Q. A fantasy historical drama depicting the story of a shaman named Yeori and an imoogi named ‘Kang Cheol-i’, who is trapped in the body of ‘Yeori's’ first love, ‘Yoon Gap’, as they fight against a vengeful spirit that holds a grudge against the royal family. Just reading the introduction of <The Haunted Palace> already feels thrilling. What drew the two of you to this project?

A. Yook Sungjae (hereafter “Sungjae”): I’ve always liked the fantasy genre, and I found the stories of the vengeful spirits that appear with each episode to be really intriguing. I played a dual role as both ‘Yoon Gap’ and ‘Kang Cheol-i,’ and I found the character of ‘Kang Cheol-i’ especially compelling. I wanted to express the emotions and situations that ‘Kang Cheol-i’ as an imoogi, experiences for the first time in the human world.

A. Kim Jiyeon (hereafter “Jiyeon”): I also really love the fantasy genre, but I had never had the chance to try it before, so I really wanted to give it a shot at least once. The script itself was also really interesting. The story of the imoogi and the shaman felt refreshing and new.

Q. It seems like both of you were longing for the fantasy genre. Sungjae, when we met with Cosmo last time, you specifically mentioned wanting to do a fantasy genre, and it looks like you’ve achieved that goal now?

A. Sungjae: Yes! It’s my first time doing a historical drama, and with the added fantasy element, there are quite a lot of action scenes involving swords and weapons. There were action scenes like ‘cutting through the air with a sword’ and ‘sending a whirlwind flying’, and I found them really challenging to pull off. But in the end, it was something I had to accomplish, so I exchanged various ideas with the director on set and worked together to perfect it. Since what I do will ultimately be the answer for our drama, I acted confidently, staying true to what I had in mind.

Q. Viewers will see the final scene with added CGI, but in reality, actors have to perform in a completely empty space and make it feel real. You handled it bravely and cleverly.

A. Sungjae: The staff in charge of the CGI played a huge role in making it all come together. I did get to see some edited versions with CGI added along the way, and thanks to the amazing work done by the team, I think I gained more and more confidence as it all came together. As we got further into filming, I started to feel less awkward about it on my own as well.

A. Jiyeon: Even from my perspective, there wasn’t a single awkward moment you did an amazing job. Unlike Sungjae, it was my first time in the fantasy genre, so everything felt new and unfamiliar to me. Until now, my approach to analyzing scripts has been, ‘How would I act if I were in this situation?’ But in the fantasy genre, it was hard to apply that method. In the early days of filming, I learned a lot from watching Sungjae perform confidently without any hesitation.

Q. To portray the shaman, you even made an effort to visit actual shamans and learn from them.

A. Jiyeon: I received guidance from experts like Jo Jihoon and Yoon Youngmi to help with the portrayal. I watched actual rituals, and also referred to the movies and books recommended by them, all while trying to build the character of ‘Yeori’ within myself.

Q. The two of you have also been close friends for 16 years, having spent your trainee days together. How did you feel when you first found out that you would be playing the lead roles together?

A. Jiyeon: At first, I was worried about ‘Would I be able to capture the emotions with him in front of me?‘ but once we did the first shoot, it felt so natural and comfortable. On set, it was great that we could comfortably talk to each other, like saying, ‘Was I okay just now? How should we approach this scene?’

A. Sungjae: I felt the same way, that was the most comfortable part for me too. When working with actors I’m meeting for the first time, it usually takes some time to figure out their preferred style and how much consideration is needed to make the acting comfortable, but with Jiyeon, it felt like we skipped that tutorial. I think that’s probably why there was such a great acting synergy between us. (laughs)

Q. <The Haunted Palace> is a fantasy historical drama, but it also has elements of romantic comedy. It must have been a bit awkward while doing the romance scenes, right? (laughs)