Let’s organize the situation a bit.
If Tae-kyu, whose acting ability is less than human, participates in this drama as is, our production cannot succeed.
If he were just a minor actor only appearing in a few scenes, it might be bearable, but this guy is quite an important supporting role.
No matter how well I act, and even if the two female leads come together and pour out their Method acting, there’s no way to block this.
The ideal option would be to remove Tae-kyu, but that’s impractical in reality.
I’d like to ask Heavenly Yuah to throw in the production costs and cut him out, but that’s obviously not going to happen.
If we were to unilaterally remove Tae-kyu, who already signed the contract, the liability would fall on us.
TS isn’t going to sit still either, and the broadcasting station will oppose it as well.
Root, the production company, won’t make such a decision either.
As an actor, I can’t do anything about this part.
So, in this situation where someone has thrown a wrench into our drama, who among our allies can we truly rely on?
The broadcasting station, which has already likely exchanged something with TS?
The production company, which has received hints about Tae-kyu’s actual abilities?
No way. Only Writer Ok, who is a private entrepreneur and must sincerely want the drama to succeed, is our true ally.
Among others, the other actors might do as well.
Fortunately, Writer Ok has some qualifications to shake up this situation, even slightly.
In a case like this, there are ultimately only two possible solutions: either adjust Tae-kyu to fit the role, or adjust the role to fit Tae-kyu.
But the former is already impossible.
Considering the attitude Tae-kyu showed today, this guy seems quite serious about acting.
His attitude before the script reading was like that, and while the results were messy, he was quite enthusiastic about the acting.
Naturally, TS would also be aware of that and might have attempted to teach him along the way.
If teaching didn’t improve things, that means it’s unlikely anything significant will change in a short time.
Which means the only option left is to adjust the role to fit Tae-kyu.
My conclusion is to give this guy a character that matches his stiff, robotic dialogue delivery.
Fortunately, Writer Ok must have realized that this isn’t a normal situation and is as sincere about the drama’s success as I am.
The question here is whether Writer Ok can handle this.
After the script reading ended, they rushed here immediately because of the time constraint.
Even if Writer Ok is a master of last-minute script changes, this won’t be easy.
Changing the character’s setting will also require some adjustments to the story progression.
Since time is short, the production company needs to make a quick decision too.
“Isn’t that going to change too much?”
“You saw Tae-kyu’s acting, right? What came to mind when you saw it?”
“I felt he was so rigid. Even if someone told him, he wouldn’t be able to deliver his lines differently. I thought he was some kind of artificial intelligence.”
“That’s exactly it.”
“Oh, so a robot…”
“Yes, wouldn’t that be okay?”
While repeatedly muttering about robots, artificial intelligence, and aliens, Writer Ok shook their head and replied.
“Actor Baek knows, right? Who ‘Juon’ is as a character.”
“Right.”
“But what if Juon wasn’t human? Then how would the story proceed?”
The protagonist Kang Min has his own unique recipe, which is the cheese sauce called “Fromage Fantastique.”
The main manager of a famous food company, Juon, infiltrated Kang Min’s restaurant through ‘Hyekyung,’ Kang Min’s ex-wife, to steal this recipe.
Hyekyung, who had a grudge against Kang Min after their divorce, readily accepted Juon’s request but ends up wavering at a crucial moment.
What happens if Juon isn’t human?
“An alien from the Andromeda galaxy. Secretly working to obtain Earth’s cheese sauce recipes.”
“…Isn’t that too over-the-top?”
“Writer, I trust you. You can turn even a setting like this into a well-crafted drama.”
“…Well, yeah, but…”
There’s no way this can become a well-crafted drama unless we rewrite the entire story.
After all, in a drama set in a restaurant, it’s impossible not to be labeled as over-the-top if aliens, artificial intelligence, or robots appear.
But we have no choice but to push forward like this.
Junsik was already on the verge of over-the-top territory in French Chef, and Juon, played by Tae-kyu, was beyond that.
It’s better to have an over-the-top story than over-the-top acting, anyway; it’s better for ratings.
Of course, the reason I say this isn’t because my dad particularly likes over-the-top stories.
“…Alright. Let’s try.”
“Excuse me, Writer. Are you really going to do that?”
“Is there another way? This guy obviously can’t act human.”
“But…”
“If you can’t remove this guy, don’t nitpick my script. I’m really disappointed. You know Root’s responsibility here, right? You should’ve told me at least.”
“…I apologize. But one thing is for sure, I had no idea it would be this bad.”
There must have been some prior dealings.
They knew he couldn’t act.
Honestly, there’s no one to trust in this industry.
Anyway, Writer Ok also acknowledges that Tae-kyu can’t realistically be used the normal way.
Then this part should be entrusted to Writer Ok.
I’ve done my part by providing direction, as I’m an actor, not a writer.
“By the way, what’s TS up to?”
The only lingering question I have is why TS, who knows Tae-kyu’s acting ability better than anyone else, didn’t stop him from joining this drama.
Not only that, it seems they spent a significant amount to secure his participation.
In the showbiz world, there’s no such thing as an expenditure without reason, so apparently they had some intent.
If my guess is correct, it’s quite a troublesome situation.
“By the way, I looked into TS a bit…”
“Yes, is there something about them?”
