On the August 16 broadcast of JTBC’s Knowing Bros (Liberation Day special), Lee Jung-hyun appeared alongside Choi Tae-sung and Jang Ye-won.
Lee shared, “I was able to participate thanks to my ancestors. My maternal grandfather was a national merit honoree.” Hearing this, Lee Soo-geun joked, “Those who called someone like him ‘Japanese’ are in big trouble now.”
Lee then revealed his grandfather’s medal of honor, saying, “After his passing, in 2020, he was awarded the Order of Military Merit Hwarang Medal. He was a Korean War veteran and had many metal fragments inside his body. When preparing to place him in the National Cemetery, he had to be cremated, and so many traces came out.” Kim Hee-chul bowed in apology, while Seo Jang-hoon added, “When you appeared in Mr. Sunshine, I thought they actually cast a real Japanese person. This should be widely known because many people still misunderstand you as Japanese.”
Lee recalled that he sang the national anthem at the Liberation Day celebration. “It was the 73rd Liberation Day. As a descendant of a national merit honoree, I was invited. I thought my grandmother would watch proudly, so I sang it loudly,” he explained. However, Lee Soo-geun playfully commented, “Doing that during a choir is considered bad manners.”
Lee then admitted, “I received a lot of complaints asking why a Japanese person was singing the Korean national anthem. Since it was right after Mr. Sunshine, the misunderstanding was even greater.”
Known for often portraying Japanese villains, Lee said, “The works that left the biggest impression were Anarchist from Colony, Three Kingdom Wars – Imjin War 1592, and Mr. Sunshine. I think I used a lot of Japanese in those roles.”
Lee, who also studied abroad in Japan, added, “During university, I went on exchange for a year to learn judo. But I couldn’t speak Japanese like a native. Thankfully, I had many Zainichi Korean actor friends like Oh Sang-yoon and Han Geon-tae who helped me a lot during projects.”
When asked “Did writer Kim Eun-sook ask you to speak Japanese during your audition for Mr. Sunshine?”, Lee revealed, “Actually, I didn’t audition because I was cast due to Anarchist from Colony. I think that’s why I did well.”
He added, “I wanted to immerse myself, so I practiced a lot — even little gestures like sticking out my tongue. Some of those habits still remain.”
When asked if he feared being typecast as a villain, Lee admitted, “I worry a lot, but sometimes I do get cast in romance roles too. Honestly, I think playing villains gave me more opportunities. For example, I also appeared in The Nice Guy — though I was a bad person there too,” he said with a laugh, using the moment for some self-promotion.
Sources: Daum
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