Four years ago, Wi Ha-joon was feeling desperate. At the time, the South Korean actor was struggling to land a breakout role and yearning for a change.
But one day, he heard about Squid Game, a dystopian drama in which hopeless people compete for survival by playing Korean children's games: Red Light, Green Light, Dalgona and tug-of-war.
After chatting with the show's creator and director Hwang Dong-hyuk, Wi decided to try out for a role. On the day of his audition, he had a rash on his face and wore a hat to conceal it. He got the part anyway.
"I'm the type of guy who would be over the moon for the first five seconds, and then I start worrying," the 33-year-old said through an interpreter from his home in Seoul. "I was quite worried about how I would pull off this role and how I should portray this guy."
Fans of Squid Game, whose second season is available on Netflix, know Wi as Jun-ho, the silent, daring police detective with a chiselled jawline.
As he infiltrates the games in search of his brother, he uncovers shocking details about an organ-harvesting operation and surprising information about the identity of his brother. In-ho (Lee Byung-hun) turns out to be a criminal mastermind behind the operation known as the Front Man.
A climactic face-off in Season 1 between the two brothers ends with Jun-ho being shot in the shoulder and lurching off a cliff.
As Squid Game became an international phenomenon, so did Wi. He earned brand sponsorships, received casting invitations for other shows and gained millions of followers on Instagram.
Denne historien er fra January 04, 2025-utgaven av The Straits Times.
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