The Face Genius Actor

Episode 055

A few hours ago.

As the filming of “Straight Sun” officially began, Cindy couldn’t help but be surprised.

‘Is this really the appearance of a rookie actor?’

She had some idea of his skills.

It was natural since she had binge-watched “I Will Cast Love”.

But she didn’t know he would be this handsome.

There were such celebrities.

Those who aren’t that great on screen but look handsome in person.

Or those who aren’t much in real life but shine on screen.

Cindy had assumed Si-joon belonged to the latter category.

Because it would be unfair for a rookie actor who acts this well to be handsome too.

However, Si-joon’s real appearance exceeded imagination.

He was handsome on screen, but even more handsome in person.

This was a case Cindy had never experienced before.

After being momentarily flustered, Cindy inwardly cheered with joy.

‘I knew my instincts were right!’

It was true that Cindy had created “Straight Sun” after seeing Si-joon.

More precisely, it could be said that the character of Kim Won-young, played by Si-joon, gave birth to the song “Straight Sun”.

“Straight Sun” was a musical sublimation of the scene where Lim Hee-joo, who chose to part ways with Kim Won-young, runs to the hospital after hearing news of an accident.

As Cindy watched that scene, a melody arose in her head, which led directly to composing the song.

As such, from Cindy’s perspective, casting Si-joon for the music video was a natural progression.

After all, no one could embody the male lead of “Straight Sun” as wonderfully as Si-joon.

But now, Cindy’s thoughts had changed.

‘Si-joon is more than enough for the “Straight Sun” music video!’

This was evident from his appearance alone.

But as she began to act in earnest with Si-joon, she had to revise this thought once more.

‘Unbelievable! How can he act this well too!’

Si-joon wasn’t just a handsome person.

He perfectly embodied the role as if he had just jumped out of “Straight Sun”.

She thought it would be fine if he could just match Kim Won-young from “I Will Cast Love”.

But Si-joon perfectly grasped and expressed through his acting even the subtle differences between Kim Won-young and the male lead of “Straight Sun”.

He was even performing facial expressions and actions not too excessively, as if he had appeared in music videos many times before.

‘What is this? Does this make sense? Have I ever acted with such a talented rookie actor before?’

She was especially surprised when Si-joon acted out the scene where he disappears from the spot like suddenly evaporated water droplets.

The only NG during today’s music video shoot was in this scene.

And at that moment, Cindy could be certain.

‘This music video will be quite a hit! For sure!’

With that certainty, Cindy was able to move towards the waiting vehicle in a good mood after finishing the shoot.

Then suddenly, she wondered what it would be like if Si-joon appeared in “Let’s Live Together, Princess”.

It seemed she wasn’t the only one having such thoughts.

Kim Sung-hee spoke up beside her.

“By the way… about actor Lee Si-joon.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t you think he would be good as the male lead in ‘Let’s Live Together, Princess’?”

“Wow. Chills. I was just thinking the same thing. Right? Don’t you think he’d be good?”

“Yes. He’s perfect. I heard the production company is having difficulty casting the male lead. How about bringing it up?”

“That’s great! I should talk to Si-joon directly about this.”

“That sounds good. Si-joon’s vehicle should be over there.”

So Cindy moved her steps, hoping that Si-joon hadn’t decided on his next project yet.

* * *

I thought for a moment about Cindy’s unexpected proposal before answering.

“I’d be grateful if you recommend me. However, shouldn’t I read the script first before giving any answer?”

Cindy had stepped forward to recommend me.

As such, I thought it would be courteous to give a careful impression even if I didn’t end up joining “Let’s Live Together, Princess”.

So I told Cindy that I would read the script first and then give her an answer.

Fortunately, Cindy seemed to understand my situation and nodded.

“Of course. You should definitely read the script first. By the way, I wonder why Si-joon hasn’t received a casting offer. He’s perfect for the male lead role in ‘Let’s Live Together, Princess’.”

“Well, maybe writer Jung Su-jin has something in mind? Perhaps she’s considering another actor.”

“I heard that the original model for the male lead in ‘Let’s Live Together, Princess’ was Jun-min. But as you know, Jun-min enlisted in the military not too long ago.”

The person Cindy mentioned was Park Jun-min.

Park Jun-min had risen to stardom after appearing in “Back to the 18” and was currently known as a top actor with a ‘flawless pure youth’ image.

His influence was so great that the entertainment industry would buzz whenever he appeared.

It could be said that for any male lead role in a drama, Park Jun-min was always the first target.

But as Cindy said, Park Jun-min was currently enlisted in the military.

“Hmm. So does that mean there were no other targets after that?”

“Yes, it seems so. I first confirmed my casting because I liked the script, but it seemed they were struggling with who to cast for this role.”

If that was indeed the case, it seemed I could set my sights on the main male lead role in “Let’s Live Together, Princess”.

