I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 289

Caddie Megan’s brow furrowed even more at the simple answer from the famous producer, Joseph.

“I’m having trouble understanding.”

Joseph was only giving answers that were questionable from start to finish. And that didn’t sit well with Megan. Joseph Felton was always like that. He only knew, and he didn’t give any hints to others.

“Can’t you explain it in an easy way?”

The giant Joseph shrugged his shoulders.

“Well, just like you have a relationship with Kang Woo-jin, I have my own relationship with him.”

“······”

“That’s scary, isn’t it?”

“Of course not.”

Megan cleared her throat. Joseph, with a smile, murmured softly at the sight.

“You’ll find out naturally later.”

Megan let out a short sigh.

“Hoo- okay.”

She quickly changed the subject.

“Then, how did things go with the film company? There must have been prior agreements. You told me that you’d use any actor regardless of nationality, but if the investment is already secured, it’s easy for things to change.”

“That’s always the case.”

“Do you think an Asian actor is possible?”

Joseph’s smile deepened as he stroked his chin.

“Didn’t I say? I was looking for a project that would suit him well. Megan, don’t worry about anything else and move freely. But there are definitely limits in reality. For example, we know Kang Woo-jin, but people in this huge Hollywood don’t know him.”

“······Bringing in an unverified Korean actor for a lead or supporting role is…”

“Close to impossible.”

“Hmm. It’s difficult.”

Megan’s head seemed to be filled with Kang Woo-jin for some reason. It must be because Woo-jin’s performance was so great. Joseph, who knew this, patted her shoulder.

“But if he makes a splash at Cannes this year, things will change. It might be difficult for a newcomer to win an award, but if he shows overwhelming acting at Cannes, it will be easier to persuade them. For now, let’s do what we have to do like professionals and look forward to Cannes.”

He gave a thumbs up.

“Kang Woo-jin, he will definitely show something.”

Later that day, early afternoon, Korea. Jeonju.

The heat of filming was getting hotter as time went on at the ‘Leech’ set. This side had somehow reached the end of a tightrope. Therefore, over a hundred staff members, the team members of the actors, actors who had already finished their filming, and numerous ‘Leech’ related people besides the reporters were watching the two actors.

Kang Woo-jin and Jin Jae-joon.

The two were re-shooting several times in the final scene. It wasn’t because there was a problem. It was just a bit delayed because Director Ahn Ga-bok was filming in short cuts by character and background.

Currently, the two actors were outside the filming zone.

Jin Jae-joon was getting his makeup touched up, and Kang Woo-jin was gulping down a bottle of water that Han Ye-jeong had handed him. His expression was indifferent, but inside, he was feeling a bit tired.

‘Hoo- it’s tough. But somehow, I want to finish today with this feeling.’

Due to the hectic filming, the frequency of entering the subspace had decreased significantly today. But today, he wanted to carry this heavy feeling to the end.

Why?

It’s not clear. Maybe it’s just a whim.

Around this time.

“Standby! Standby!”

The assistant director, who had received instructions from Director Ahn Ga-bok, shouted. Then, Kang Woo-jin moved first. Then, Director Ahn Ga-bok in front of the monitor called him.

“Woo-jin.”

The funny thing was that he didn’t give any specific direction, but only raised his thumb. What is it? Woo-jin reacted indifferently, but inside, he was a bit dumbfounded. Well, it was Director Ahn Ga-bok’s way of cheering him on.

Anyway, Kang Woo-jin walked. His destination was inside the set.

Small cranes, cameras on the shoulders of the filming team members, etc., captured Woo-jin. His face was as firm as ever.

Kang Woo-jin stopped.

Boom mics, lights, and reflectors were set up around the set.

Kang Woo-jin took a small breath.

Jin Jae-joon, who had finished his makeup touch-up, entered the set where Woo-jin was. The interior of the set where they stood was a luxurious office. To be exact, it was the vice president’s office of ‘Yoon Ja-ho,’ played by Jin Jae-joon. An expensive-looking brown leather five-seater sofa was placed, and many documents were visible on the large desk. Various paintings to decorate the vice president’s office were noticeable on the walls.

Kang Woo-jin commanded.

It was only natural that Woo-jin, who had been casually looking around the set, called for ‘Park Ha-sung.’ The current filming order was the last, but the scene was around the mid-to-late part of ‘Leech.’ So, Park Ha-sung’s heart was moderately tainted. He wasn’t aware that he had Ripley syndrome [a psychological disorder where a person believes a false reality], but he was in a state that was quite faded and changed.

