Former Warrior Turns Into A Million-Dollar Actor [EN]: Chapter 8

The Shark in the Bathtub (2)

* * *

“At the set?”

“Yeah, you’ve been running around on the road for months, so it’ll help. Scheduling and stuff… I always dreamed of being an actor’s manager. And I can do daily gigs and get out right away.”

Then, rolling his eyes, he added his appeal.

“Until you get settled, hyung [older brother or respected male figure], I’ll do it for free. Deal?”

Gun pondered for a moment.

A blood-related manager… and unpaid?

The brother he remembered, and the one he’s seen so far, is a cheerful and passionate guy. He also has experience in the entertainment industry, so if he helps, I’ll be grateful.

As he nodded, Park Sun burst with joy and peppered him with questions.

“Hyung, so what’s the role? Does Eun Writer-nim [term of respect for a writer] have the script…? No, tell me about the audition first!”

While answering his brother, Gun reminisced.

The narrow and dazzling audition room.

The nostalgia he felt there a few hours ago.

‘A fake sword, a fake situation, all fake, but why did I feel that way?’

Was he a martial arts director?

The man in front of him seemed to have learned some martial arts, but he was only slightly better than an average person.

From the start, the situation of wielding a sword was just a rehearsed act. To a warrior who had rolled through hell for twenty years, it was no different from child’s play.

As the cue sign dropped and he raised his head, a strange sense of liberation washed over him.

‘It’s like I’ve returned to my old body.’

Thanks to that, he was so immersed for that brief moment that he pushed aside the martial arts director and went all the way to the table where the production team was sitting.

Did he see something similar to a warrior in that human butcher Choi Seung?

Or did the unfamiliar act of playing someone else bring back old memories?

‘This is all I’ve been doing anyway.’

I’ll just have to do it. Until Choi Seung dies in the play… or until I take on another role.

“Wasn’t it difficult? I heard from a senior on another team that martial arts directors are actually wary of real fighters.”

“It was easy for me. The martial arts director there took my number, not the PD [Production Director]. He told me to come to his school.”

“As expected… masters recognize masters.”

Park Gun, who had clenched his fist and was shining his eyes, suddenly remembered something and said.

“Ah, and Roman called.”

“Roman?”

“Yeah. They said they want to have a meeting with you and told me to contact them when you have time. They also gave me the direct number of the actor team leader.”

Gun nodded vaguely. It’s an agency where the ending was good, but the process wasn’t.

They probably don’t intend to scout me, and if they have personal business, they’ll contact me on their own.

“Anyway, hyung, trust me.”

“What for?”

“Taking care of actors is the manager’s job. Even if I roll around in a pile of shit, I won’t let you get cursed at.”

“You’ll get poisoned if you roll around there. You don’t eat or apply human waste.”

“Ah, you’re taking it seriously again!”

*

Promotional materials were distributed.

Eun Hee-wook and Na Jong-mo, a combination that created a sensational hit, are also a duo notorious for their stubbornness.

It started with Eun Hee-wook’s new work , which won the grand prize at the MBS contest 9 years ago.

Since it’s a sure-fire hit, there’s little external interference, and they do whatever they want without regard for viewer reactions, but the viewership ratings are amazing.

From the director’s point of view, if they just arrange the schedule well, they can aim for at least a mid-level hit, and if they’re lucky, even a big hit.

“Yes, PD-nim [term of respect for a producer/director].”

The writer Eun Hee-wook, sitting cross-legged in a large traditional Korean house in Pyeongchang-dong, answered the phone.

-Writer-nim, have you checked the materials that have been released?

“I was just looking at them. Is this the first time it’s been properly distributed to the press?”

-Yeah, the MBS Monday-Tuesday drama… ‘Married Three Times, Divorced Four Times’? I told them to release it right when they’re rowing. This industry isn’t like it used to be, so you have to be sneaky to grab attention.

“Uncle’s going to click his tongue.”

