I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 194

“……Subdue a thug?”

The Santa-like, pot-bellied man took off his tinted sunglasses, looking bewildered. In contrast, the composed, brown-bobbed foreign woman spoke in a casual tone in English.

“Yes, not a staged scene, but in real life.”

“There’s a video like that circulating on YouTube?”

“That’s right.”

The man, who had been lying on the beach bench, slowly sat up. Then, he recalled the Korean actor, Kang Woo-jin, the woman had mentioned. It had been more than half a year ago. He had seen ‘The Fixer’ at a rather famous short film festival in Korea.

‘Come to think of it, he was the best actor at the entire film festival, wasn’t he?’

The Santa man had taken an interest in the rookie actor, Kang Woo-jin. He had actually received the Best Actor award at the Mise-en-scène Film Festival [a prestigious South Korean short film festival], beating out many other actors. Well, it was an award for rookie actors, but whatever the case, the man remembered Kang Woo-jin the most.

‘His acting… was incredible. Especially his facial expressions in that basement scene.’

Even though it was quite a while ago, Kang Woo-jin’s acting was vivid in the man’s mind. Because of that, he had mentioned Kang Woo-jin to his casting director when he returned to Hollywood. ‘There’s a good actor in Korea, so look into him.’

But that was it.

The world is vast, and there are countless actors, especially rookies like Kang Woo-jin. That’s why the Santa man had naturally forgotten about Kang Woo-jin, but conversely, the casting director woman, whose job was to monitor actors, had brought him up again.

Then.

-Swish.

The suited casting director woman handed her phone to the pot-bellied man. A YouTube video was paused on the phone, and the Santa man tapped the play button with his index finger.

It was a roughly two-minute-long video. A familiar dashcam recording.

Kang Woo-jin instantly subduing a thug with a sharp object who was running at a woman. It was amazing even for an average person to see, so how would it be for the Santa man who had an interest in Woo-jin? His eyes widened instantly, and he replayed the video. In the end, after replaying the video about four times, the Santa man let out a small exclamation.

“Huh—Indeed, it’s quite an interesting video.”

The brown-bobbed woman smiled.

“Right?”

“This video isn’t staged, but real?”

“That’s right. After looking into it, it was a real incident, and it was reported on the news in Korea. Kang Woo-jin saved a Korean actress, and because of that, he’s become a hot topic in Korea.”

“If it’s this big, it’s more than enough to become a topic here in Hollywood.”

At that moment.

-Swish.

Two foreign women in bikinis brushed past them. One of them, slightly plump, whispered after seeing the Santa man sitting on the beach bench.

“Isn’t that George Mendes?”

“Huh? Who?”

“There. Don’t you know? He’s an actor who’s also in movies and famous as a director.”

“Ah—I know who you mean.”

Soon, the two women gave the Santa man a smile-filled greeting.

“Hello—”

The Santa man smiled back, as if used to it, at their hand gesture.

“Nice to meet you, how about we have lunch together later?”

“No?”

The Santa man, who was instantly rejected, looked at the women’s backs, denying reality.

“Haha. He looks embarrassed.”

The suited casting director woman shook her head.

“Director, he’s not embarrassed, he just doesn’t like you.”

“Is that so? Oh, dear.”

Even though he looks like this, the Santa man, or rather, director George Mendes, was a fairly famous director in Hollywood. He had made a name for himself as an actor in the past, and after appearing in a few hit movies, he suddenly started his career as a film director.

Of course, the beginning wasn’t smooth.

After messing up several films, director George Mendes barely managed to create a moderate hit. That became the starting point, and then he produced the movie ‘Last Kill’.

It was a huge success.

After that, the sequel to ‘Last Kill’, ‘Last Kill 2’, also succeeded at the box office, and director George Mendes was able to make a name for himself as a director in Hollywood. And currently, he is preparing for ‘Last Kill 3’, which has turned into a series. As you can feel from the title, the ‘Last Kill’ series was action-oriented.

The story is about a retired killer who wipes out a killer organization for some reason.

It’s a work that focuses more on action than the story, and its strengths are its refreshing development and stylish martial arts. That’s why ‘martial arts’ is essential, and there is a great need for actors who are skilled in ‘martial arts’. This time, for ‘Last Kill 3’, they were aiming for a world expansion, so they had to include actors from Asia as well.

While they were looking for an Asian actor who was skilled in ‘martial arts’, Kang Woo-jin came up again.

Of course, the role they were looking for wasn’t that big. It was more of a supporting or minor role. But there were lines, and more than anything, there was an action scene with the main character, so its importance wasn’t low.

Anyway, director George, who had turned his gaze from the women who were walking away to the phone in his hand.

