‘The Man Who Lives With the King’ Hits 6 Million Viewers as Cast Recalls Key On-Set Moments

A single movie scene holds many perspectives. Even in the same place and time, a director and actors may remember it differently. <Choi Song-hee’s B-Cut> looks beyond the polished “A-cut” on screen to the behind-the-scenes record that still carries the set’s atmosphere. By cross-checking interviews with the people who made the film, it reconstructs the “B-cut” moments that were often more intense than the finished frame. <Editor’s note>
The film “The Man Who Lives With the King” has topped 6 million moviegoers in 20 days, moving at a pace comparable to past hit Korean historical dramas. While audiences celebrate the box-office numbers and the finished scenes, the people who made the film point to different turning points: an off-script suggestion, or a moment of sincerity that surfaced only after the camera stopped rolling.

Director Jang Hang-jun said the ensemble began not with popularity but with instinct. He brought together Yoo Hae-jin, Park Ji-hoon, Yoo Ji-tae and Jeon Mi-do, saying he focused on acting rather than name recognition.

"People might call it good fortune, but if you flip it around, who gathered them all? Ha ha," Jang said. "If you gave the script to 10 directors, they’d all cast it differently. Before casting, I looked only at acting, excluding popularity. Jeon Mi-do’s role as Maehwa was small, so I thought she might pass, but she accepted readily — and we actually increased her part. For Park Ji-hoon as King Danjong, I decided based only on his eyes in ‘Weak Hero,’ without even knowing he was an idol. And Yoo Hae-jin as Eom Heung-do was automatic in my head from the writing stage."
 
On set, the actors became mirrors for one another. Yoo and Park, separated by nearly 30 years in age, said their work together went beyond a typical senior-junior relationship. Yoo said he discovered unexpected intensity from Park during a cliff scene.

"I knew he was from the idol group Wanna One, but I didn’t really know his activities," Yoo said. "After I learned we’d work together, I looked up clips from ‘Weak Hero.’ When we met for the project, his energy was very strong. In the cliff scene, that energy was so intense it surprised me. It pushed me to think, ‘I can’t get complacent.’ I felt I had to stay sharp."

One of the film’s most lyrical moments, the riverside water-play scene, was not in the script. It grew out of a behind-the-scenes image of Park spending time alone by the river between takes — a moment Yoo proposed turning into story.

"At the end, when Eom Heung-do recovers Danjong’s body, there’s a scene that returns to the past," Yoo said. "I suggested the shot of Eom Heung-do looking sadly at Danjong playing in the water. As we filmed, I felt Eom Heung-do would have the gaze of a parent looking at a young child — someone too young, someone you feel sorry for. I thought we needed a scene where he looks at him with sadness and pity. It’s a tragic death, but I hoped it would convey that someone was by his side."

"I heard it started from a single photo," Park said. "During a break, I was playing in the water by the river, and there was a photo taken from behind. What made sense to me was this: I’m at an age when I should be playing with friends, but I’m in exile with no one around, splashing alone. Even though it was me, it felt heartbreaking. I was impressed by his idea."
Both actors said their off-camera rapport carried into scenes, where they judged each other’s sincerity through eye contact more than dialogue.

"When you’re delivering lines, you look into the other person’s eyes," Yoo said. "You can tell whether they’re in the story or not. In sad scenes, when I look at Ji-hoon’s eyes, they’re already that wet. That pulls your emotions in. And when I’m emotional, his eyes can redden quickly, too. Through that, I thought, ‘He’s in this story.’ He expressed the path of a fragile character like Danjong toward death very well, and I think it was grounded in genuine sincerity."

"I admired his acting and always respected him," Park said. "I couldn’t help but be amazed — even shocked — by the energy and rhythm he brought each time."

The film’s momentum to 6 million viewers, the participants said, rested not only on careful direction but also on the actors’ close observation of one another and the choices that emerged on set — including a quiet, unscripted moment by the river that helped define the king’s loneliness.