Lee Joo-wan expresses admiration for YoonA's acting in 'The Chef of the Tyrant' and discusses the show's success and his experiences.

Lee Joo-wan revealed that he was surprised by the acting ability and consideration of YoonA from Girls' Generation, whom he met in 'The Chef of the Tyrant.' He recently participated in an interview regarding the tvN weekend drama 'The Chef of the Tyrant' at the Newsen building located in Gangnam, Seoul. The drama, which recently ended broadcasting in Korea, is based on the popular web novel 'Surviving as the Chef of Yonsangun.' It is a survival fantasy romance that unfolds when a chef who time-travels to the past meets a tyrant king with absolute taste. In the drama, Lee Joo-wan played the secretive clown, Gongil. The show started with a viewership rating of 4.9% (according to Nielsen Korea's paid platform) and recorded a peak rating of 17.1%, the highest for a mini-series aired in Korea in 2025. Lee Joo-wan, who anticipated high ratings, said, 'Looking at the cast, I thought it would definitely exceed 10%, but I never expected 17%. I mainly watched it on OTT, but the fact that people watched it until the end means they loved the work that much. After it exceeded 10%, I checked the ratings every morning, even when I was tired, and searched for articles about 'The Chef of the Tyrant.' He is called a gem discovered by 'The Chef of the Tyrant' along with Lee Che-min, saying, 'I thought I would benefit from this before filming started. The seniors and staff were all perfect, and I thought I would benefit in any way here.' He added, 'Therefore, I thought I had to make sure not to be a nuisance here. I thought the only thing I could do was to do my best, so I really worked hard.' Expressing the wide range of emotions of Gongil was also a big challenge for him. Lee Joo-wan reflected, 'To express emotions deeply in the latter half of the story, I thought I needed to express it more brightly and comically in the beginning. Since I have a bright personality, it wasn't difficult to act bright, but expressing it naturally with Joseon-era humor was challenging. In that process, pansori (a Korean traditional art form: a narrative performance accompanied by a singer and a drummer) was very helpful.' He further revealed, 'It was very difficult to throw away the bright atmosphere and move towards the real purpose in the latter half. When I realized that Lee Hong (Lee Che-min) was not actually the target of revenge, I often struggled to express the wavering emotions.' He mentioned a memorable scene, citing the intense confrontation with Chuwol (Kim Chae-hyun). He said, 'At that time, it was physically tough, and the emotional ups and downs were intense, and it was mentally exhausting. It was a long scene, so we couldn't finish filming in one day, and I had to maintain that emotion for two days, which was exhausting. The seniors were also very tense. Since it was an action scene, there was a risk of injury, so it was a scene where we had to be extra careful.' His homage to the choreography of Girls' Generation's hit song 'Gee' in front of YoonA also drew attention. He said, 'I think I couldn't have done it without a lot of courage. It wasn't written in the script; it was an impromptu performance I prepared. I thought a lot during the preparation process, and when I went to the filming site, I asked my manager, 'Is it okay if I do this?' I wanted to see the real reaction of my senior, so I suddenly showed it during rehearsal, and she accepted it well. As expected, she was a professional.' When asked about co-starring with YoonA, he said, 'I often tell my friends back home that two of my achievements are co-starring with YoonA from Girls' Generation in a drama and with Jaejoong in a variety show. I was able to converse and harmonize with people I admired since childhood. When I first filmed with senior YoonA, I was so nervous that my heart felt like it would burst. I thought I had to show my talent in front of the best idol, and I was anxious about whether I could do well, but since it was the professional world, I was able to pull it off.' He added, 'Every time I went to the filming site, it felt like I was watching celebrities on TV. Senior YoonA was really considerate and paid attention to even the small things. I felt she had reached a certain level after 20 years of debut. She was a presence that harmonized the whole scene well.' The chemistry between Lee Hong, Gongil, and Shin Soo-hyuk (Park Yong-woon), who accompanied Yoon Ji-young (YoonA) to make a pressure cooker, also stood out. Lee Joo-wan explained, 'The actual personalities of the three are all different. Che-min is warm and good at jokes, while Yong-woon is basically quiet but throws in a word here and there. Che-min led the way, and senior YoonA also joked and laughed brightly. We filmed as if we were on a week-long trip.' Lee Joo-wan praised not only Lee Che-min's acting skills but also his humanity as an actor. He said, 'He was completely different from the first impression, which seemed a bit cool; he was gentle and approachable. After horse riding practice, I felt a distance because I couldn't meet him, but he called out, 'Hyung, feel free to talk.' Che-min is really kind. In the drama, he is a tyrant, so when people around ask about Che-min's personality, I say, 'There is no one as kind as him.' Lee Joo-wan also shared an episode where he received unexpected misunderstandings about his height, despite being 184 cm tall. He said, 'There were reactions like, 'Gongil's height is a bit disappointing' and 'He's short.' Many people thought I was in the 170 cm range. I've never heard anyone say I was short before.' He conveyed, 'When I first met him, I was surprised to see Yong-woon, but I was even more surprised to see Che-min behind him. I think it's rare to have so many people over 190 cm in one work, but there were four in our drama.'