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| Actress Kim Hee-sun poses in this file photo. / Courtesy of Hinge Entertainment |
By Kim Ji-soo
Reporters met actress Kim Hee-sun from the highly popular "Woman of Dignity" at a dimly lit café in Seoul last Wednesday, but the actress' star wattage brightened the room.
"Come on, give me your name cards, and please have some cake too," Kim told reporters, breaking the ice. The top actress is enjoying renewed popularity for her role in the drama that aired on JTBC from June through last week. While it started out at around 2 percent in ratings, it ended at 12 percent Sunday.
Asked about the renewed attention she has been receiving since her debut in the late 1990s, Kim said, "On a good day, it feels good to hear that. But on a bad day, sometimes I wonder if my past roles or former years were lacking in some way," Kim said.
The Friday-Saturday drama revolved around an elegant upper-class housewife in the posh district of Cheongdam-dong, Woo Ah-jin, played by Kim, who married a quasi-chaebol son. Park Bok-ja, played by Kim Sun-a, admires such a life and is hired by Kim's character to attend to Woo's rich father-in-law. Park then succeeds in seducing the father-in-law, becoming a chaebol family member herself.
The drama featured a talented array of main and supporting stars. With its persuasive story, it quickly became the talk of the town. Culture critics have noted the drama takes a jab at the rigid line between the haves and the have-nots. The drama took a personal look into various behavior that envy toward the "haves" can encourage.
Kim has starred in several dramas after getting married and giving birth to a daughter, including "Angry Mom" (2015), which have achieved high ratings, attesting to her star power. But "Woman of Dignity" was her first foray into a cable show.
"I have to admit, I was worried about the ratings initially. But now I try to see it only as a number," Kim said. She spoke highly of her co-stars, the writer and affection poured toward actor/comedian Jung Sang-hoon, who plays her flirting husband in the drama.
Kim is a veteran actor, like her co-star Kim Sun-a. Thus, there was no denying the pressure on the two working on a new drama on a cable channel, with a storyline full of affairs and betrayals rather than the popular romance content.
"It is however so much easier for actors when the story is knit so that every character has a context, a connectedness to the whole scheme of things," Kim said.
She added that the success of the "Woman of Dignity" has given her confidence and a broader range of choice for her next work.
"There are not that many roles for female actresses in their 40s or above, mainly for commercial reasons," Kim said. "But now as a married woman with a daughter myself, I think about how to diversify my future roles," Kim said.
Kim hit stardom in the mid-1990s with a series of dramas including the "Men of the Bath House" (1995), "Mister Q" (1998), "Tomato" (1999) and "Angry Mom" just to name a few. Aside from "Woman of Dignity," she is currently starring on the reality entertainment show "Island Trio" with comedian Kang Ho-dong and singer Chung Yong-hwa.
"The one key to the longevity of my success is that I am not scared or shy to play roles that befit where I am in life, like for example playing a married woman with children," Kim said. "It doesn't work to try too hard, and also letting all that expectation get to you won't work either," she said, when she was asked about her successful long career.
Kim said she doesn't like to look back in general. "Already I am thinking about my next work, and hoping that it will garner a good reception," she said.
Asked what life was like for a top actress, "It's the same. My days are about the same as yours. It's only when I film that I become an actress," Kim said.
How does she deal with stress?
"I am the type to express what's on my mind. I think it's the people around me probably having a harder time," Kim said with a laugh.
