Gong Hyo Jin has not always played comedies. Early on in her career, she earned praise for acting some tough roles, including a tough schoolgirl in "Conduct Zero," an angry daughter in "Family Ties," and a determined single mother in the drama "Thank You."
She earned a reputation as a serious film actress paying the anti-heroine in the 2008 film "Crush and Blush" and her portrayal won her numerous acting awards. Then she tried comedy. Her comedic skills earned excellent ratings and praise from her co-stars.
"Since we have worked together, I now know that she's the greatest actress for romantic comedy," said So Ji Sub, her co-star in the upcoming drama "The Master's Sun." "She can pull off anything and she improves my acting too."
The actress first tried to her hand at comedy in 2010 when she played an aspiring chef in the drama "Pasta" with Lee Sun Kyun. Although the character she played was supposed to be bold, she chose to interpret the role differently. Her portrayal as a meek yet determined chef made her very likeable and delivered good ratings for the comedy.
Her next comic role was in "The Greatest Love" with Cha Seung Won. This drama by the Hong Sisters screenwriting team is about the entertainment industry and features a romance between a former pop star and a top actor. Her portrayal of Gu Ae Jung, former girl group member, won her a third Top Excellence In Acting Award at the MBC Drama Awards and Best Actress for TV at the Baeksang Awards.
She also starred in the comedy film, "Boomerang Family" with Park Hae Il and Yoon Yeo Jeong, a story about siblings who move back to their mom's home. But when it was time to choose another comic role on the small screen, she chose the new Hong Sisters' supernatural drama "Master's Sun."
In this drama, she plays a woman who sees ghosts and So Ji Sub is the man she must convince that ghosts exist. With So Ji Sub's praise netizens can expect that the drama will be fun to watch. However, Gong Hyo Jin may not watch it. The whole subject of ghosts frightens her. Even though "Master's Sun" is a comedy, she finds nothing funny about spirits.
"I can't watch scary movies," she said at a recent press conference. "If 'Master's Sun' is too scary I won't watch it."
While she got used to seeing the actors who played ghosts on set, she hopes she never actually sees a ghost.
"If I even think about ghosts, sometimes I have to call my mom to be able to sleep," said Gong Hye Jo. "I've never seen a ghost and I've never been paralyzed in fear from a nightmare, but I'm just very scared of ghosts. I'm afraid that our drama will be too scary."
Whether it's funny or scary or both, "Master's Sun" premieres next week.