“Hmm—”

Suddenly, his expression turned serious. Then, he evaluated Kang Woo-jin’s movements in the phone.

“He’s trained. And for quite a while.”

The brown-bobbed woman agreed.

“I think so too. There’s no way that movement came out by chance.”

“Especially this move where he twists the thug’s hand and throws him over is amazing. There’s no unnecessary movement in his actions, which means he wasn’t nervous at all. It wouldn’t be easy to do this in real life, not in a filming scene—I like his guts.”

Director George, who was stroking his plump cheeks while muttering, raised his head and made eye contact with the casting director woman.

“There’s a screen test in a few days, right?”

“Yes. You’re scheduled to see the Chinese actors.”

“How about adding this Kang Woo-jin on that day?”

The screen test that director George mentioned is a test where they film almost like an actual shoot. It was very different from a typical audition. How does the actor look on the monitor? Sometimes it’s done simply, but often it’s done openly, similar to an actual shoot. They test a scene from a set scenario, including the surrounding environment, the other actors, lines, and direction.

It’s almost a mandatory process in Hollywood.

If you think about it, it’s close to an actual shoot. It’s just that the word ‘test’ is attached to the word ‘shoot’. Still, the director as well as many staff members participate. Kang Woo-jin was mentioned in such a large-scale test.

“Ah—Is it a bit sudden to have a screen test in a few days?”

At director George’s question, who had his arms crossed, the casting director woman shook her head for some reason.

“It’s a good idea, because Kang Woo-jin is currently in LA, not Korea.”

“Oh—really? Why?”

“I heard he came for a TV show shoot.”

“I see.”

Director George, who answered briefly, continued.

“Then, call him in on that day.”

A few hours later, late lunch, Hermosa Beach in LA.

A famous beach located near the lower part of LA International Airport. Perhaps because of that, even though it was close to lunchtime, many foreigners were enjoying their rest at Hermosa Beach. Near Hermosa Beach, a Korean sign caught the eye.

-‘Our Table’

It wasn’t that big, but it was a clearly noticeable restaurant. Because it was a store that sold Korean food. Many foreigners were already lined up in front of the store. That’s right. This was the store that the ‘Our Table’ team would be running. It was quite far from North Hollywood, where they had been running the food truck, and their accommodation had also changed.

They had been operating for three days already.

Of course, customers were overflowing. Thanks to the fame of the food truck and the rumor that it was a popular restaurant, it had already spread to the nearby area. On top of that, the power of social media and the Korean wave [Hallyu, the global popularity of South Korean culture] also played a part. Anyway, ‘Our Table’ was incredibly busy.

There were dozens of customers lined up, and the inside of the store was already full of foreigners who had taken their seats.

It was several times busier than when they had the food truck.

Because of that, Kang Woo-jin in the kitchen was.

“Bulgogi, Jeyuk, add Gimjaban!! [Korean dishes: marinated beef, spicy pork, and seasoned seaweed]”

“Confirmed!”

“Ah! Make the Jeyuk not spicy!”

Concept or whatever, he was a food-making machine. Hong Hye-yeon and Yeon Baek-gwang around him were also just doing their jobs without time to laugh. Ahn Jong-hak, Hwa-rin, and Ha Gang-soo were busily moving in the hall. Taking orders, serving, and cleaning up tables. In the midst of all that, they also had to answer questions.

“Where can I watch this TV show? Netflix?”

“No, it’s not on Netflix.”

Top actors in Korea were going through a lot of hardship. The only ones whose mouths were curving like bows at this moment were PD Yoon Byung-sun and his team, who were watching the ‘Our Table’ store. But the ‘Our Table’ production team wasn’t just playing around. They also had a lot to do, such as interviewing customers, taking insert shots of nearby attractions, and promoting.

The only ones who were a bit less busy were the staff other than the cast members’ managers.

When the cast members went into filming, they didn’t have much to do, and because of that, some of them enjoyed Hermosa Beach near the store.

However, Choi Sung-gun, with his ponytail, was an exception.

-♬♪

His phone didn’t stop ringing. Of course, more than 70% of it was because of Kang Woo-jin. Therefore, Choi Sung-gun was sitting at a cafe with an outdoor terrace near the ‘Our Table’ store, constantly talking on the phone.

“Ah—Yes, director. Haha. It’s been a while. Yes, yes. Mr. Woo-jin’s schedule for early next year? Hmm… Well, I’ll have to check and get back to you, is that okay?”

About an hour passed like that.

Choi Sung-gun, who had barely managed to calm down his phone, stretched out his long body.

“Ugh! I’m going to die.”

But.

