Netflix Korea Executive Director Kim Sohyang wondered whether PD Song Manwoo, who was sitting across from her with such a serious expression, might have lost his mind. Writer Choi Nana, wearing her round glasses, was thinking the exact same thing.
'Did he overdo it so badly in Bangkok that he came down with heatstroke?'
'PD-nim, are you okay?!'
It was understandable. The idea of a new actor joining when the casting was already nearly finished was absurd enough on its own, but the fact that the actor was Miley Kara, a global superstar not just in Hollywood but across the entire world, pushed it past absurdity and into complete insanity. It was far too sudden and far too unexpected.
Soon.
"Uh, PD-nim?"
The slim writer Choi Nana spoke cautiously.
"You're not sick or anything... are you?"
PD Song Manwoo, who remained standing without a change in expression, answered briefly.
"I'm perfectly fine."
The fuller-figured Executive Director Kim Sohyang picked it up from there.
"Is this a joke? Who exactly is suddenly joining Beneficial Evil*?"*
PD Song Manwoo responded calmly.
"I told you. Miley Kara is going to appear in our Beneficial Evil* project."*
The situation only got worse. Executive Director Kim Sohyang frowned, while writer Choi Nana looked dazed, as if she had just heard a language she could not understand.
"It's so ridiculous I can't even laugh. Please stop joking around, PD-nim."
"Exactly. There wasn't even a proper buildup for this kind of tension!"
"When you called this morning, I was a little nervous, but now I actually feel better."
Neither of them looked like they believed a word Song Manwoo was saying. But PD Song Manwoo only smiled, as though he understood exactly why they were reacting that way, without the slightest sign of irritation.
"I had the exact same reaction when I first heard it a few days ago."
Well, he had reacted in much the same way when Kang Woojin told him. No, anyone would have reacted like that. In any case, PD Song Manwoo kept smiling as he folded his hands and continued.
"Haha, but it's true. The two of you are that busy, so why would I waste your time by joking around?"
"Hm?"
"What?"
"I'm serious. Miley Kara is joining Beneficial Evil*. Mr. Woojin is the guarantor."*
At once, the expressions on Kim Sohyang and writer Choi Nana's faces changed.
"Mr. Kang Woojin?"
PD Song Manwoo nodded and pulled out his phone.
"Yes, Mr. Woojin. In fact, I had nothing to do with this at all. This is entirely his doing."
Muttering to himself, PD Song Manwoo opened an email on his phone. It was written in English and contained a short greeting, contact information, and a request for drama-related details. It had come from Miley Kara's agency. Song Manwoo showed the email to the two women sitting in front of him.
"Since it's confidential, it was sent to my personal email, but I'm sharing it with the two of you now."
Writer Choi Nana was not especially strong in English, but Executive Director Kim Sohyang of Netflix Korea understood the email without difficulty. What caught her eye most of all was the logo and the agency name included in it.
It was undeniably Miley Kara's agency.
At that point, they had no choice but to accept it as reality.
Then.
Swoosh.
"...Oh my god, oh my god."
Kim Sohyang widened her eyes and began reading the email carefully. Soon after, writer Choi Nana, too, stood there with her mouth hanging open in shock. Once Kim Sohyang finished reading it, PD Song Manwoo cut in.
"I got a sudden call from Mr. Woojin while I was in Bangkok. At first, I was thrown off because he said he wanted to cast one more actor, but it turned out to be Miley Kara."
PD Song Manwoo began explaining the sequence of events that had started with that single phone call from Kang Woojin. Kim Sohyang and Choi Nana listened to the briefing with blank expressions.
Lastly.
"Even after receiving this email, sometimes it still feels like a dream."
After finishing the explanation, PD Song Manwoo turned to writer Choi Nana, who was standing there as if frozen.
"But right now, we need to pull ourselves together. Writer-nim, this is an unprecedented opportunity. No, this is an opportunity that doesn't even belong to this world. You're probably the only writer in the whole country who'll ever experience something like this! It's the kind of opportunity that won't come again for the rest of your life."
"…Huh? Wha??"
Writer Choi Nana's reaction was like that of a broken robot. PD Song Manwoo, on the other hand, turned serious again.
"We need to create a new role for Miley Kara, write her lines, and direct her scenes. Naturally, Writer Choi, that part will fall to you. I'll help too, of course."
Whenever a person is thrown into a situation that is both unprecedented and impossible to handle, panic is inevitable. Writer Choi Nana was exactly like that right now.
"...You're saying I have to write Miley Kara's role?"
"Who else is going to write it? Beneficial Evil was born from your hands. You can do it."
At that point.
"Haha—"
Executive Director Kim Sohyang brushed back her long hair instead of her usual short style. The emotion on her face had gone far beyond simple shock.
