Lee Dong-wook: "I Gained 8 kg for Jeong Jin-man... It Was Painful to Force Down Five Protein Meals a Day" ('Kill Show 2')

[Sportschosun reporter Jiyoung Cho] Actor Lee Dong-wook (45) said, "I gained 8 kg for Jeong Jin-man in 'The Shopping Mall of the Killer.'"

In an interview with Sportschosun on the afternoon of the 23rd, Lee Dong-wook shared behind-the-scenes stories about the Disney+ original series 'The Shopping Mall of the Killer Season 2' (written by Hojin Ji and Kwon Lee, directed by Kwon Lee).

'The Shopping Mall of the Killer Season 2' is a stylish action series in which Jian, now the new head of the shopping mall after a harsh handover, launches a full-scale counterattack with Jeong Jin-man, who has returned from the dead, against the Babylon global forces. Lee Dong-wook played Jeong Jin-man, a former Babylon mercenary and the founder of Murthehelp, a shopping mall for killers.

Lee said, "The biggest change for Jeong Jin-man in Season 2 is that the amount of action has increased a little. It will be released in the latter part of 'The Shopping Mall of the Killer 2,' and viewers will be able to see a new side of Jeong Jin-man that they have not seen before. It will be even more brutal than the first season," raising expectations.

He added, "Whenever I am asked how I prepared for the action scenes, I honestly have nothing to say. I can't just make something up, can I? So I usually say I did what I always do. This was not even my first time doing action. I did a lot of action in 'Tale of the Nine-Tailed.' For the 'The Shopping Mall of the Killer' series, I trust the action team. I thought safety was the most important thing, and in reality, if you get hurt, you can't keep filming. Because they give me that kind of confidence, I had no difficulty with the action. In fact, Jo Han-sun had a harder time than I did. Veil, the character he played, covered one eye, didn't he? That must have made depth perception difficult, and if the timing was off, someone could have been seriously injured. He went through a lot because of that, so I always felt sorry."

Returning to 'The Shopping Mall of the Killer Season 2' after two years also felt special. Lee said, "I was worried about filming again after two years. I am not usually the type to worry, but I was nervous the day before my first shoot. I went to the set with that nervousness, but all the Season 1 staff had come back, so it felt very familiar and welcoming. The tension from the day before disappeared the moment I saw their faces. It felt as if I had seen them just yesterday." He continued, "As for the physical preparation, I usually gain 8 kg when playing Jeong Jin-man. Also, he should not look dramatically older after two years, so I drank a lot of water to prevent aging. Honestly, gaining 8 kg is really hard and I hate it. My usual body type and Jeong Jin-man's body type have to be different, because he is a character who stands up to an opposing mercenary group. Since he is taking on a huge company called Babylon, I thought he needed a strong, imposing physique, so I gained weight for the role. First of all, I ate a lot. I had four to five meals a day, and they all had to be protein-heavy. So rather than eating, it felt like forcing food into my mouth, and it was really painful."

'The Shopping Mall of the Killer Season 2' stars Lee Dong-wook, Kim Hye-jun, Jo Han-sun, Geum Hae-na, Kim Min, Jung Yoon-ha, Hyunri, Masaki Okada, and Lee Tae-young. The series was written by Hojin Ji, who wrote the first season, and directed by Kwon Lee. It began releasing episodes 1 and 2 on the 22nd, and will meet viewers with two new episodes every Wednesday for a total of eight episodes.

Reporter Jiyoung Cho soulhn1220@sportschosun.com

This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.