-♬♪

His phone rang again. Choi Sung-gun, who was drinking a cup of coffee, let out a long sigh.

“Ha—I can’t even break this thing.”

He grumbled briefly and checked the caller. The other party was BW Entertainment. Soon, Choi Sung-gun, with his ponytail, answered the phone casually.

“Yes—um? Oh, oh?!”

His pupils suddenly widened, and he barely managed to speak.

“So, that is—they said that directly? Ah… I understand, let me hang up for now.”

Choi Sung-gun, who had put down his phone, had a look as if he was possessed by something.

‘Miley Cara?’

It was news worth that reaction.

‘Cara wants only ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’ to appear?’

The world-renowned star Miley Cara, who was currently in Korea, wanted to appear on ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’. Moreover, they had requested it first. Choi Sung-gun already knew that she had visited Korea. However, he had not expected this kind of scenario.

“Could it be that she saw that video posted on ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’?”

Choi Sung-gun recalled Cara’s cover video among the videos of ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’. Well, it was now a natural phenomenon for Hollywood stars to visit Korea and appear on YouTube channels. In fact, not only Cara but also many other Hollywood stars had done so.

Cara’s conditions were simple.

They wanted a content proposal from ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’. It had to include the promotion of her new movie and a corner about Cara. Their schedule in Korea was until the 18th, and the filming had to be done within that time.

Everything was possible. Choi Sung-gun immediately started calculating.

‘That doesn’t mean we have to be too considerate, ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’ should also get as much as possible. A duet song with Woo-jin, talk and cooking, and even avatar cooking, let’s push it as a comprehensive gift set.’

Then, Choi Sung-gun recalled Miley Cara’s face.

‘If we use that Miley Cara as a guest… how much impact would that have?’

It was Miley Cara, no less. The ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’ channel was already easily getting millions of views, but if they added Miley Cara to it, the destructive power would increase several times.

More than anything.

‘I’m kind of looking forward to the picture.’

Choi Sung-gun was also curious about the chemistry between Kang Woo-jin and Cara. What would Kang Woo-jin be like in front of a Hollywood superstar? But soon, he came to a conclusion.

“Haha, I don’t think it’ll be much different.”

The next morning.

The sun was rising in LA. Around this time, Choi Sung-gun, with his hair down, walked out of the accommodation, a house that looked similar to the ‘Our Table’ cast’s accommodation, a little ways away.

“Ughaha!”

He yawned widely. In one hand, he held a steaming cup of coffee. With his ponytail down, making him look like he had a bob, he took a seat at a small table set up in the front yard of the accommodation.

-Swish.

Even while taking a sip of coffee, he immediately checked his phone. Because of the time difference, many messages, calls, and texts had piled up.

Among them, Choi Sung-gun first checked the article sent by a BW Entertainment employee.

『[Exclusive] Global Superstar ‘Miley Cara’, who visited Korea, confirmed as a guest on ‘Kang Woo-jin’s Sub-Character’ channel!』

Fortunately, the Miley Cara matter was progressing without any problems. They would continue to discuss the details of the content and filming date, but her appearance itself was confirmed. The Korean media would probably already be spreading this news.

“The atmosphere is good—”

Choi Sung-gun was about to tie up his hair, which he had let down, with a satisfied smile.

-♬♪

His phone, which was placed on the table, rang. The caller was an unknown number. But it seemed to be an LA number, not a Korean one. Soon, he tilted his head and answered the phone.

Soon, a calm female voice was heard over the phone. It was English.

“We are from ‘Winner Movie Pictures’ film company. Are you the representative of BW Entertainment?”

At that moment, Choi Sung-gun frowned.

‘Winner Movie Pictures’ film company??!’

It was a fairly famous place even in Hollywood.

‘Winner Movie Pictures’ film company. Choi Sung-gun also knew the name. Among the numerous film companies and production companies scattered throughout Hollywood, ‘Winner Movie Pictures’ was a mid-sized company.

They were involved in movies as well as broadcasting content recently.

But their main focus was still film production.

While Choi Sung-gun had the phone to his ear, a movie title flashed through his mind for a moment.

‘If it’s a recent hit, it would be ‘Last Kill 2′, right?’

Of course, there were quite a few hits before, but if it was recent, it was the ‘Last Kill’ series. Whatever the case, in Hollywood, where there were many huge film companies and production companies, a mid-sized company was not a small film company.

Why would such a place call me?

First, Choi Sung-gun answered the woman on the phone in slightly awkward English.

“Yes, I am the representative of BW Entertainment. What can I do for you?”

The calm woman’s answer was quick.

“We would like to see Kang Woo-jin, one of your actors.”