Park Ji-hoon: "I Wanted to Try Wearing a Military Uniform"... Reveals His Thoughts on Joining the Series 'The Legend of Kitchen Soldier'

Actor Park Ji-hoon revealed his reasons for joining the TVING original series 〈The Legend of Kitchen Soldier〉 and his process for preparing the character.

Set to premiere on May 11, 〈The Legend of Kitchen Soldier〉 is a military cooking-show fantasy drama based on the Naver Webtoon of the same name. It depicts Private Second Class Kang Seong-jae (played by Park Ji-hoon) as he develops his cooking skills and grows within his unit. The screenplay is by writer Choi Ryong, directed by Jo Nam-hyung, with production participation from Studio Dragon and Studio N.

On the 28th, Park Ji-hoon said through his agency, "I had wanted to try wearing a military uniform through a project, and I chose this work to challenge a new genre." He added that he had long been interested in military content and was drawn to the protagonist Kang Seong-jae's growth narrative as he carves out his place in an unfamiliar environment.

To portray the cook-soldier role in the series, Park Ji-hoon went through separate cooking training before filming. He worked on improving his practical knife skills through hands-on cooking practice and said he also focused on facial expressions and reactions directed at imaginary objects in order to visualize the drama's game-quest system, "Guardian."

Park Ji-hoon expressed a wish to be called by the character's nickname 'Kkang Seong-jae.' He also pointed to the process of Kang Seong-jae's cooking level rising and the evolving relationships with surrounding characters as key things to look forward to.

〈The Legend of Kitchen Soldier〉 will be released simultaneously on TVING and tvN at 8:50 PM on May 11.