Why Lee Seung-gi is excited about first Phl visit
South Korean superstar Lee Seung-gi is flexing his action muscles in the spy series Vagabond, the next big K-drama to watch on Netflix.
In Vagabond, the 32-year-old actor is stuntman and aspiring movie star Cha Dal-geon who finds himself getting involved in a tragic commercial plane crash and ends up uncovering a national corruption scandal.
Starring alongside Seung-gi is singer-actress Bae Su-ji — also known to fans as Suzy — who plays Go Hae-ri, daughter of a deceased marine who decides to work as a secret ops agent to support her family. Their characters become unlikely partners in the action-packed quest for the truth, bringing them across Morocco and Portugal, with doses of humor and romance along the way. The series marks the second time Seung-gi and Suzy have been cast opposite each other as leads following their 2013 historical-fantasy drama Gu Family Book.
The STAR and other select Philippine press caught up with Seung-gi (as well as Suzy, but that’s a separate story) in South Korea last Sept. 11, ahead of the world premiere of Vagabond via the streaming giant on Friday, Sept. 20.
While the media were under strict instructions not to take selfies and videos, or make any attempt tantamount to fangirling, Seung-gi opened the roughly 25-minute roundtable interview at the Imperial Palace Hotel in Seoul with a bright hello and an even brighter smile, plus some small talk prompted by the room’s cold temperature. He then requested some people to lower down the room temperature after also noticing some reporters in front of him close to shivering because of the aircon and probably because of such close encounter with the Korean heartthrob.
Through an interpreter, Seung-gi talked about his training for the high-octane scenes, his work relationship with Suzy, his being one of the frontliners of the phenomenal Hallyu or Korean Wave, and his message to Filipino fans whom he is looking forward to finally meet on Oct. 12, as part of a series of fan meetings in Asia dubbed as Vagabond Voyage. Here are excerpts from the interview: On what Filipino fans can expect from him in the series:
“I had some chances to go to the Philippines (before) but it was not exactly (meant) to be the chance for me to actually visit. But for the first
“In the traditional action series, the characters are usually professionally trained staff. For example, a special agent or special agent who lost their memory, or a special agent who is retired, or a killer who got betrayed, or something like that. But for this series, my character is a stuntman and an inexperienced civilian, who gets involved in this huge conspiracy, and within it, we see my character and Su-ji’s character who is a secret agent, and both of them are going to uncover the conspiracy. So that will be the biggest difference between Vagabond and other action series.”
“So I actually gave that aspect some thoughts. What is the message of Vagabond and this is my personal take. There is good and evil and the concept of good and evil can be interpreted and accepted differently for different individuals. For example, depending on where you stand, the good and the evil can be viewed differently. So, in that kind of a situation, in the midst of such conflict of interests, the unchanging aspect I believe is the respect for one another and human rights, and some rights of the individuals that should not be violated. And when such elements are being sacrificed for the bigger cause, for the bigger good of the society that is going to happen in the series and in that situation and while watching the situation, the viewers will be able to think what exactly is justice then? That I believe is the message that Vagabond is trying to convey.”
On being in the frontlines of the Korean wave sweeping not just across Asia but in different parts of the world, and becoming a globally recognized star in the process:
“I have never thought of reaching the global stage. Back then I was thinking that I’m going to work only in Korea. But then good opportunities came and Korean dramas and contents are being loved and shared to the global audiences via Netflix, which is a good thing.
“I think that was made possible for the years of efforts made by artists, including Su-ji next to me and many management companies as well. And there must be many different reasons why Korean conferences are thriving so much but then I would say that the people who are working are never satisfied with what they have, and they’re thinking a lot about their content. And these aspects must have boosted the quality of Korean content so much.
“And while working on this drama series, as far as I know,
Vagabond is the first Korean series that was completely produced before the launch and includes a lot of action scenes. So while we were shooting, we felt very proud about this fact...
“That is why it took so long to complete shooting for this, one full year, and in the process Su-ji E1 t why lee Seung-gi