However, I still didn’t think the possibility was high.

If writer Jung Su-jin really wanted me, the script would have already been sent to my company.

‘Although I know that the ratings for ‘Let’s Live Together, Princess’ were poor before my regression, so the likelihood of accepting a casting offer is low…’

Such thoughts were meaningless since I hadn’t even received an offer.

“Anyway, I’ll ask why Si-joon hasn’t received the script. So don’t worry.”

As Cindy said this with a determined expression, I smiled and replied.

“Alright. Then I’ll be waiting for the script to arrive soon.”

* * *

A few days after finishing the music video shoot.

I went hiking early in the morning with my father.

Usually, my father moved with the members of a hiking club called ‘Chwiseon’ on weekends, but not today.

For some reason, the club members had something come up and the schedule fell through.

My father suggested we go to the mountain together instead, and we were currently at Yongmunsan located in Yangpyeong.

“Here we are at Yongmunsan. The view isn’t great because there’s a military base at the top, but it’ll be a good workout since the terrain is rough.”

Father always wanted to build up the physical strength of my brother and me.

My brother was a bit thinner than average due to his modeling work.

I also couldn’t build bulky muscles like my father because I was an actor.

For this reason, father assumed that both of us had weak physical strength.

Of course, having inherited father’s blood, our stamina wasn’t bad.

In my case, I had been exercising diligently after realizing its necessity.

But father’s standards were exceptionally high.

That’s probably why he chose a hiking course that would provide a good workout today.

‘I was hoping for a place with nice scenery since it’s been a while since I went hiking…’

Putting aside this regret, I started hiking, following my father.

Indeed, Yongmunsan was steep, as my father had said.

I thought I had been exercising quite diligently, but I quickly found myself out of breath.

It seemed even more so because it wasn’t a national park.

But that didn’t mean everything was bad.

Rather, it felt like nature was well-preserved because it hadn’t been overly touched by human hands.

After climbing the winding path for a while, we reached the middle of the mountain.

Emerging from a small path, an open space revealed itself.

A lush forest by a stream, seemingly untouched by sunlight, flaunted its magnificent scenery while retaining moisture.

“Wow…”

As I exclaimed in admiration, my father spoke.

“Shall we take a short break here?”

“Is that okay?”

“Sure, we’ve sweated quite a bit.”

I sat down with my father.

We shared some water and enjoyed the cool breeze. As I was zoning out for a while, I heard my father’s voice.

“Isn’t it funny about mountains?”

“Pardon?”

“You know, climbing up even though we know we’ll have to come down. Isn’t it strange?”

“Ah, the famous joke. Fishermen ask hikers why they climb when they’ll come down, and hikers ask fishermen why they catch fish when they’ll release them.”

“That’s right. As expected, my son knows everything. But you know, life is all like that. Repeating the same actions even though we know we’ll come down, even though we know we’ll let go.”

“Is it a bit meaningless?”

“Rationally speaking, yes. But it’s not exactly like that. Walking on solid ground with two sturdy legs. Looking up at the summit hanging in the blue sky while smelling the forest scent. And having a leisurely conversation with someone you like while looking at this scenery. They’re all meaningful things.”

My father said this with a smile.

Listening to my father’s words, something resonated with me.

Certainly, I didn’t think hiking was meaningless either.

As proof, there was definitely something that made my heart flutter at this moment.

‘It’s important to continue building a successful career. That’s more efficient.’

But for some reason, I wanted to challenge myself with acting that might be considered a bit reckless now.

I thought that this might be why I hadn’t found a project I liked until now.

‘Yes. This time, let’s focus on finding a script I like rather than focusing on success.’

You’re less likely to get seriously hurt if you fall before climbing too high.

Looking at it this way, this was the perfect time to take on a new project.

As I organized my thoughts like this, I felt lighter, as if a burden I didn’t even know I was carrying had been lifted.

At that moment, my father, who had been quietly observing my expression, smiled and spoke.

“Let’s go up again now. We still have a long way to go to reach the summit.”

My father stood up first and started walking ahead, and I followed, checking the peak of the summit hanging in the blue sky.

Seeing a bird flying next to it, I thought, ‘It really is far.’

* * *

The next day.

I received the script for “Let’s Live Together, Princess” from Yeo Kyung-chan.

According to Kyung-chan, the script had already been delivered to the company before Cindy asked about it.

Writer Jung Su-jin apparently made that excuse, but I’m not sure how much of it can be believed.

Anyway, I decided to accept the casting offer if the content was good, so I started reading the script without worrying too much.

How much time had passed?

After finishing reading the script for “Let’s Live Together, Princess”, I couldn’t help but tilt my head in confusion.

‘How could such a well-written work achieve only that level of success?’

No matter how many times I thought about it, I just couldn’t understand.