Now that "The Suspicious Housekeeper" has wrapped up, actress Choi Ji Woo has had a chance to reflect on her role as the mysterious Bok Nyeo, the housekeeper who won a family's hearts.
The role was an acting challenge. When the drama began, the very suspicious housekeeper Bok Nyeo did not seem quite human. Viewers wondered if she was actually a robot of some kind. When Lee Jung Sae, her employer, called to inquire about her odd robotic behavior, the head of her employment agency warned him that if he gave her an order, he should be careful. She would follow his order no matter what it was. And that turned out to be true. She carried out some odd orders that helped the family, distraught over their mother's suicide, heal and find new hope.
"It was a new challenge for me as an actress and I don't regret taking it and trying my best," said Choi Ji Woo. "It was a meaningful drama to me."
With her blank expression and endless set of household skills, Choi Ji Woo did make a convincing automaton.
"The character will remain in my heart for a long time, said Choi Ji Woo. "It was the one character that I will never be able to forget in all my 20 years of acting."
And that's saying a lot as Choi Ji Woo starred in the wildly successful dramas "Winter Sonata" and "Stairway to Heaven." It is said that "Winter Sonata" helped launch the Hallyu.
The real acting challenge in "The Suspicious Housekeeper" was Bok Nyeo's transformation as she became fond of her new family, revealed parts of her history and confronted her stalker. As she did, viewers realized that she was traumatized by events in her past, which led her to distrust all emotion and believe that she did not deserve happiness.
Choi decided to take the role because of the character's ability to repress her emotions.
"I was really charmed by the way she refrains from letting her emotions show," she said.
The final episode of the drama offered a happy ending, with Bok Nyeo finally believing that she deserved to be happy.
The drama's final episode achieved ratings of 10.3 percent. It was not as popular as the Japanese drama that it was based on "Kasiefu No Mita," which earned 40 percent in the ratings. But "The Suspicious Housekeeper" did hold second place in the ratings in its time slot for most of its run, even standing up against "Future's Choice," starring Yoon Eun Hye, Lee Dong Gun and Jung Yong Hwa.