And Gang Cheol-nam, my manager, answered my curiosity.
Gang Cheol-nam, who observed the script reading, judged the situation as abnormal and contacted the company.
After notifying the company, he approached other managers and investigated TS’s situation.
Now, he was summarizing those findings and reporting them to me.
“First, it seems Tae-kyu was serious about acting since his debut. He was an aspiring actor before becoming an idol trainee, right? He does look like an actor.”
“Yes, but why can’t he act?”
“He switched to idols.”
“Ah, because acting didn’t work out for him.”
Indeed, Tae-kyu has been dedicated to acting.
“High Pitch is in the renegotiation season. And Tae-kyu’s condition was…”
“Acting debut?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
So that’s why they pushed through with this unfeasible acting project.
High Pitch is at least an idol group that can stay active for 4 to 5 more years.
Even after serving in the military, they could stay active for another 3 years or so.
If this was the re-signing demand, it makes sense that they would aim to cast him in at least one drama no matter what.
“Ultimately, the broadcasting station used this drama as a discard option.”
Broadcasting stations can’t be serious about every drama.
Given they air about three mini-series alone each week, not to mention daily, weekend, and morning dramas, focusing on everything is pretty key.
Of course, they’ll say that all dramas should do well, but internally, that’s not feasible.
They focus on self-produced dramas or those with big-name leads and try to extract decent returns from the lesser ones.
Our drama? If there’s a good reason, it’s easy to overlook or pass.
The lead actors are somewhat dubious, the scale relatively small.
If Heavenly Yuah were in this drama, it wouldn’t have turned out like this, would it?
If it were a Heavenly Yuah drama, it might have led to the decision to properly produce it.
“Well, business is business. I get it.”
I’m not in a good mood, but that’s life.
Even if there’s no real solution in sight, this is still business.
It’s like being in debt to the New Religion with no means to repay it.
The joke here is that if I grit my teeth and boost this drama’s ratings, the broadcasting station will reap the benefits.
There’s no better situation than this.
“First, I should meet with Senior Yuah. There’s something I need to ask.”
Since I get a rough sense of the situation, it’s best to do everything I can.
*
“Hey, crazy dude.”
“Huh? Is Senior not shooting today?”
“Yeah, today’s a rest day.”
“Good for you. Your face looks dead, though.”
“Guh, it’s been harder than I thought. We’re racing against the December release.”
“Definitely on a tight schedule.”
When I returned to the company, I found Nam Hyun-ho, who’s shooting a movie alone, sprawled out on the sofa.
His face looked a little off—must be due to the busy shooting schedule.
“You hit the jackpot, right? Tae-kyu.”
“It’s not a jackpot, but my guts are torn apart.”
“I told you, disliking idols isn’t just about jealousy. These guys, they judge acting based on their looks. It’s like they’ve got a way out without needing acting.”
“They might judge acting superficially, but it seems like this guy’s been working on it on-site. Still, hard work isn’t really important to an actor.”
“That’s the problem.”
News travels fast.
It was already set when the manager informed the company, but that this guy knows too suggests something.
Looks like this guy is somehow interested in my business too, huh?
If this guy knows, Moon Suyeon or Heavenly Yuah probably know as well.
If they’re aware, talking to Heavenly Yuah will be a little easier.
“Is everything else okay?”
“Else? What do you mean?”
“Isn’t Lee Hyerin and Yoon Yeonhee on set?”
“Do you know them?”
“Yes, roughly. Those two are serious rivals, right?”
“Exactly.”
“That’s something Senior Yuah would know best. She’s a direct witness.”
“…Is that right?”
I momentarily forgot about this amidst all the Tae-kyu drama, but Yoon Yeonhee and Lee Hyerin being problematic is an issue on its own.
Their relationship is quite bad.
“But let’s focus on Tae-kyu first. I’ll talk to Senior Yuah, too.”
Even though their poor relationship is concerning, if receiving a shock from Tae-kyu’s acting leads them to lose their motivation, that becomes a bigger problem.
The set can be like that—once someone feels it’s doomed, losing motivation and giving up on a project isn’t uncommon.
Showing up only out of contract obligations without putting their heart into it could happen.
If these two lose interest, finding their next projects won’t be too difficult for them.
If I were in their position, given there’s more to acting than just days or months, I might have chosen to play it safe too.
“I heard about it.”
“…Yes, Senior Yuah. But…”
“Yes?”
I went to meet Heavenly Yuah because I had questions and favors to ask, but this woman’s glaring at me like she’s ready for battle.
Like she’s about to charge someone.
She’s probably not going to pick a fight with anyone, though.
Could it be…because of the news I heard today?
Given that Heavenly Yuah understands the showbiz world so well, this is quite an odd situation.
No matter what it is, it seems I should calm Heavenly Yuah first.
—
“I have some things I want to ask.”
“…Yes, Senior Yuah, but…”
“Why?”
I came to ask her some questions and seek favors, but this woman was glaring at me with fierce eyes as if ready to charge into someone.
She probably isn’t about to throw a punch, but it seems this reaction is tied to the news I heard today.
Given that Heavenly Yuah understands the showbiz world best, the situation feels odd.
I’m not sure what the matter is, but it seems I should try to calm Heavenly Yuah down first.
