[Exclusive]“28 Years Since Debut”: Han Da-gam Still Thirsty… “I Want to Experience the Brutal Rock Bottom” [★ 22nd Anniversary Interview ①]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

• StarNews 22nd Anniversary Commemorative Interview

Having run without rest for a long stretch of 28 years, she is still thirsty. For actress Han Da-gam, acting remains an object of desire that keeps her feeling a sense of longing.

StarNews conducted an interview with Han Da-gam to mark its 22nd anniversary. Selected as Miss World Queen University in 1999 and debuting as an actress through the MBC drama “For Love” that same year, Han left a deep impression with her role as Yoon Na-hee in the SBS drama “Bright Girl’s Success Story,” which aired the following year. Since then, she has appeared in major works such as the dramas “Full House,” “Seoul 1945,” “Korean Lawyer,” “Cinderella Man,” “Gumiho: Fox Sister’s Tale,” “Ironman,” “Touch,” “Elegant Friends,” “National Team Wife,” and “Lee’s Durian,” as well as the films “Shin Gijeon” and “The Ghost Bride,” earning great love for her distinctive yet stable acting skills.

Reflecting on the past 28-plus years of running without a break, Han Da-gam said, “I feel like I have lived very busily and without rest since my debut. I often wonder if I am someone who has had a life of running continuously without stopping. It makes me feel grateful, thinking, ‘I really worked hard, and I must be very blessed.’”

Han Da-gam’s versatile career includes challenges aimed at breaking her own boundaries. In October last year, she took the stage for the play “A Streetcar Named Desire,” performed at the National Theater, experiencing for the first time the thrill of breathing in sync with the audience. What decision led this veteran actress, who is soon to mark her 30th anniversary since debut, to such a challenge?

On this matter, Han Da-gam said, “It is true that there were times when I agonized and struggled alone over whether ‘the acting I am doing is right’ and whether ‘I am doing it well.’” She added, “I feel like I have run without rest even while hitting walls. Fortunately, I tend to think positively. Even after deep contemplation, my mindset shifts within 24 hours, and I try to move in a positive direction. Of course, ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ was a work that required great courage and was a challenge even for me.”

She continued, “It was my first time doing theater, and using energy on stage is no small feat. It is a work where I want to praise myself for finishing it all the way through despite being exhausted. Although I had many shortcomings, I practiced constantly every day, and at the end, the director clapped and hugged me. In that moment, all the fear and pain I had been holding melted away. Because I was able to have a precious experience that money cannot buy, if given the opportunity in the future, I definitely want to go on stage again. After suffering to the point of death, receiving the spotlight and breathing in sync with the audience—I think I will never forget that thrill and sense of achievement until I die. It is a work where everything remains like a movie,” expressing her special affection for the theater stage.

Although Han Da-gam has appeared in more than 30 major works, her thirst for acting remains. “Even after acting for such a long time, I have never once felt bored,” said Han Da-gam. She added, “In terms of acting, there are many things that feel lacking and insufficient. I still worry about my (acting) spectrum. I really want to try playing a truly evil villain, and I also want to express a brutal character who goes all the way to the rock bottom. I have a strong desire to play a role where I throw in everything I have at least once.”

She then explained, “When I look at a work, the first thing I check is whether the book (script, screenplay) is interesting, and the second is the potential for development as an actress. The third is the worry of ‘can I do it well,’ and the fourth is interest. Since childhood, I have been a future-oriented person who dreams all 24 hours, so I love the surging energy and the feeling of moving forward. Acting gives me that kind of energy.”

On the other hand, it is true that glamorous, sophisticated, and metropolitan roles naturally come to mind when thinking of Han Da-gam. Could these aspects be influencing her thirst?

Asked this question, Han Da-gam revealed, “Since I am a Miss World alumna, I think that image was more prominent (at the time of my debut). That part became a concern, so I tried to change direction, but fortunately, the reaction was not bad. However, many people said I suited metropolitan roles better. At some point, I thought, ‘Let’s not try to change (the image) for no reason.’”

She continued, smiling, “If the public likes that side of me, perhaps that is my role. Whether it is a villain or a hero, whether it is a metropolitan look or not, whatever image people seek in me, I shifted my thinking to simply satisfying that. As a result, I now feel that I am actually blessed.”

Recently, Han Da-gam has been frequently revealing her sincere and simple “human side” through various variety shows and social media. Regarding showing her true self, Han Da-gam said, “I am a person without pretense,” adding, “I am grateful that many people like the sides of me that are not captured in my works. I do have the desire for those natural aspects of mine to be reflected in my works and acting.”

Continues in Interview ②

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original