ma Se-rin and solicitation of murder, the attempted murder of Ma Dae-chang (Chairman), embezzlement and breach of trust of public funds, marriage fraud, and manipulation of genetic testing.

It seems this person has gone beyond what can be understood. In reality, there appear to be many such individuals. There also seem to be many structures that cannot be resolved through the logic of power and money. I simply portrayed this character as an actor.

This marks the second collaboration between actor Han Eun-jung and her co-star, following their work together in the 2024 drama "Suji-majun Uri" and now once again in "First Man."

Heum Eun-jeong is a very good actress. She does not complain and fulfills her leading role on set. She appeared to have leadership qualities gained from her experience as an idol. Even though it must have been a difficult situation as the lead, she tried to move forward together with everyone.

In this work, the actress faced off against several performers including Lee Hyo-jung, Lee Jae-hwang, Park Geon-il, Jung Chan, and Kim Min-seol, who are at the center of evil in the drama. In particular, when Chae Hwa-young was imprisoned, the situation turned around as she was grabbed by the hair by Jin Hong-ju (played by Kim Min-seol), who had previously grabbed her by the hair and slapped her in the past.

▶I am grateful that the actors did not boast and all came to support me. Senior actress Lee Hyo-jung kindly gave me things like T-wa and Gongjindan when she thought I was unwell. Actors Lee Jae-hwang and Jung Chan also synced well with me. Min-seol was so cute. She had been diligently practicing the scene where she grabs my hair at the end in prison. Seeing that, I told her, "Min-seol, don't think about it, just grab my hair."

What is the most memorable scene in this drama?

This is the scene where, upon seeing Rose's twins early on, Hwa-young says, "I only need one of you. I don't need two."

What was the most difficult scene to act in this drama?

It seemed that there were too many gods, so I couldn't delve deeply into any single one to portray it. That part was difficult for me.

The scene where Cha Hwa-young drinks kkanari-akjeot coffee and gets severely reprimanded after being told "Evil spirit, get out" by a fake foreign hotel guest seemed to give viewers a sense of vicarious satisfaction.

At first, I thought, "Isn't this childish?" but the writer wanted to show me being treated for something absurd. So I acted as if I were in "High Kick Through the Roof." (Laughs) In the scene "Evil spirits, begone," I thought, "If we're doing it, let's do it right." When I went with a "High Kick" style, my junior thanked me for accommodating them.

- How will "The First Man" be remembered as a work for actress Oh Hyun-kyung?

▶There is nothing in this world that isn't difficult. I have certainly performed many challenging roles up to now, but there are far too many other hardships in the world. Looking at the bigger picture, I view acting not as something difficult, but rather as a 'good experience' and a 'challenge,' and as a process of finding myself.

Oh Hyun-kyung remains famous as one of the first generation of actresses who were Miss Korea winners. She participated in the 1989 Miss Korea pageant and won the title of Jin (True), while many other Miss Korea winners from the same cohort, such as Ko Hyun-jung who won Seon (Good) that year, have been actively working as actresses.

▶When I was a Miss Korea, it was at a young age. Fortunately, older sister Kim Sung-ryung, the late Hyeon Jeong-i, Yeom Jung-a, and Lee Ha-neui have set a good example for us. As we’ve grown older, being a 'Miss Korea' has turned out to be a very prestigious title and a source of pride. In the past, I felt awkward and wished people wouldn’t call me that, but Hyeon Jeong-i told me, "Hyung-kyung, it’s good to be number one in any field. Live with pride." From then on, I decided to live with determination. As a former Miss Korea, I believe that showing how we age gracefully through proper exercise and self-care can offer hope to many people. Hyeon Jeong-i and I have become so busy lately that we can’t contact each other directly, but whenever I see articles about her, I click 'like' and cheer for her.

They also became a topic of discussion after reuniting with members of the 2010 MBC sitcom "High Kick Through the Roof" through advertisements last year.

▶Senior Lee Byeong-seok, I had the chance to meet with Director Kim again and said, "We need a drama like this to come out once more." Fifteen years later, it was very grateful that a major company approached us first with an advertising proposal, and we were happy to proceed with the 'High Kick' concept. Hwang Jung-eum contacted me saying she is doing YouTube. I communicate frequently separately with seniors Lee Soon-jae and Lee Byeong-seok. Jin Ji-hee has also grown up wonderfully. Since we share the same birthday, we occasionally stay in touch and have meals together. Yoon Si-yun's grandmother took good care of us actors when we were young, and it still feels wonderful to see her now; we support each other. 'High Kick' was incredible. A couple of my acquaintances who are elementary school students recently watched 'High Kick.' They said 'High Kick' has surpassed 100 million views.

It will be the 40th anniversary of their debut next year. How do you feel looking back on your activities so far?

▶I have worked almost without rest. I tried to become a better actor through hard work, and it seems that is why I can keep working without taking breaks. I still stay in touch with Moon Young-nam, who I worked with on the drama 'Club of the First Wives,' and she is someone I am deeply grateful for. Because there are many people I want to repay, I feel even more motivated to do well. I wanted to see how far I could go through effort, and since this work allowed me to show that clearly, it was meaningful. Moon Young-nam recently praised me by saying, 'Hyun-kyung, you did well this time.' I will continue to strive and live with that in mind.

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*This content was translated by AI.