[Title: Did you see Seo Hoyun’s last scene in Dead after Hope.....
I thought he’d keep appearing until the very end, but I guess not.
But it feels like there might be a Season 2...
Why is Seo Hoyun’s actor face so rare to see these days..
There was even an article saying he got tons of CF offersㅠ but he hasn’t been showing up...
I also want to see that archery Kim Wooho CF!ㅠ
└Seo Hoyun’s acting is peaking right now, seriously insane.....
└└He looks like a completely different person compared to his last work.
└The emotions are so understated but that’s exactly why people get even more immersed lololol]
[Title: Is Seo Hoyun really that popular these days?
Title says it all.
└Do you live in a cave
└└Ah why lolololol
└└Go to the subway station right now, it’s plastered with ads. Not even his birthday, it’s for his debut anniversary.
└└Among new rookie actors in the past few years he’s basically one of a kind haha his face does the work.
└└Yeah, I heard the variety show casting ranking changed. #1 Min Jiheon, #2 Seo Hoyun.
└└LOLOLOL isn’t that just media play hahaha anyway he must be really popular]
[Title: One of those ads is hilarious
GoTo_AdBoard.JPEG
Hoyun, pay me back.
And contact me.
Totally unhinged LOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLL I can’t believe the subway station even approved this ad..
Not even “congrats on your debut,” just “pay me back.”
└Was that even Seo Hoyun??
└└No idea LOLOLOLOLOLOL If it was a fan, they’re a true comedian.
Totally that vibe, like “Nephew, it’s Auntie, call me...”
└Apparently it’s not just at GoTo, but also at Gangnam Station...
└└And also at Hongdae Station....
Whoever it is, he must owe some serious money.
└└This is seriously hilarious LOOOLLLLL even the white background and Gulim font are pure madness]
[Title: I was a third-rate actor, but in another world I’m a top singer??
Sorry for the clickbait title
Seo Hoyun’s appearing in Shining Star as a top star mentor role.
└???????
└Should’ve just clickbaited with the content itself LOOOOLLLLLLL
└Exactly hahahahaha whoa but Seo Hoyun’s actually gonna be in Shas...
└└Still just a rumor though]
[The fact that they all unified on “third-rate actor” is killing me... Are there still people pushing the rabbit thing? He’s Seo Rabbit, you know.
└Alright, if that’s what you believe then sure.
└└Damn, the relaxed attitude of the people who exist really pisses me off]
***
“Ohh!! Seo Hoyun is here!”
“Hello.”
When I entered the Shining Star filming site, Director Joo came rushing over with a huge smile. At our last meeting his dark circles had been hanging down to his chin, but now they were completely gone and he looked strangely refreshed.
With my manager, I went around greeting the staff.
“Hoyun-ah, thanks to you these days my shoulders are way up high~!”
As his popularity soared, so did the treatment and attitudes in the industry, and my manager was clearly over the moon.
“Oh, right, right! Did you see it? The billboards all over on your debut day, it was crazy.”
“...Mm, yes.”
“Some fan even wrote, ‘Hoyun, pay me back, and contact me’~!”
“...Huh?”
I had only skimmed through posts on communities and SNS, so this was the first time hearing the phrase directly from my manager. I thought, even here, fans sure have some very original ways of showing affection.
“Our Seo Hoyun, your popularity is skyrocketing endlessly~. You’re so firm about refusing, but honestly, there are tons of people looking for you. But really, you’re not going to do CFs?”
Of course not.
The system window had said it would “show up again within 2 weeks” before disappearing, so there was no reason to invite extra trouble.
I just shrugged once and headed toward the other cast members.
Because of the Shining Star title, I had been a bit uneasy, wondering if maybe... but there wasn’t anyone who resembled The Dawn.
“Oh, Seo Hoyun! You dyed your hair?”
“Looks totally fresh! It suits you~.”
“I was always fresh, though.”
Thinking back to Shin Heechan, you could sense a similar vibe among the roles, but still—
There was one person worth keeping an eye on.
The actress playing Seo Uiyoung.
“Ah!”
When she saw me, she looked a little surprised, then quickly smiled and held out her hand for a handshake.
“Hello, it’s our first time meeting today, right? I’m Ha Seoyeon.”
It was Ha Seoyeon.
She had risen to top star status through a youth drama years ago, and had also been the MC for Shining Star Season 2.
“Seo Hoyun.”
Joo Woosung’s other ex-girlfriend.
Finding myself once again on board this Hollywood-level trashy drama train, I marveled inwardly at the spectacle of my life while smiling brightly on the outside.
“I really enjoyed Dead after Hope. Your acting with Jiheon was neck and neck. I was completely immersed.”
“Thank you.”
“I heard from your manager that you wanted to play the protagonist in Shining Star.”
“...Even that reached you?”
“Ahaha. Sorry I cluelessly stole the role.”
Damn it.
Ha Seoyeon laughed like she was having a great time.
“How did you even know that?”
“Oh, this industry is small. Rumors spread fast.”
She seemed sociable and good-natured.
Does Ha Seoyeon know that “Kang Jiseong” is modeled after Joo Woosung?
And... did she date him in this world too?
My head throbbed with thoughts, but then she brushed her long hair back and said,
“I’m really looking forward to Kang Jiseong. It’s a subtly complicated role, isn’t it?”
“Complicated?”
“Mm. Basically a good person, but sometimes you can’t quite grasp what he’s thinking.”
“Haha.”
They dated. Definitely.
And she even seems to know that Joo Woosung is Kang Jiseong’s model.
“Anyway, it’s a short shoot, but let’s work well together!”
She neatly wrapped up with that and walked away.
Ding!
As I watched her back, a system notification popped up.
[What’s wrong?]
