Ji Chang Wook's nude scene in "Healer" was not the first time he took off his clothes for a role. He also had a scene in a rose petal-scented bathtub in "Empress Ki." But it was a scene he prepared for by working out.
He exercised for two months before the drama began filming.
"I exercised a lot for the nude scene," the 27-year-old actor said in an interview with Kpop Herald. "Sadly, it was screened a month after the drama shooting, by which time I ruined my figure. I felt sorry about that."
Preparing for the actions scenes in "Healer" also helped carve out muscles. Before the drama began he did basic fitness training and attended action school to learn the martial arts required for the role. Ji did some of his own stunts, although stuntman Kyung Sub filled in for him in some scenes.
"I am very grateful to the stand-in actor who must have had a hard time," said Ji, who earned a few action scene bruises and scratches of his own.
Doing action scenes can be frightening he said when he recently appeared on the TV show "Entertainment Relay." He had to jump across rooftops and there were many scenes where he had to use wires.
"Honestly it is scary," he said. "Before jumping, various thoughts run through my mind. What if the cord snaps, how much would I get hurt if I fell down?"
He does not normally follow any formal plan of exercise but he enjoys playing soccer three or four times a week when his acting schedule permits. He wanted to be a soccer player when he was young but his mother disapproved. Instead he began his acting career by trying to land roles in musicals.
He plays soccer for fun with other celebrities, including Park Min Woo and JYJ's Junsu, whose brother he worked with on "Empress Ki." He plays with the celebrity soccer team known as FC Men, which Junsu is captain of. His position on the team is striker.
Ji Chang Wook's next project is a film titled "Modified City," which will be directed by Park Kwang Hyun. In that film he will play a gaming addict, whose life is so consumed by the game that he unwittingly gets involved in a rape case. It will be his first leading role in a film. Since he plays a character that spends a lot of time gaming, he probably won't have to work out in advance for any of the scenes.
