Actress Cho Yoo-jung opened up about the concerns she felt while working alongside peers such as actors Jeon Ji-hyun and Song Hye-kyo.
On the 5th, a video featuring a conversation between Cho Yoo-jung and PD Park Hye-ryeong was released on the YouTube channel 'PDC by PDC'.
In the video, Cho Yoo-jung said, "There is an ambiguous age for an actor."
She explained, "When we actors hang out together, we always say that when there are no projects, we feel like ambiguous beings. When we find a perfect fit, people say, 'You were a perfect match for this role; where have you been?' But in all other moments, it seems like we (actors) are always ambiguous beings. And we have to accept that. We have to think, 'It is okay to be ambiguous.'"
She continued, "I am still amazed and grateful that there are characters I can play at my current age. It is the same with 'Possible Love.' I had been looking forward so much to working with Director Lee Chang-dong, but if I had been a few years younger, wouldn't I have been too young? So isn't getting older actually good luck? I truly believe that such things are decided by a hair's breadth."
When PD Park Hye-ryeong reacted, "You are positive. Aren't you thinking in a good direction?" Cho Yoo-jung replied, "If you flip it around, it is the exact opposite. I think the world is inherently unfair."
She continued, "That is why when a good opportunity comes, I am genuinely happy, not out of pretense. Opportunities do not necessarily come in the order of who works hard. I do not believe opportunities come in the order of how hard people work."
She added, "I work hard because I do not want to regret it later. Just because you work hard does not mean all opportunities will come. The rest is luck. There are no people who do not work hard."
Later, when asked what she would like to say to her 20s self now that she is in her 40s, Cho Yoo-jung said, "I do not want to give excessive praise. I would like to tell her, 'You held on well.'"
She continued, "I did not stop walking. I might have been able to walk faster or run, but I think it was good that I took at least one step a day."
At this point, PD Park said, "If we consider those born between 1980 and 1984 as peers, there are a huge number of peer actors," mentioning actors Jeon Ji-hyun, Song Hye-kyo, Han Ji-min, Gong Hyo-jin, Bae Doona, Im Soo-jung, and others.
Hearing this, Cho Yoo-jung confessed, "They are all leading-level, formidable actors. Even when I was in my 20s, I thought, 'Can I even have a presence as an actress among these wonderful people?' That was the scariest part. There are so many good actors, and each has their own charm and is building their own territory, so I felt anxious, scared, and overwhelmed about whether I could do something."
Cho Yoo-jung said she did not view her fellow actors as competitors, stating, "Each had a different charm. Without any overlap, they all had unique charms, and their acting was good in different ways. It seems like that would be rich and good for the audience to see."
She continued, "It is less about competition. Since everyone's charm is different anyway. I thought, 'Can I have a presence as an actress?' It felt like the assignment was getting bigger. Competition is meaningless. Actors are all different. They would only be in competition if they were the same."
She added, "I think my work started to catch fire a bit late. I started making movies around age 30. So I think I had many concerns when I was in my 20s."
Cho Yoo-jung debuted as a magazine model in 1997 and made her acting debut through the SBS sitcom "How Am I?" in 1998. She has since been loved for films such as "The Tale of Gisaeng" and "Parasite," and dramas such as "Conditions of Love," "I Need Romance," "A Wonderful Wife," "Woman in 99 Billion Won," "High Class," "Made in Korea," and "It Is Not the Affair That Is the Problem Now."
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