He had already crossed the line and cut the cord.

Such Park Ha-sung was transmitted through Woo-jin’s blood vessels all over his body.

“······”

In an instant. A subtle emotion bloomed in Kang Woo-jin’s heart. It wasn’t desire or greed. It wasn’t something he was longing for. It wasn’t something he had taken.

‘Mine, it’s mine.’

It was closer to establishment. The justification for recognizing his heterogeneous self had already disappeared in his brain. It was definite and certain. I exist in this world and have assimilated. It’s not your world.

It’s our world.

It was at this moment.

“Hi-”

Director Ahn Ga-bok’s signal through the megaphone was heard. At the same time, Woo-jin not only brought out ‘Park Ha-sung’ but also performed additional work. It was a look that had been shown little by little during the filming of ‘Leech.’ The ‘freedom of the role,’ that is.

“Action.”

With the permission to go wild, the filth that had spread in Woo-jin’s chest became even thicker. The lies coming out of my mouth and the actions shown by my body are all true.

‘What was my past like? I don’t remember. No, maybe it didn’t exist. I’ve been here all along.’

Cutting out the long film of life, the current fragmentary thing became all of Park Ha-sung.

-Swish.

Kang Woo-jin, with a face somewhere between indifference and boredom, entered the vice president’s office. Two cameras were filming him from the side and front. Kang Woo-jin, or Park Ha-sung, looked around the spacious vice president’s office.

“Hmm-”

Then, he very lightly broke the frame of ‘Leech.’ In the original scenario, Woo-jin was supposed to sit on the sofa right away. But now, Kang Woo-jin was adding actions such as pursing his lips and touching the desk, or inhaling the overall air of the vice president’s office.

“Hoo-inhale- hoo.”

Now, Kang Woo-jin was based on the fundamentals of the ‘Leech’ scenario, but he was moving freely without hesitation. There was no need to be trapped in the scenario. However, it wasn’t excessive or unnecessary. The freedom that Woo-jin was showing now made Park Ha-sung’s color several times thicker.

Director Ahn Ga-bok, who was glued to the monitor, smacked his lips.

‘He touches everything and even breathes the air. The psychology of wanting to have everything and his unhesitating actions are three-dimensional compared to the beginning, yes- that’s the kind of picture I had in mind for Park Ha-sung.’

Actors such as Shim Han-ho and Oh Hee-ryung, who had already mastered the scenario, also couldn’t take their eyes off him.

‘Each movement is light, but… the expression on his face is intense. It’s to the point of feeling disgusting.’

‘His acting has been on fire lately. It’s become a bit more delicate? His creativity also stands out.’

Kang Woo-jin, who was doing something close to a deep breath, coughed a few times.

“It’s awful.”

It was because the air in the vice president’s office contained a stale cigarette taste. The fragrance from the diffuser and the smell of cigarettes were mixed, creating an unpleasant odor.

But Park Ha-sung smiled.

The camera zoomed in on his face.

“It’s not bad, I feel attached to it because it’s similar to me.”

The mixed scent was not unfamiliar. It was just comfortable. It was understandable. Kang Woo-jin wasn’t aware of it, but he was indirectly expressing that the smell of fragrance and stench was the same as his situation. The great actor Shim Han-ho immediately grasped the inner meaning of Woo-jin’s acting.

‘······Their world is fragrance, and his world is musty. The disgusting smell of the two mixed is the current scent of Park Ha-sung. It’s damn meticulous.’

Around this time.

“Cut.”

Director Ahn Ga-bok cut. Of course, it wasn’t an NG [No Good, meaning a retake]. The same scene was repeated several times. Kang Woo-jin’s acting was impressive, but.

“Let’s keep going with the bust shot from just now.”

“Yes, director.”

It was to change the viewing angle.

Then the next scene.

Woo-jin, or Park Ha-sung, sat on the five-seater sofa. A faint smile spread across his face. He stroked the armrest of the sofa. The texture is nice. The corners of his mouth went up even more.

-Clunk!

Suddenly, the vice president’s office door opened, and Yoon Ja-ho entered in a full suit. His face was full of annoyance. The camera captured the two in a two-shot, and Yoon Ja-ho, who glanced at Park Ha-sung sitting on the sofa, gritted his teeth.

The anger was getting stronger.