"Is something like this really possible? How did this even happen? What kind of magic did Mr. Kang Woojin pull?"
"I don't know the details either. Mr. Woojin is practically an alien anyway, isn't he? Even if he explained it, do you think we'd really understand it properly?"
Kim Sohyang covered her mouth with one hand and pinched her own cheek with the other. Unexpectedly, a small groan escaped her.
"But... wow... what is this? Is this a dream? This is something that could shake not just Korea but all of Hollywood. Even Netflix as a whole would have trouble pulling something like this off, and Mr. Woojin did it alone?"
"There's a high chance this will be the first and last time Miley Kara ever participates in a Korean project."
"The scale of this just became enormous."
Beneficial Evil had already been a project aimed at viewers all over the world, and PD Song Manwoo and Netflix Korea had been preparing for countless challenges. But once Kang Woojin officially joined, the situation had begun moving in a direction no one could predict.
Even in the middle of all that, Kim Sohyang barely managed to regain her composure.
"…So only the three of us know this right now, and you said it's confidential. That means we have to keep this completely secret, right?"
PD Song Manwoo nodded.
"Of course. If this leaks carelessly, everything will fall apart. If the reporters find out, there'll be no going back. Everything will collapse before we've even had the chance to get a proper grasp on the situation."
"Yes, exactly. Until we've made enough progress, this absolutely has to remain a secret within the Beneficial Evil team, and even within Netflix Korea."
"For now, only the three of us know. Later, we'll bring in only a few essential core staff members if necessary. We'll keep it hidden until the right time. Ah, and we're planning to have a video meeting with Miley Kara's side in a few days, so Executive Director, you'll need to attend as well."
Kim Sohyang slowly nodded. Song Manwoo then turned his attention back to writer Choi Nana. His face was now filled with firm resolve.
"Writer-nim, since Miley Kara is such a high-level actress, it probably won't be easy for us to ask for a lot of schedule adjustments. But according to Mr. Woojin, Kara's side is considering not just a simple cameo, but even a supporting role or a fairly weighty supporting character. So you'll need to create a character for her with a fitting name, lines, and a proper role."
"Really?"
"Yes. And on top of that, Mr. Woojin suggested it would be best to place her in the Bangkok overseas shooting scenes from episodes one and two of Beneficial Evil*. We'll need to work out the details with Kara's side, but it'll probably be hard for her to come to Korea. So it looks like we'll have to finish filming it in Bangkok."*
"Since the Bangkok overseas shoot covers the past, Miley Kara would naturally fit into Jang Yeonwoo's past, right?"
"Exactly."
With Miley Kara joining and the upgraded CQC that Ethan Smith had contributed to, writer Choi Nana's head instantly filled with fresh ideas, and one new scene after another began taking shape in her mind.
"...Fragments, scars. Or maybe something that triggers them."
Muttering to herself, writer Choi Nana suddenly sprang to her feet, her face overflowing with inspiration.
"Wait a second! I need my laptop!!"
She rushed into her room. PD Song Manwoo watched her with a satisfied expression. Then he turned to Executive Director Kim Sohyang, whose eyes were still wide.
"Once the first video meeting with Miley Kara is over and the revised script is ready, we'll have to go to LA to meet her in person. We need to formally deliver the script and brief her directly on Beneficial Evil*. We also need to finalize the Bangkok filming schedule."*
He spoke calmly.
"That means you'll have to come with us too."
That was only natural. Beneficial Evil was a joint project between DM Production and Netflix Korea.
"Of course. Leave the interpretation to me."
Later.
As the weekend came to an end, PD Song Manwoo began moving in earnest. And then a new workweek started again. Monday the 26th, Kang Woojin's schedule began at an incredibly early hour.
It was around five in the morning.
'Ugh, this is way too intense. I need to stop by the void space for a second before going to the salon.'
As expected, Woojin's schedule today was packed. There was recording related to Kang Woojin's Alter Ego, reviewing edited footage, attending various events, and even shooting another commercial he had signed on for. In fact, things were so packed that even next month looked completely stuffed with no room to breathe.
As a result, it felt as though an entire day would pass in the blink of an eye.
[Boy Friend: Remake Is a Massive Hit in Japan Again! Ratings Continue Rising, Now Reaching 15.9%!]
Even in the middle of his busy schedule, Kang Woojin checked an article from Japan on Tuesday.
'Oh, it went up again!'
The new episode of Boy Friend: Remake, which had aired on Monday, had broken its ratings record again. The ratings had climbed into the mid-15% range. Woojin was in Korea now, but Japan was in a frenzy.
Even so, Kang Woojin maintained his calm throughout.
"Woojin, Boy Friend: Remake is seriously killing it, huh?"
"Yes, I saw it too."
"Hahaha, right, right. At this level, it probably feels easy for someone like you, doesn't it?"
