[Sportschosun Jo Ji-young] Actor Lee Hong-nae, 36, shared his thoughts on "The Legend of the Culinary Soldier."
Lee Hong-nae, who played Yoon Dong-hyun, the sergeant cook of Kangrim Platoon who is about to be discharged, in the TVING original series "The Legend of the Culinary Soldier" (written by Choi Ryong, directed by Jo Nam-hyung), met with Sportschosun at a cafe in Jongno District, Seoul, on the afternoon of June 18 and spoke about the show's finale.
Lee said, "In the final episode, Yoon Dong-hyun is discharged and tells the unit members, 'Thank you,' before leaving. After watching the last episode, I had trouble sleeping that night because I felt so good. It felt like I was really being discharged from the military. I was happy to be discharged, but I also missed it, so it felt bittersweet. I felt that same bittersweetness as if I were actually leaving the military, and I was happy throughout the broadcast because I received so much love."
In real life, Lee enlisted in 2011 in an artillery unit of the 8th Corps in Goseong County, Gangwon Province, and completed his full term of service in 2013. He said with a laugh, "Some people say military dreams are nightmares, but not for me. I was serious about the military, even though I was eliminated early. In fact, I was serious enough to take the exam for the Republic of Korea Air Force Academy. I also have a relative on my maternal side who served in the military, and during my service it seemed like a good fit for me, so I even thought about becoming a career soldier. My enlistment was a huge turning point in my acting life. While I was working part-time in Seoul as an aspiring actor, I was called up and went. Once I became a soldier instead of an aspiring actor, I loved that I did not have to pay rent and got regular meals. Even so, the reason I decided to be discharged was that acting kept calling me. Acting kept asking me, 'Don't you feel disappointed?' So I was discharged and continued my career as an actor."
"The Legend of the Culinary Soldier," based on the popular WEBTOON of the same name by J Robin, is a military cooking fantasy drama about a private who swaps a knife for a rifle and an apron for a cartridge belt, then grows into a "legendary military cook." Park Ji-hoon, Yoon Kyung-ho, Han Dong-hee, Lee Hong-nae and Lee Sang-yi star in the series. Choi Ryong, who wrote "Chairman Is at Level 9," "My Awful 20s" and "Dogobin Is Updating," wrote the script, while Jo Nam-hyung of "A Superior Day" directed it.
Jo Ji-young, Sportschosun, soulhn1220@sportschosun.com