“That fucking…”

He wanted to twist his neck, but Yoon Ja-ho barely held back. His mother’s face came to mind. Love? No, it wasn’t love. It was a desire for power. If he was out of his mother’s favor, it would be difficult for him now, and that idiot was pitifully receiving his mother’s favor.

Yoon Ja-ho was agitated, Park Ha-sung was calm.

The difference in their temperature was vividly captured by the camera. Yoon Ja-ho, while loosening his tight tie, picked up the pack of cigarettes on the desk.

-Swish.

While exhaling a long stream of cigarette smoke, Yoon Ja-ho walked to the five-seater sofa.

He glared at Park Ha-sung, who was sitting demurely on the sofa. Jin Jae-joon, or Yoon Ja-ho, sat on the armrest of the five-seater sofa.

“Hoo-”

He spoke to Kang Woo-jin with cigarette smoke. His voice tone was full of coldness.

“You, huh? You, I’m talking to you. You’re going to die like that.”

It was a threat that was a mix of impatience and anger. He was subtly looking around. No, to be clear, he was looking at his mother’s eyes behind that guy.

But he couldn’t lose his authority.

On the other hand, Park Ha-sung was quietly looking up at Yoon Ja-ho. No, there was no change in Kang Woo-jin’s expression. That faint smile made Yoon Ja-ho boil over even more.

“Don’t smile, before I shove a cigarette in your mouth.”

“Hyung [older brother].”

“You son of a bitch! What? Hyung??!”

Yoon Ja-ho threw the cigarette he was holding at Park Ha-sung’s torso. The smoking cigarette fell to the floor with a thud, and as the lingering smoke brushed his face, Park Ha-sung, or Woo-jin, covered his nose with his hand. Then he looked up at Jin Jae-joon again.

“Why are you so wary of me?”

Jin Jae-joon, who put a new cigarette in his mouth, chewed on the cigarette filter and replied.

“You think I’m wary of someone like you? You’ve really gone crazy.”

“Ah- is that so? I think I understand.”

Kang Woo-jin stood up. This was also different from the scenario. Originally, he was supposed to recite ‘Because my mother only listens to me’ without stopping while sitting on the sofa. But Woo-jin, looking at Jin Jae-joon with a frown.

“Mother.”

He put a pause in the line. He was going wild freely. While maintaining the foundation of ‘Park Ha-sung.’ Woo-jin, who paused for a moment, left the sofa and said softly.

“Only listens to me.”

“······What?”

Leaving Jin Jae-joon’s question behind, Kang Woo-jin strolled around the vice president’s office. He was truly free. He was following the scenario, but it was also Park Ha-sung’s way.

The camera followed him.

Woo-jin looked out the window with a face somewhere between a smile and a sneer.

“Ah- or is it not?”

Then.

-Swish.

Woo-jin, who murmured softly, turned his head to the left. Among the various props placed on the shelf, a medium-sized frame caught his eye. It was a family photo. His mother, Yoon Ja-ho behind her, and Chairman Yoon Jung-bae, etc. It was a family photo with everyone.

The only one missing was one person.

“It seems my mother can only listen to me.”

Originally, it was a cut here. That’s what the line was. But Director Ahn Ga-bok, who was staring at the monitor.

“······”

He didn’t open his mouth. Rather, he swallowed hard. That guy, that monster, had something in mind. The intonation and rhythm had changed, but the line was the same. However, Woo-jin’s movements were not in the scenario, and there was an intention visible. Everyone on the set was staring at Kang Woo-jin, and Director Ahn Ga-bok was staring intently at the monitor.

At this time.

-Swish.

Kang Woo-jin’s gaze, which had been on Jin Jae-joon, turned back to the family photo frame. Then, slowly, very subtly, he moved his face. The camera director noticed Woo-jin’s movement and captured the frame from behind his head.

Soon, it was visible.

“This will do.”

Kang Woo-jin’s face, or rather Park Ha-sung’s face, was slowly filling the glass of the family photo frame.

The camera director, with widened eyes, immediately captured the frame in full. Park Ha-sung’s, or Woo-jin’s, face with a slightly curved corner of his mouth was reflected in the family photo frame.

At this moment, Director Ahn Ga-bok gave the signal.

He was already wearing a wrinkled smile. His widened pupils were filled with joy. Kang Woo-jin’s ad-lib was.

“······Cu, cut.”

The previous one was perfect as the last filming scene of ‘Leech.’

End