-Hey, this is just friendly competition! Isn’t it a drama world where if you can’t push them down, you get pushed down?

Eun Hee-wook scrolled through the six monitors set up in front of him with interest.

Hansung Ilbo, Gangsang Ilbo, Jeil Sports… Articles and comments about ‘Seoul’s Dog’ were popping up on each screen.

“PD-nim.”

-Tell me, Writer Eun.

“I keep saying ‘fun, fun’ like a habit, but I don’t think it would be fun if it actually flopped. I don’t know what it’s like to hit rock bottom in viewership ratings.”

-Ha, well, that means…

Na Jong-mo’s voice, which could be heard from the other side of the phone, also became sinister.

“Let’s slowly prepare our secret weapons.”

*

Actors have smaller fandoms than idols.

To be precise, fans are less active. Structurally, there is less fuel to keep the impact going.

There’s a saying that ‘the actor scene can’t beat the idol scene’.

Even if an actor becomes popular for a moment, they’ll be forgotten in a few months, and the entertainment section won’t be turned upside down when A-list actors start new projects.

At best, the agency releases tidbits and the PR team disguised as fans spreads them on the community, that’s about the average level of buzz.

But Seoul’s Dog was a little different.

First. Yong Joon-sang, who plays the main character Ma Dae-hwi, belongs to a large agency, Pinns Entertainment,

Second. Seo Hee-do, who belatedly joined as another lead, Jung Yeon-woo, was from a popular idol group.

Title: This JNBC Gallery’s Main Character’s Drama

Is anyone waiting for Seoul’s Dog? I’ve been going in and out of the gallery because there hasn’t been any activity for a while ㅋㅋㅋㅋ I’m starting to get excited because the discussion is slowly heating up… The writer is Eun Hee-wook and the PD is Na Jong-mo.

What genre is it?

ㄴHard-boiled + noir, they say 흳 is a lead

Another hard-boiled… another noir…

ㄴAnother detective, another explosion, it’s a stable taste!

ㄴI’m worried ㅠㅠㅠㅠ The reporters incited controversy over acting skills in the last work and tore him apart…

ㄴThe agency will push him hard, so let’s make sure the public opinion doesn’t get pushed back this time

I’m looking forward to it ㅇㅇ Na Jong-mo and Eun Hee-wook make delicious food even with stale ingredients

ㄴThat’s right, it’s always good to use fresh faces ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

ㄴSo when does filming start?

*

The reactions in Seo Hee-do’s gallery, fan cafe, and the entertainment section of large communities were divided.

Half were looking forward to the hard-boiled genre, and half were worried that he would become a target for reporters again due to acting controversies in this work.

In the back seat of the van, Seo Hee-do threw away his smartphone and sighed deeply, unfolding the worn-out script.

“Hyung [older brother or respected male figure], what if I get criticized again this time? What if the CEO calls me to the room of truth again and gives me a two-hour lecture pretending not to scold me? Should I really quit the company then?”

“The CEO never scolded you, he’s just saying things for your own good.”

The manager, who was reading the lines for the other character, replied indifferently.

“That’s scolding and nagging. Our members tease me these days when they see me, asking if I’m being dragged to the principal’s office again to listen to a lecture.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s why you prepared so hard because you didn’t want to hear that. If you do well this time, all the haters’ nonsense will disappear.”

“Hyung is too harsh. That’s why you’re a T [personality type in MBTI].”

Seo Hee-do pouted and grumbled, then pointed to a spot in the script.

“But here, the role of Choi Seung. Who’s the actor?”

“I don’t know? I heard that none of the actors who auditioned got the part.”

“Ah, they’re discovering a new face again.”

Seo Hee-do, who has been known as a hard worker since his idol days, couldn’t possibly not know the style of his work’s writer.

The manager looked worried instead.

“So the director is a little worried too. It’s a scene where you’re often together, and it would be a disaster if a weirdo came and ruined the picture.”

