“I’ve heard people say the action was shot elegantly, but the director and I are the type who get shy and don’t really talk like that,” Jo said. “Honestly, I don’t know much about action. I don’t really have a desire to become an action actor. If it felt (elegant), I think there must have been some kind of magic. If I used my body well, I’d probably dance well, too, but I don’t have that ability.”
Because his character is an NIS agent, Jo said he visited and researched real locations as part of his preparation, describing the atmosphere on site and the impression it left.
“You leave all your phones behind when you go (to the NIS),” he said. “They tell you not to post anything related, and there’s a tense mood. I got curious and asked (NIS agents) if they have black agents like Kim Doo-sik in ‘Moving,’ but they said it’s a state secret and they can’t talk about it. Ha ha.”
To better understand the role, he said he relied on research, drawing on news and documentaries as well as popular TV programs.
“By watching variety shows with North Korean defectors, like ‘Now On My Way to Meet You,’ I could look for information such as what kinds of conversations defectors had with the NIS,” he said. “I also used those conversations as reference.” ㅍ
Jo said the details of the action were refined on set, and that the movements of a real instructor offered key clues in shaping the character.
“The (NIS) instructor was really impressive,” he said. “There are parts I borrowed for the action. It’s feedback from a professional. In action scenes, you can get scolded for ‘trying too hard to look cool,’ but if it’s actually used in the field, then it’s accurate. I thought if we worked those practical elements into the action, audiences might enjoy it.”
The opening action sequence also paired him with overseas actors. Jo said the unfamiliar rhythm heightened the tension.
“I did action with overseas actors, and they were filming in an unfamiliar place in an unfamiliar way,” he said. “Of course they’d be tense. The action style was different. Even the martial arts director said, ‘So that’s how they react.’ Because it didn’t click perfectly, it made me nervous — like the action coming in deeper than expected. My eyes got wider and they captured that anxious look, and I think it came across as more realistic.”
Jo described Manager Jo as a guide who brings viewers into the story, saying he tried not to push emotions too hard.
“You identify through Manager Jo’s eyes, and you open and close the film through his daily life,” he said. “As a guide, I thought I shouldn’t make the acting too intense. I didn’t think it was good for my emotions to demand something from the audience. Still, I had to run the character, so I thought a lot about how. I felt the action scenes were important because they show his physical power, and they let me build him in a more three-dimensional way.”
He also spoke about working with Park Jung-min, who plays Park Geon, a section chief in North Korea’s State Security Department, and Shin Se-kyung, who plays Chae Sun-hwa, a North Korean restaurant worker and human intelligence source. Though they did not share many scenes, he said their on-set chemistry stood out.
“When you say someone has good acting intelligence, it’s sensory but also calculated,” Jo said. “You have to act within a set time, and I think it matters how well you understand what the director is saying. Even though I didn’t have many scenes with Jung-min and Se-kyung, that fit was really good. Everyone did their part, and we often got chances to save time and try what we wanted one more time.”
Asked about change and growth after years of work, Jo said he thinks less in terms of being “new” and more in terms of becoming “solid.”
“Being active for a long time also means you’re not new,” he said. “People have seen a lot of you. The 고민 about what to do differently is the same. Rather than showing something new, you can show that you’ve become more solid — though you can also change into new clothes. In acting, even staying still can be evolution. You ask whether it came across or not. In the end, I want to get to the point of not acting, but I wonder if that’s realistically possible. These days people talk a lot about naturalistic acting — capturing something truly natural. It’s about setting a goal more than personal development: This time, let’s stay still. Let’s see how I’m captured.”
On overseas projects, he mixed in a candid joke, saying distribution has changed but he still sees himself as a “local” actor.
“If something comes in, I’ll do it,” he said. “With OTT, our work can go overseas, and overseas expansion can happen. Distribution has improved. But since there are no offers yet, I think, ‘Ah, I’m local.’ Ha ha ha. So far, it doesn’t seem like there’s any reaction from overseas or people recognizing me. I don’t think I have the talent or qualities for overseas projects.”
Jo’s next project is director Lee Chang-dong’s “Possible Love,” about two couples living opposite lives whose worlds become entangled, sending cracks through the daily lives of all four. Jo will play a married couple with Cho Yeo-jeong. The film, from the director of “Secret Sunshine” and “Poetry,” drew attention from the casting stage.
“I’m curious about how I’ll look in director Lee Chang-dong’s film,” Jo said. “He’s an auteur director, and it’s grounded in reality. I acted in it, and I’m curious how it was captured.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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