Elia Ponz, ‘Jonyeh Boss, Her,’ has officially joined.
Elia, who flew to Korea like the wind, signed the contract right away, and the news was reported in an article.
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Coincidentally, Elia, who turned out to be more well-known in Korea than in the U.S., had her joining welcomed by the audience who found “Code Number: 7” entertaining.
It’s a bit funny that people expect more from the combination of Elia with Na Ye-ri than with me, but since Na Ye-ri’s fandom is overwhelmingly larger than mine, the previous atmosphere wasn’t really off.
For me, pulling up the topic in any way to increase viewership would be a win.
“Can I stay here until the filming starts?”
Elia, who arrived in Korea before filming even started, naturally settled into our company.
Elia is a very friendly person, and since everyone, including Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyeon, had a favorable view of her, we decided just to let her stay.
The company still had many vacant offices, and hosting just Elia wasn’t a problem.
“I also need to think about the future. I haven’t given up on Heavenly Yuah.”
Heavenly Yuah, who appears not to have given up on Heavenly Yuah, likely aims to impress Elia with this opportunity.
Could she actually be serious about filming something?
I’m somewhat taken aback, but it’s a good thing for me either way.
“Now we should start preparing this side.”
“Indeed. People’s affairs never flow smoothly.”
“They must be thoroughly deliberating over there.”
“It’s understandable since we’ve gained Elia, putting them in a position of perceived crisis.”
If the competition for ratings were decided solely by the pure entertainment value of the work, it would be much tidier. However, worldly affairs don’t operate logically. In the cold-hearted show business world, there’s no such thing as fairness; various ways to undercut the competition and back-room schemes practically become the norm.
Speaking bluntly, acts bordering on terrorism or sabotage happen regularly, as long as they don’t directly harm lives.
“SBC is skilled at such schemes; we’ve experienced it firsthand.”
“Indeed. The process of revealing Elder Yoon’s identity left an impression on me as well.”
SBC genuinely excels at public relations. The process of unveiling the identity of my first acting role as Elder Yoon was also handled by SBC. They gathered much attention and effectively boosted ratings with a big reveal, then reaped the benefits neatly.
To think SBC would do nothing for their in-house produced drama would be overly careless, wouldn’t it?
If the opponent were inconsequential, perhaps we wouldn’t care, but our drama, with Na Ye-ri, myself, and now Elia, is more than enough to raise the enemy’s caution.
Given that, it’s better for our mental health to assume SBC will definitely do something and prepare accordingly.
And before anything else, we’ll confirm the opponent’s lineup.
“Has the casting on our side been settled?”
“Yes, it’s roughly organized.”
It makes sense to start confirming the opponent’s lineup by checking the casting.
“Ultimately, the male lead is Seo Min-seok. They seem to be going light on other roles while emphasizing the protagonist a bit more.”
“Seo Min-seok. But didn’t that part come to me?”
“Yes, Seo Min-seok is the best fit for action period dramas.”
“That’s surprising. I had no idea that part was a main role. I thought the scholar role would naturally go to Nam Hyun-ho.”
The top-tier young actor Seo Min-seok landed the role of the royal bodyguard that almost went to me.
He is one of the highest-paid actors here, and with Seo Min-seok as the protagonist, it seems the quality of the other actors has slightly dropped. More importantly, the role of doctor that was initially offered to Heavenly Yuah ended up going to Lee Hyerin, who I also know. Lee Hyerin is not a bad actor, but she clearly doesn’t match Heavenly Yuah.
“Lee Hyerin does act well.”
“Lee Hyerin is at least someone you can communicate with. Her strong and gentle demeanor makes her easy to work with.”
“Doesn’t it depend on which female actors are on set?”
“I don’t think we have anything to worry about since Senior Kang Ji-woo is joining.”
“Ah, Senior Kang is also involved.”
Lee Hyerin’s behavior changes depending on who she’s dealing with. She used to be quite contentious with Yoon Yeon-hee, which was exhausting for me when I got tangled in the middle. But with Senior Kang Ji-woo on set, I don’t expect any trouble. Regardless of success or lack thereof, when someone like Senior Kang, with considerable clout, enters the scene, someone like Lee Hyerin would naturally tone it down. Nam Hyun-ho was subdued in front of Senior Kang, and I imagine Lee Hyerin will be the same. The young actors might act arrogantly otherwise, but not with Senior Kang. For some reason, I have an ominous feeling that their filming might go entirely smoothly.
“So, which actor is playing Admiral Yi Sun-sin?”
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong?”
“A bit surprising. It’s Senior Jeon Sang-woo.”
“Wow. How on earth did Senior Jeon end up with that part?”
