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| Actress Kim Tae-ri played the character of Na Hee-do in tvN's romantic comedy series, "Twenty Five Twenty One." Courtesy of Management mmm |
By Lee Gyu-lee
Actress Kim Tae-ri, who got her breakthrough in director Park Chan-wook's "The Handmaiden," has proven herself as a versatile actor by playing roles such as a determined independence activist in the period series, "Mr. Sunshine," to the charismatic leader of a space crew in the sci-fi film, "Space Sweepers."
About four years after she starred in the hit series, "Mr. Sunshine," the actress has returned to the small screen to play a lovely, aspiring fencer in the tvN series, "Twenty Five Twenty One," taking her first stab at the romantic comedy genre.
"This series has given me a lot of takeaways. I've learned to be appreciative. I'm thankful that I had a chance to do such great work during these tough times and I'm grateful that I get to take part," Kim said during an interview with The Korea Times, last week. "(The series) taught me what it is like to be in the rom-com genre; there are so many possibilities in regards to acting."
Led by Director Jung Ji-hyun, the series is a romance and coming-of-age story of a high school girl, Na Hee-do (Kim), and a college dropout, Back Yi-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk), in 1998 when the country was hit by the Asian financial crisis.
Faced with the national crisis that crushed people's dreams and broke apart families, Hee-do and Yi-jin struggle through the tough era to accomplish their dreams and become adults while seeking comfort in each other.
The 16-part series ended on Sunday with its highest viewership rating of 11.5 percent.
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| A scene from the series, "Twenty Five Twenty One" / Courtesy of tvN |
Kim, who is turning 32 this month, said she fell right into the role of an 18-year-old girl, Hee-do. "I read through the script smoothly … when I read my lines out loud, I just felt as if I were really Hee-do," she said, adding that she didn't have to put in any extra effort to understand the character.
"I didn't have any pressure over how I should portray this character … Hee-do is such a free-spirited child and I had never met this kind of character so it was a new experience."
However, she added that she wished she could have pulled off the high-spirited part of the teenage girl character.
"I feel like I could have done more with the character. I didn't know that viewers would love Hee-do this much. If I had known that viewers see her as so cute and lovely, I would've tried to make the character more dynamic. But I didn't have enough courage," she said.
The actress noted that she received messages from her friends from high school, telling her that the character reminds them of her own self as a teenager.
"A part of me is like Hee-do. When I'm in the mood, I can be very spirited. So people might get sick of me," she said, laughing. "I can get out of control and be like a child when I get really excited."
Despite the romance and coming-of-age story the two lead characters share, the series doesn't have a happy ending, with Hee-do and Yi-jin breaking up after struggling and juggling their professional lives.
Kim expressed that she put her heart into portraying the special relationship between those two characters, noting that she felt great chemistry with her co-star, Nam.
"I was so happy to work with this really great actor," she said. "(I would like to tell him that) our series was so beloved thanks to you. And my character was beloved because of the way Yi-jin looked at her. You made this series come out like that."
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