He was pleased, of course, but openly showing excitement did not suit the concept of his poker face. Meanwhile, the music charts in both Korea and Japan were also burning up. The opening theme song sung by Kang Woojin was showing powerful influence. It was at No. 1 on Japan's Oricon chart, and in Korea, although there were slight differences depending on the platform, it had entered the top five on most charts.
But the influence of Kang Woojin, the Issue King, did not stop with Boy Friend: Remake. On Thursday, the domestic media exploded with news about Miley Kara, and naturally, Kang Woojin's name came up as well.
[[Star Issue] Miley Kara, Who Worked on Her New Album with Kang Woojin, Reveals Two Photos of Them Working Together on Social Media]
There had already been buzz when Woojin returned to Korea, but once Miley Kara, who had over a hundred million followers, uploaded a post on her social media, the heat only intensified. Miley Kara had written that she had enjoyed working with Woojin and that the project had wrapped up well, but the two photos she posted alongside it caused a huge stir among countless overseas fans.
One photo showed Kang Woojin and Miley Kara working together, while the other showed the two of them filming the music video on a massive set.
In a way, they looked almost like teaser cuts or stills, and after seeing himself in the photo from Kara's music video set, Kang Woojin found himself thinking this.
'Oh my god— I was there, but seeing it in a photo makes it feel unreal.'
He felt flustered and strangely dazed at the same time. The fact that he had taken part in a global pop star's music video still did not feel entirely real. But thanks to the flood of messages coming in from Kang Hyunah, his childhood friends, and many others, he hardly had any time to sink into that feeling.
In any case, that incident became a turning point.
[Kang Woojin's Global Recognition Continues to Rise Steadily, While His YouTube Channel and Social Media See Explosive Growth!]
People from all over the world flooded Kang Woojin's YouTube channel and social media. It was like a nuclear explosion. As a result, his social media follower count shot past thirty million in an instant.
[@Wooji_n]
[Posts: 266]
[Followers: 31.08M]
[Following: 92]
His countless posts were flooded with comments in all kinds of languages from all over the world. His YouTube channel, Kang Woojin's Alter Ego, was nearing twenty million subscribers, and that number kept rising at an exponential rate. As time passed, many of the videos already uploaded to Kang Woojin's Alter Ego suddenly started surging in popularity again.
Amid all this, other matters began surfacing too, including news related to Beneficial Evil.
[[Issue Talk] Unstoppable Kang Woojin—What Will He Look Like in Global Superstar Miley Kara's Music Video? All Kinds of Speculation Are Running Wild.]
But as expected, everything connected to Miley Kara had the biggest impact.
And so, nearly two weeks flew by. The sweltering July came to an end, and August began. There were now only around ten days left until September.
In other words, summer was ending and autumn was approaching.
August 17th, Tokyo, Japan.
It was late morning. Near Tokyo Station stood the large film company Toega. Toega had already long been considered one of Japan's major film studios, but recently its name had been mentioned more than ever. It had never exactly been quiet before, but lately the commotion surrounding it had only grown louder.
The reason was simple.
Toega was the company producing The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice.
After briefly entering a quiet period during the editing process, The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice once again captured the attention of the Japanese press and public. The driving force behind that renewed interest was Boy Friend: Remake, which had exploded in popularity in July and continued to ride that momentum.
More precisely, all of it was because of Kang Woojin.
And now, The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice, centered around Woojin, had entered the final editing stage inside Toega's editing room. The room was filled with monitors of various sizes, large and wide. In front of the monitors, which were playing scenes from The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice at random, about six people were seated.
Tak, whirr!
The sound of machines running quickly filled the room as they worked. The person leading them was the man standing in the center, and his hair had become noticeably grayer than before.
It was director Tanoguchi Kyotaro.
The editing work for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice, which had begun back in May, had now reached its fourth month and was entering its final phase. Perhaps because of the constant overnight work, Director Tanoguchi's skin looked quite rough.
But, true to form for a master director of Japan, his eyes were still sharp and alive.
"No, the full look of this scene isn't quite right. There was a frontal close-up of Mr. Kang Woojin here, wasn't there?"
"Yes."
"Yes."
"Let's take a look at that one."
At that very moment.
Thud!
The heavy door of the editing room swung open, and a middle-aged man in a suit entered. He was the CEO of Toega Films. At his arrival, Director Tanoguchi Kyotaro, who had been focused on the editing, turned his head. The slightly tense CEO of Toega addressed the director.
"Director, the official production press conference for The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice has been confirmed. It's scheduled for this week."
Director Tanoguchi, exhausted and speaking in a somewhat hoarse voice, slowly nodded and replied.
"Kang Woojin needs to be informed first."
The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice was just beginning to spread its wings.