Rising star Chae Jong Hyeop shares his experience and thoughts about his recently concluded Kdrama "Love All Play" alongside Park Ju Hyun.
The KBS2 sports-themed series depicts the story of two badminton players with different outlooks on life. One has the drive and passion for playing the sport, but the other does it for money.
Despite having different goals, they found themselves getting caught up with their feelings. Aside from it, they have to deal with pressure and challenges as an athlete and dealing with failures.
In the drama, Chae Jong Hyeop plays Park Tae Joon, a naturally skilled badminton player who ends up changing teams.
With this, he joined Park Tae Yang's team, played by Park Ju Hyun. She is a badminton prodigy and an aspiring Olympian who was forced to leave the badminton world because of a controversy.
Three years later, she managed to face reality and deal with the consequences due to the issue.
Chae Jong Hyeop Admits Feeling 'Pressured' to Play Lead Role in 'Love All Play'
During the interview following the finale of "Love All Play," the actor gets honest and shares that he felt "pressured" to headline the series.
As obtained by Ten Asia, Cha Jong Hyeop revealed that he had "a lot of pressure and worries" playing the role.
Since Park Tae Joon is the main character, there are more people paying attention to him as compared to his previous projects.
To recall, "Love All Play" is among his first Kdrama where he played the male lead.
Viewers often see Chae Jong Hyeop portraying the second lead character like in "Nevertheless" and supporting roles in "Sisyphus: The Myth" and "Hot Stove League."
Now that he got the opportunity to shine as the main character, he confessed that he initially"felt a lot of mixed emotions," but thankfully, people around him gave him "a lot of encouragement and advice."
According to the actor, this is where he was able to "put a little bit of pressure on the work by focusing on how to best express Park Tae Joon rather than thinking that I took on the lead role."
Rising Star Chae Jong Hyeop Shares What's More Important to Him Than Ratings
"Love All Play" finale ended with a slight increase; however the drama failed to match its competitors.
As noted by an outlet, Nielsen Korea shared the drama rating, scoring a nationwide average of 1.3 percent.
READ MORE: Chae Jong Hyeop, Park Ju Hyun's 'Love All Play' Fails to Stop Plummeting Ratings
For Chae Jong Hyeop, he says that they are not after the ratings, and there's no regret in appearing in the Kdrama since the team, from the director, writer, actors, and staff, "really did their best and were passionate" to produce "Love All Play."
Chae Jong Hyeop Expressed Gratitude to Viewers
The 29-year-old South Korean heartthrob took to social media to thank viewers and fans for supporting his series.
On Chae Jong Hyeop Instagram, he posted a series of photos after wrapping up the Kdrama.
"It was late, but you guys made Park Taejoon look better. I was so happy and had fun with you," he wrote.
Over the comment section, fans expressed how they enjoyed the drama and were looking forward to seeing other series starring the actor.