‘Kids these days are really fearless, huh....’
Even with her supposed ex-boyfriend around, she’s calmly appearing...
‘...Wait a second.’
That’s my story too, damn it.
I was the one brazenly showing up in a drama where my ex-girlfriend was the protagonist. The blow came back to me in full.
Clicking my tongue inside, I shifted my gaze—finally spotting the person I had been looking for.
“Writer!”
“Ohhh!”
I quickly approached, calling out to the writer.
“Oh my! Oh my, isn’t this Seo Hoyun~?!”
It was rare for writers to visit sets, but apparently she had come because all the main cast were gathering for the first time.
She looked worn out from sleepless nights of nonstop scriptwriting, but her eyes still sparkled brightly.
“Wow, I finally see you in person! You’re even more handsome than on screen~!”
“Writer. I read the Shining Star script well.”
“How is it? Do you like the role you’re playing?”
“It’s difficult.”
“Hahaha, yeah, a bit right? The role of Kang Jiseong doesn’t have a huge weight overall, but as a scene-stealer I have high expectations for you, Seo Hoyun.”
She laughed heartily, then let out a little “hm” as she studied me.
“But wow, this is strange. Even just standing still, you have this idol aura.”
I am an idol.
“Honestly, I did pester them like a brat to give the Kang Jiseong role to you... but to be frank, it’s not a perfect fit.”
“Excuse me?”
“The Kang Jiseong I envisioned has a stronger warmth, even though he’s supposed to seem indifferent to everything. In contrast, you have a calm, composed energy.”
Well, I never thought I could perfectly mimic Joo Woosung anyway.
But still—there’s no one in this world who knows him better than me.
“Yet strangely, I’m excited and thrilled to see your Kang Jiseong. I think it’ll be fun.”
Of course, what mattered to me wasn’t really that.
“By the way, Writer, just out of pure curiosity.”
“Oh, ask anything you want.”
After being cast, I had gotten all the completed scripts. Reading them felt like trudging through an unpleasant swamp.
Especially since Sung Jiwon, Kim Sunghyun, and Jung Dajun’s stories were detailed, but in Nugu Actor Tycoon the bastards who had tormented them were living it up freely.
But what really stuck in my craw was—
“How did you come up with such attractive characters?”
That Kang Ichae didn’t exist.
“Especially the cast. Did you have any real-life models?”
“No? None of them.”
My jaw clenched unconsciously.
I calmed myself again and asked,
“Then... did you ever consider creating a rapper role? Hip-hop is the trend these days.”
“A rapper? That never crossed my mind.”
“...Not even once?”
“It’s interesting, but I don’t feel it. Doesn’t spark anything.”
A bit deflating, but I couldn’t show it.
Scratching her head awkwardly, the writer continued,
“Writers are different, but for me, I can only write when I get a spark. One day, suddenly, the characters just come storming into my head like lightning. I just put them into words.”
Of course.
That would’ve been when fragments came flying in.
“And at the root of that feeling is this belief that somewhere, such a person really exists. If that doesn’t click, I just can’t write it.”
I had heard something similar before.
From Writer Kim Sookhee of Bring Me the Camera.
She had said while watching Shining Star she suddenly thought of Lee Junghoon’s character, and the scenario just poured out.
“Oh! But if the characters were idols instead of solo singers, then I might have calculated the balance differently.”
“...Ahaha, idols, you say?”
I got a sharp instinct that the next words out of her mouth would be crucial.
“Looking at the current lineup, the missing piece is a rapper, right? You’d also gain diversity in the lineup.”
“......”
“Besides, Seo Uiyoung PD worked so hard gathering these talents—if the last missing piece clicked in too, it’d be an unbeatable combination, wouldn’t it?”
...An unbeatable combination.
The writer was certain such a group would make it big. But ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) in reality, they had all ended up in Daepaseong, singing garbage like ‘Pop pop pop like a pineapple.’
Now that I thought about it, their ability stats were strangely high.
If left alone, they would’ve failed, but on closer inspection, none of them would look out of place in a major entertainment company.
‘Wait a second....’
I wasn’t some kind of vending machine for good deeds, yet somehow I’d collected all these strays into one group...
“Ah!”
As I pieced things together, the writer suddenly exclaimed beside me.
“Oh right, the director told me some news earlier. It’s huge.”
“What is it?”
“There’s a special guest today.”
No sooner had she said it, commotion broke out near the set.
With my years of broadcasting experience, I knew immediately—
This kind of fuss only happened when a top star arrived.
“Perfect timing, there they are.”
“Who?”
“You know how sometimes dramas had singers from the sponsor agency drop by to give feedback? Same idea. To raise our drama’s quality, we’re getting direct advice from active stars. Since WH Entertainment is supporting us, it’s easy to get resources.”
“......”
“......Though it’s basically just disguised media play, haha!”
An active WH Entertainment star?
Someone whose very presence was media play?
Even though I couldn’t clearly see his face behind the staff and equipment, just the silhouette gave it away.
“Seo Hoyun, didn’t you ask the director if Kang Jiseong had a reference model?”
“...Yes.”
“That’s right. Kang Jiseong’s the only role with a motif. I drew from multiple celebrities’ personalities, looks, and popularity, but the main core is that person right there.”
She gestured with her eyes.
Even with cameras flashing at him, he smiled with effortless ease. No trace of the exhaustion I’d glimpsed before.
His naturally light brown hair shimmered under the bright set lights.
“Joo Woosung.”
The writer smiled with satisfaction, saying he was shining brilliantly as always.
Joo Woosung turned his head—and our eyes locked directly.
For the first time since entering the set, I failed to control my expression.
Damn.
This is...
“Ask him a lot about the role!”
...way too much of a mess.
