Shin Ye-eun, following Heo Nam-jun and Lee Jae-wook.. Romantic success ♥ "I also found healing" – 'Doctor Island Boy' proves the queen of rom-coms [★FULL Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

Actress Shin Ye-eun (28) successfully concluded the medical human romance 'Doctor Island Boy', expanding her acting spectrum.

In the ENA Monday-Tuesday drama 'Doctor Island Boy', which wrapped up on the 7th, Shin Ye-eun delivered a compelling performance as Yook Ha-ri. She portrayed a university hospital nurse who carries a secret and moves to a health center in her hometown of Pyeondongdo. Yook Ha-ri is a character whose emotional range shines through not only inner pain but also her kind-hearted meddling nature. Shin Ye-eun breathed life into the role with her signature bubbly charm and excellent control of intensity, enhancing audience immersion.

Notably, Shin Ye-eun added fresh appeal by taking on a new challenge in this 'medical human romance' alongside Lee Jae-wook (who plays Do Ji), who was born in 1998, the same year as her. The two did not simply portray a standard love story but crafted a narrative of 'mutual healing', making viewers laugh and cry. As a result, 'Doctor Island Boy' broke through the 5th% viewership mark, leaving a meaningful period at the end as a well-made healing drama.

In a recent interview with StarNews, Shin Ye-eun said, "Personally, my goal was to express Yook Ha-ri's emotions well. I hoped that when people looked at Ha-ri, they would say, 'What should we do about this child? Oh dear,' but far more people joined in tears than I expected. I felt an achievement far beyond my goals and am truly grateful."

She added, "Even though I'm acting, I realized that when thinking about a character's emotions while living through life, even without extreme concentration or immersion, the 'tear button' gets triggered. That made me want to get closer to the character. Having had such an experience in this 'Doctor Island Boy', I now feel I want to form deep connections with characters in future projects."

Shin Ye-eun particularly remarked, "Yook Ha-ri feels alive," and continued, "Ha-ri is someone who can survive anywhere. When faced with difficult situations, she shows a message of hope that there will be an end. Her meddling nature, which stems from loving her people, is ultimately not just meddling but a warm heart and a broad capacity. I want to tell her, 'I hope you continue to live serving others freely in the future.'"

Shin Ye-eun also shared, "Watching Yook Ha-ri and various characters in 'Doctor Island Boy' struggle and overcome hardships, I too found healing and gained strength. I think viewers who watched 'Doctor Island Boy' could relate to their own lives to some extent. Just as I was healed and gained strength through this drama, there is power within us to endure, and if someone is by our side, we can keep going. Isn't that the power of our drama? I hope viewers felt it together."

Additionally, Shin Ye-eun highlighted a special significance in how this role differed from last year's JTBC period drama 'A Hundred Memories', where she was entangled in a love triangle with Kim Da-mi and Heo Nam-jun. She smiled and said, "It's been a while since I did a modern drama. It felt strangely strange at first that I could even speak in this way."

She continued, "It's also been a while since I did a rom-com. Although there was a slight love triangle again (with Lee Jae-wook and Lee Seol), the situation Ha-ri faced was completely different from that of Jong-hee in 'A Hundred Memories'. Since Ha-ri had trauma that needed to be revealed, if the love triangle had been overly entangled, it would have caused stress or distorted Ha-ri's trauma itself. So we toned down and adjusted the love triangle."

Shin Ye-eun also expressed, "During the broadcast, many fans told me at events that they were enjoying the drama so much. I am very grateful that they made time in their busy lives to watch it."

Shin Ye-eun said, "Ha-ri has a bright and clear image and is also meddling. These traits are quite similar to mine," boasting a high level of synchronization, but she also noted the complexity of the emotional arc: "Following the emotions in the early part was difficult."

She explained, "This child also experienced trauma, but she wasn't always depressed, so I paid close attention to controlling intensity. Among Ha-ri's many backstories, there were rumors that 'she meets a lot of doctors,' which made her struggle. So although Ha-ri is meddling, I believed there must be cautious aspects in how she treats people. When people find it hard to approach her, the past trauma clashes with her inherent charm of being meddling."

Yook Ha-ri endured severe mental anguish as she was constantly criticized by colleagues due to rumors like 'Doctor Killer' and 'Flower Snake'. Regarding this, Shin Ye-eun said, "I discussed this part extensively with director Lee Myung-woo. I thought, 'It's just a rumor; if it's not true, just ignore it.' But when everyone in the workplace looks at you that way, and rumors repeat again and again, how much psychological trauma could that cause? I pondered deeply on this, asking myself, 'What would I do?' Then there was a moment when I found an answer. When filming a scene where fellow nurses were gossiping about Ha-ri in a convenience store while she just watched silently, at that moment, I felt overwhelming loneliness. It became hard to look people in the eye."

She continued, "When I first analyzed Ha-ri, I thought of her as a strong and spirited girl, but during filming, I realized she was actually very fragile and had to be in such an environment."

So how does Shin Ye-eun herself deal with rumors about her? She answered honestly, "I think I tend to avoid them a bit. There's a mindset that 'it's just a rumor; if it's not me, then it's not true.' When people talk about me, I sometimes avoid speaking the truth because I wonder if anyone would even listen. But lately, I've been thinking maybe I should face things directly once, and I wish I had that courage in my life."

How was her chemistry with Lee Jae-wook? "We are the same age, but I was born earlier (January), so I'm technically his older sister—no, older brother," she revealed with a playful 'older sibling pride', drawing laughter.

Shin Ye-eun then said, "But Lee Jae-wook turned out to be more mature than me. He got along very well with the on-set staff and always liked giving generously. He even treated our staff exceptionally well. I heard many stories like, 'Mr. (Lee) Jae-wook took care of this.'"

She continued, "Whenever I contacted him to ask about the production, he would respond as if waiting for me, calling me 'Teacher Ha-ri.' He has a personality that embraces everything, so I felt he was truly remarkable."

Shin Ye-eun also praised Lee Jae-wook highly: "Of course, his acting is excellent. If emotional range goes from 1 to 100, he can express it freely. It's like he has buttons; his talent is enormous."

Shin Ye-eun shared, "I'm a bit shy and tend to get closer to people slowly. Since we're the same age, I tried to be more cautious. Even when filming scenes where I was being carried, I received a lot of consideration. Actually, being carried is harder than carrying someone. But Lee Jae-wook exerted effort to make me comfortable. Even though I could feel it, he kept saying it wasn't hard."

However, Lee Jae-wook enlisted in the army as an active-duty soldier in May this year and is currently serving his military service period ('military gap'). Regarding this, Shin Ye-eun mentioned, "After filming ended, we had a barbecue party together wishing him well. I'm also curious how he's watching the drama."

When asked about plans for 'visits', she coolly replied, "Nothing has come up yet, but if anyone says to go, I think everyone will go." Shin Ye-eun added with a realistic best-friend reaction that drew laughter, "I think Lee Jae-wook will do well in the military. He naturally gets along well with others and doesn't seem shy. He doesn't care about age and befriends everyone easily, so I'm sure he'll manage on his own."

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*This content was translated by AI.