"It’s a genre I love, and as a horror fan, I was excited to take on a horror project," Kim said. "When I first read the script, it was really fun, and the water ghost concept felt fresh. I also liked that Su-in is restrained and looks kind of worn down, different from characters you usually see in horror films."
"Salmokji," directed by Lee Sang-min, follows a filming crew that heads to a reservoir to verify a mysterious figure captured on a road-view image, only to encounter strange events. Kim plays Han Su-in, a producer at Onroad Media who goes to the reservoir to investigate the unusual phenomenon.
"As the director and I built Su-in together, we talked a lot about her fear of water and trauma, and that she lives with guilt," she said. "He suggested we start from a baseline where she looks exhausted overall because of the stress from that guilt. So I tried to look worn out, always tired, and like she’s with people but lost in other thoughts."
A regular horror viewer, Kim said the film’s fear factor goes beyond jump scares, relying on tension built through images and sound — something she believes plays bigger in theaters.
"There are a lot of shocking moments — scary images, and fear created by sound," she said. "Watching it at the press screening, I felt the fear grow not just from my own reaction but from the audience around me. The fear you share in the same room can stay with you like a memory. That’s why I hope people see it in theaters."
Kim also spoke about working with castmates her age, saying the chemistry came naturally.
"I like people, and I’ve been lucky to work with good people, so I often get close quickly without trying," she said. "This time, because we’re around the same age, we became close even faster. You can see that chemistry during stage greetings. I’m enjoying it now, and I really enjoyed filming, too."
In the film, Su-in’s relationship with Gi-tae is not explained solely by the fact they once dated. They clash in everyday moments, but he is also one of the few people she can confide in. Kim said she discussed that delicate distance with the director.
"Gi-tae calls Su-in’s name a lot," she said, laughing. "I even joked on set, ‘Stop calling my name.’ The set was upbeat, and I think some of that comes through in the movie. The director also said he wanted them to bicker more — to be more curt in daily life, since they’re exes. But Gi-tae is almost the only person Su-in can open up to, so in that situation, I thought she could speak more comfortably."
Kim said she does not regularly rewatch her past work, but she sometimes runs into it through recommendations or when others bring it up.
"Those projects feel like a diary to me," she said. "I think, ‘That’s what I looked like then, that’s how I expressed things.’ It was a different energy from what I have now, and it makes me reflect. Through that process, I think I’ve developed my own know-how. I’ve tried acting when I felt great and when I was tense, and now I feel I focus best when it’s a mix of both."
She said the support she has received over the years feels more like motivation than pressure, pushing her to show different sides of herself. She added that she recently started raising a cat and finds comfort in holding it.
"I’ve received so much love from fans, and it makes me want to show more variety — that becomes my driving force," she said. "I read somewhere that holding a cat helps relieve stress, and I think it’s true. Hearing it purr makes me feel calmer, and it feels like I’m recharging."
With the release approaching, Kim said she hopes audiences experience the film together, arguing that horror is often more memorable when shared in the same space. Recalling watching scary movies with friends as a student, she said she hopes "Salmokji" can leave that kind of memory.
"I felt it again watching it in a theater at the screening, and when I think back to watching horror movies with friends in school, building those shared memories was really nice," she said. "I hope people come to theaters and make those memories together. You have to see the ghost in person, too," she added with a laugh. "I hope many people come and respond well."
While she remains grateful for the "rom-com queen" label, Kim said she wants a different description this time.
"I’m truly thankful for ‘rom-com queen,’ but this time — even if it sounds a bit cliché — I want to earn the label ‘horror queen,’" she said.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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