[Kim Ji-yeon's Treasure Box] The Rising Actor Who Chose a Difficult Path, Kim Jae-won as 'Lady Dua' Kang Ji-hwan

The history of 'low point investment' in KBS2 〈Music Bank〉 is profound. Looking at the lineup of male MCs, or 'bank presidents', in the history of 〈Music Bank〉, it is glamorous. 〈Music Bank〉 is known for quickly seating male actors in the so-called 'star' trajectory before they rise to fame. It is necessary to open the [Treasure Box of Music Bank]. This is because, in 2009, Song Joong-ki, in 2013, Park Seo-joon, and in 2015, Park Bo-gum were seated as bank presidents. Recently, they have been consecutively appointing rising male actors born in the 2000s as bank presidents. Lee Chae-min, who became known before 〈The Tyrant's Chef〉, has been a bank president since 2022, and Moon Sang-min, who has recently received good responses for 〈Beloved Thief〉 〈Pavan〉, took over the bank president position from 2024 but recently stepped down. Following them, the actor who will take over the male bank president position is Kim Jae-won. Kim Jae-won will 'debut' as a bank president alongside izna (Lee Jin-min) on the broadcast of 〈Music Bank〉 this Friday, the 27th.

Kim Jae-won is a rising actor who chooses a difficult path. Born in 2001, a male actor in his mid-twenties typically portrays 'youth' that is often dazzling, weak, or immature. The romanticized form of youth is expressed in various ways. Of course, Kim Jae-won has also built his foundation by accumulating such roles. He played the child role of Cha Seung-won in 〈Our Blues〉, and a junior flight attendant who has a crush on a senior flight attendant in 〈King the Land〉, and even a wealthy high school student in 〈Hierarchy〉. Portraying various faces of youth, Kim Jae-won has honestly depicted the trajectory of a rising star, and he officially made his name known by challenging his first historical drama with 〈The Tale of Lady Ok〉. With a strong brotherly chemistry with Choo Young-woo, a loyal supporting chemistry with Lim Ji-yeon, and a romantic chemistry with Yeon-woo, Kim Jae-won showcased various relational variations within a single work, receiving high marks for his challenge in historical dramas with his unique calm, deep voice tone and solid gaze.

Looking at the two recent works where Kim Jae-won has appeared, one can immediately see the direction of his acting thirst. Kim Jae-won, who was expected to step into the role of a leading actor with 〈The Tale of Lady Ok〉, later greeted viewers with a shocking face. To summarize roughly, in 〈Eunjoong and Sangyeon〉, he played a transgender character, and in 〈Lady Dua〉, he was a host bar player.

However, the characters Kim Jae-won portrayed were not merely flat characters consumed by their shocking gender identity or profession. Cheon Sang-hak in 〈Eunjoong and Sangyeon〉 and Kang Ji-hwan in 〈Lady Dua〉 are characters that possess a more complex inner world beneath their shocking exterior. In the drama 〈Eunjoong and Sangyeon〉, which Kim Jae-won first appealed to the company saying, 'I really want to do this', he played Cheon Sang-hak, the unforgettable first love of Eunjoong (Kim Go-eun) and the brother of Sangyeon (Park Ji-hyun). He was a young man who seemed perfect, and in a moment when he captures the camera saying, 'It's beautiful' in the neighborhood alley, he remains in Eunjoong's memory for a lifetime. Ultimately, Cheon Sang-hak's existence became a key figure that drives the intertwined 20-year narrative of Eunjoong and Sangyeon. Kim Jae-won successfully designed the plot twist by juxtaposing the appearance of 'everyone's first love' with a gentle demeanor and a precarious appearance filled with concerns about identity.

Once, Kim Jae-won said, "I often heard that I looked gentle. So I took on roles mainly based on that image," but he completely turned his image upside down with Kang Ji-hwan in 〈Lady Dua〉. Borrowing a line from Kim Eun-jae (Shin Hye-sun) in the drama, even a character that seems 'cheap' was something Kim Jae-won executed so well. Not being trapped in his gentle image, Kim Jae-won created Kang Ji-hwan, who, while 'looking cheap', was incredibly attractive, saying, "I want to try a work with a 'dark and sensual atmosphere' once."

Kang Ji-hwan, a host bar player, is attractive because he is the most tragic character who started as a fake and became real. Kang Ji-hwan approached Kim Eun-jae to 'work' (a slang term meaning a host bar player tries to win over a customer for financial gain), but as he began to mix sincerity into his work, he truly fell in love with Kim Eun-jae (or Sarah Kim) and ultimately faced destruction. Kim Jae-won sharply contrasted the 'cheap-looking' acting before truly falling in love and the anxiety after falling in love and facing destruction, clearly presenting the drama's question, "If you can't distinguish between the real and the fake, can you call it fake?"

Although he is already an actor on a rising trend, the reason why many predict that this actor will take an even steeper upward curve is not only because he will appear as Shin Sun-rok in season 3 of 〈Yumi's Cells〉, but also for another reason. Kim Jae-won briefly appeared in episodes 7 and 8 of the Netflix series 〈Severe Trauma Center〉, leaving a scene that seemed to hint at joining season 2. Kim Jae-won appeared as a military doctor from South Sudan, receiving the evaluation of “You have talent” from Baek Kang-hyuk, and later volunteered to join the Severe Trauma Center, receiving a welcome greeting from Yang Jae-won (Choo Young-woo) saying, “Nice to meet you, No. 2,” becoming 'Team Severe' slave No. 2. Of course, no one knows if he will really appear in 〈Severe Trauma Center〉 season 2, but this Friday, the day he greets as a bank president will probably be the least famous day of Kim Jae-won.