Acting also requires chemistry with the other actor. If the chemistry is good, there’s synergy, but if one side is a mess, they might be disparaged together.

Seo Hee-do, scratching his nose, said something out of the blue.

“You know, if we get criticized together, let’s treat them to a food truck later. This person will be criticized because of me too.”

“Why would they be criticized? They should be grateful just to be in the same shot as you, Hee-do.”

“Hmm… still, I hope they’re a fun person. Our Choi Seung hyung [older brother or respected male figure].”

“Fasten your seatbelt. We have to go to the next schedule.”

“Hyung, I haven’t even finished my lunch box yet!”

*

The actors gathered at the script reading site for ‘Seoul’s Dog’.

It’s the first script reading that gathers the young blood of this industry, and only the acting talents among them.

The actors who knew each other were busy greeting each other from the waiting room.

“Oh, Jin-soo-ssi [term of respect] is here too?”

“It’s Writer Eun’s new work. As soon as the manager hyung [older brother or respected male figure] said the announcement was out, I auditioned.”

“I’m jealous… My agency doesn’t tell me anything, the roles are all taken and I barely got on at the last minute. Speed is life for this kind of thing.”

Following the supporting actors, the lead actors also arrived one after another.

“Hello, seniors!”

“Oh, sit down. If you do that, I’ll really feel like an old man coming out for some air.”

Kwak Joong-il, who plays Yong Joon-sang’s father, laughed heartily and accepted the greetings.

A veteran actor who joined last, he is also an actor who will hold the center in this drama where veteran actors don’t appear.

“Senior, you’ve arrived.”

“I’m here too, seniors!”

Yong Joon-sang, who plays the detective Ma Dae-hwi, and Seo Hee-do, who plays the terrorist Jung Yeon-woo, also bowed to Kwak Joong-il.

“The masks are really amazing this time… a handsome young man and a handsome middle-aged man, just looking at them is a sight to see.”

Kang Nana, who plays the female detective in Ma Dae-hwi’s team, whispered.

A male actor who plays an investigator who is beheaded and exits in two episodes took the words.

“Joon-sang-ssi [term of respect] is so famous, and Hee-do-ssi [term of respect] was originally a visual center from an idol group… but when it comes to masks, that side is not bad either?”

Kang Nana’s gaze followed to the side. A small man was greeting everyone on the set in a loud voice.

“Is that, that manager?”

“No. The actor he brought.”

“Ah, that unknown who was said to be Choi Seung.”

Unlike the manager, who was full of energy, the actor was very relaxed. After going around and greeting everyone, he sat in a chair with a name tag and looked at the palm of his hand.

Usually, the behavior of an unknown actor on set is one of two things.

Either they try to get noticed by flattering the staff, or they memorize the script while being very nervous.

But the way he’s sitting with his legs crossed and clenching and unclenching his fists…

“It feels like he came to work a daily part-time job.”

“Leave him alone. I see he doesn’t have any lines. Today’s reading, that person doesn’t have a single word, he just came.”

An expression of understanding flashed across Kang Nana’s face.

A male actor who was dropped from the Choi Seung role audition from the documents enthusiastically belittled the man.

“Well, he’s just an action one-trick pony. An extra who uses his body well. There are types who get roles just because they have a good face and physique.”

“Who, me?”

A playful voice was heard from behind, and the two were startled.

Seo Hee-do, who put his hand to his ear, grinned and continued.

“It hurts my face to hear that. About 65% of the hate comments I get are about that, so how much would it hurt that hyung [older brother or respected male figure] to hear that kind of thing?”

“No, Seo-baeunim [term of respect for a senior actor]. That’s not what I meant…”

“Oh, it looks like it’s starting. Then do well!”

Seo Hee-do quickly cut off the words and entered the waiting room where the reading was starting.

‘We’re doomed,’ ‘I know.’ The two who exchanged glances also got up weakly and followed.

Thinking that this drama is twisted from the beginning.

*