Remake Im Jin-nyeon is based on the Imjin War, but it isn’t a story centered around Admiral Yi Sun-sin. It’s tricky because it’s not a simple role for an average actor but also not the main character, so it was difficult to cast someone too expensive for this part. But Senior Jeon Sang-woo gives off that grand, legendary vibe. He’s such a weighty actor that if Yoon Ju-won keeps acting for another ten years, he might reach that level. This Senior reportedly only acts in lead roles, yet he seems to have been cast somehow.
“Did he take the role because he liked it?”
“I don’t think Senior Jeon Sang-woo cares about that kind of thing.”
“Then they must have paid him a lot.”
“That also seems odd, considering Seo Min-seok’s casting is already a heavy financial burden. Anyway, this is an unexpected casting choice.”
A must-check, according to Heavenly Yuah.
I don’t see it as a big deal, but Heavenly Yuah seems intent on digging deeper into this part. This woman has a natural knack for spotting the opponent’s weaknesses; it looks like she picked up on something.
“And the scholar role that Senior Nam Hyun-ho was supposed to take…?”
“It’s a rookie actor, Yoon Seo-kyun.”
“A rookie. Yeah, with Seo Min-seok and Senior Jeon Sang-woo in, it must be burdensome.”
“If it’s a rookie, there must definitely be something to dig into.”
“Something scandalous like school bullying would be a big hit, but…”
We can’t really expect to find something that easily.
But since the opponent is a rookie, it might be worth checking once.
There’s a possibility of unexpected results with rookies.
“But there is also trouble on our side. How will SBC come into play?”
Given that the casting is done, we will move on to thorough verification and finding weaknesses.
The company will naturally handle this, so let’s now assess our situation.
Since the opponent will definitely try to interfere with us, preemptive measures are the best course of action.
“Hmm. But one thing is certain, if Siwoo gets into a scandal with Na Ye-ri, we’ll be finished.”
“True. I’ll be careful about that.”
“Are there any other matters?”
“Are there any problems with our side’s actors?”
“Yes, we’ve already checked everything beforehand.”
“You’re quick.”
“It’s something we always do. What’s the big deal?”
Given the atmosphere of the Ashbloom fandom, the most optimal strategy, no matter who looks at it, would be a scandal. Especially since I recently had double scandals with Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyoen, I’m somewhat suspicious, and I imagine SBC might investigate us a bit.
The part I have to be the most careful about.
Other than that, it doesn’t seem like there’s much to blow up on our side since our company employees have already investigated the ins and outs of the cast’s backgrounds.
Looking at how thorough they are, it’s clear that this process is something that’s been done every time Heavenly Yuah participates in a project. It’s a feat that can’t be achieved by acting alone, given she’s had a perfect success rate in all her works.
In this respect, we’re not just steady, but bulletproof.
“In any case, we’re keeping close watch on the situation. If anything happens, we’ll be notified immediately.”
“That’s right.”
The company is reportedly monitoring the opponent’s actions without letting down their guard, in order to understand the situation before any incidents occur.
Sorry it’s like this.
To be honest, this project is entirely personal for me.
If I had just chosen Im Jin-nyeon, it would have been easier for the company, and there’d be no worries about the success of the drama.
Now, with this drama, we’re also dealing with the stress of ratings, so the company has to push themselves.
“Thank you for all your hard work.”
“Though it’s something the company naturally should do… showing gratitude with a little extra reward wouldn’t hurt.”
“Yes, is there anything you wish for?”
Though the company should naturally care for me with a contract in place, I feel a bit guilty about the extra work.
After all, investigating the history of fellow actors in the same work, looking into other actors’ pasts, and monitoring SBC’s schemes is not a normal task.
It’s somewhat funny that the employees do the work, yet Heavenly Yuah reaps the rewards, but since she pays the employees’ salaries, it’s fitting she benefits too.
Even for me, it feels better to give some thanks when things reach this point.
“Hmm, it’s not a big deal.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s have some wine on Christmas Eve. Together with Suyeon.”
“Ah… the three of us?”
“Yes, the three of us.”
“Hmm, fine. As long as there’s no filming.”
“There won’t be any filming that day. Ashbloom will be hosting a big event that day.”
“Ah, I see.”
Just as she said it wasn’t a big deal, it really isn’t.
I was planning to simply stay in the office on Christmas Eve since it’s not a particularly special day anyway.
But now, with Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyeon inviting me to have a drink as a group of three, I have no reason to refuse.
Honestly, if it were just the two of us, it might have felt a bit awkward, so I’m relieved that didn’t happen.
If Moon Suyeon were to suggest it to me alone, while also staying in the office, that’d be quite unsettling even to imagine.
“Then I only need to focus on acting.”
“Yes, we’ll take care of the external matters. Of course, thinking about what wine we’ll have on Christmas Eve might be good too.”
“Hmm, as for the wine… Senior Yuah should choose.”
“Alright, then let’s leave it to you. Oh, and good luck on the script reading.”
Since it’s still a long way to Christmas, and SBC’s conspiracy (?) will be guarded by the company, all I need to do is prepare well for the upcoming script reading.
