I never want to play myself again.
Lee Dong-hwi delivers an all-in method performance in Method Acting, director Lee Ki-hyuk’s feature that folds an actor’s real-life dilemmas into a film that’s often funny but not always comfortable. Lee plays a version of himself in a movie that blurs the line between reality and fiction.
On March 13, a press screening at Megabox COEX in Seoul’s Gangnam district brought together Lee Dong-hwi, Yoon Kyung-ho, Kang Chan-hee and director Lee Ki-hyuk.
Marketed as a comedy, Method Acting centers on a self-described “funny actor” who dislikes doing comedy. Determined to be taken seriously, he immerses himself so deeply in a role that the line between performance and life collapses. The feature is an expansion of a short film of the same name — a reunion for director Lee and Lee Dong-hwi — and the result is a meta-comedy about obsession and artifice.
In the film, Lee plays a character named Lee Dong-hwi, and the movie mines that premise for clever, reality-bending laughs and unexpected emotional beats.
At the screening, Lee said he didn’t want the film to be only about an actor’s struggles. “From development onward, I didn’t want this to become a story that’s just about an actor’s hardships,” he said. “I wanted people to see their own dilemma between what they want to do and what they have to do.” He said he joined the script process with that goal in mind.
Lee admitted that he felt moments of uncertainty about doing comedy, but gratitude outweighed any unease. “I was thankful just to get the chance,” he said. “Although the character has worries, as a person those worries felt like grateful ones.”
Yoon Kyung-ho said he came on board because of his longstanding connection with director Lee. “We worked together on the drama Confession when he was still acting,” Yoon said. “He reached out when he started directing and told me he was preparing a feature. I was surprised and glad to hear it.”
“I learned I’d play Dong-hwi’s older brother, Dong-tae,” Yoon added with a laugh. “When I first heard the names, I wondered how far the film would go and hesitated for a moment. But after watching the short and the director’s past work, I trusted the team. The script felt fresh and entertaining.”
Yoon also praised his chemistry with Lee. “Even though Lee hasn’t done a lot of comedy, he has a strong comic sensibility,” he said. “On set he was serious but full of ideas and passion.”
“A lot of the ad-libs and comic beats came from Dong-hwi,” Yoon continued. “Playing yourself takes courage; he balanced caution with boldness and was really attentive to everyone around him.”
“He’s like a younger brother I learned a lot from,” Yoon said. “Especially the final scene felt like a new discovery of Lee Dong-hwi as an actor. Looking back, he’s someone I miss and someone I’d love to work with again.”
Kang Chan-hee plays top star Jung Tae-min, a character who sweeps three awards at a year-end ceremony and serves as an antagonist to Lee’s character. Kang said he deliberately worked to show a different side of himself. “I’ve often played the good, model-student type,” he said. “For Tae-min, I talked a lot with the director and my seniors.”
“Tae-min could easily come off as flatly unlikeable, so I focused on making him more layered,” Kang explained. “That was my main priority in performance.”
Asked whether playing himself felt like added pressure, Lee said the project deliberately started from him as a person rather than inventing a fictional profession or identity. “We wanted to see what creativity would emerge from starting with me,” he said.
“It turned out to be much harder than I expected,” he admitted. “I struggled with how much of myself to show and what to leave out. There were moments I felt I’d never want to play myself again. After this project, I don’t think I’ll act as myself anymore.”
He described the character’s formation: “At first I thought it would be easy, but I ended up deeply immersed in the role of ‘Lee Dong-hwi.’ With guidance from the director and Yoon Kyung-ho, I think the character became a fully created figure.”
Lee added, “I really wanted to act alongside Yoon Kyung-ho again. Since our last project, I’ve wanted to share more scenes with him. He’s an actor I’d passionately like to work with again.”
Director Lee Ki-hyuk closed by reflecting on the film’s thematic scope. “Everyone has a dual nature,” he said. “I wanted to show that.” He noted that Method Acting folds multiple genres into one film — science fiction, comedy, historical drama and musical — offering audiences the pleasure of seeing many tones on the big screen.
Method Acting opens on March 18.
Kim Se-a, TenAsia reporter haesmik@tenasia.co.kr
