Bae Soo Bin has not yet finished his role as the politically ambitious but unscrupulous announcer Jo Eun Cha in "The Greatest Marriage" but he is already attending script readings for his upcoming weekend drama "My Heart Shines."
And he says it's not an easy transition. When he showed up for a recent script reading he said that he was not getting much sleep. It's not the first time that he has pushed himself in pursuit of becoming a better and more diverse actor.
His new drama is the story of two families. As their interactions have a lot to do with selling fried chicken, it is likely to be a comedy.
In "My Heart Shines" Jang Sin Young, Lee Tae Im and Nam Bo Ra play three sisters Lee Soon Jin, Lee Soon Soo and Lee Soon Jung. Soon Jin runs her family's chicken restaurant Jim Sin.
Bae Soo Bin plays Chun Woo Tak, the owner of the rival restaurant Woon Tak Chicken. He's a cold-hearted character, who also has two sisters, Chun Geum Bi and Chun Eun Bi, played by Son Eun Seo and Ha Jae Sook.
It will be interesting to see how Bae Soo Bin plays Chun Woo Tak, as his last two drama characters were so wildly different. He played a prosecutor who slowly betrayed his conscience in the melodrama "Secret Love. But in is current drama, "The Greatest Marriage," he is a comic book villain, an ambitious announcer so clownish in his evil intent that it's hard to hate him.
During his career the actor has taken on a variety of leading and supporting roles. He appeared in the dramas "Brilliant Legacy, "Temptation of an Angel," "49 Days" and "Dong Yi." He also appeared in the films "26 Years" and "Mai Ratima."
Bae So Bin has repeatedly not chosen to take things easy. In a 2012 interview with asia.co.kr, he was asked why he was so motivated.
"There must be a reason I continue to push myself," he said. "I'm not sure why. I have been like this for the past few years and it seems like whatever I do, I continue to learn from the process. I think I will keep it up until my body can no longer take it or I get thoroughly tired of acting."
"My Heart Shines" is due to air on the 17th of January.
