A job seeker who once gave up writing and the top star who quietly lived on her words sit at the center of TVING's newest romance, and its two leads have now explained why that pairing pulled them in. Joy and Kim Hyun-jin have shared what resonated with them about their characters, how closely they chased the original webtoon, and the moments they worked hardest to make flutter.
Based on a webtoon, One of a Kind Romance follows Gong Yu-il, played by Red Velvet's Joy, an ordinary woman on the job hunt who unexpectedly becomes the manager of Tak Mu-i, played by Kim Hyun-jin. Mu-i is a top star hiding the emotional scars left by a stalking incident, and he found the strength to keep going through a novel Yu-il wrote years ago before she walked away from writing.
In remarks carried by Herald Muse, Joy explained that the healing arc between the two leads is what convinced her to sign on. "What resonated with me most was the process of two very different people meeting, understanding each other's pain and shortcomings, and embracing one another. I felt it was a project that offers warm comfort," she said.
Joy also described Yu-il as lovable and, in a way, admirable, because the character keeps living with a bright and spirited attitude even when faced with difficult circumstances. That brightness, she stressed, is not simple optimism. It comes from Yu-il's inner strength to get through each day in her own way despite the harsh realities she faces.
Bringing that balance to the screen meant holding two sides of Yu-il at once. Joy said she tried to naturally bring out the character's easygoing and lovable side while making sure not to overlook the vulnerability that occasionally comes through.
Kim Hyun-jin started from the source material instead, revealing that he paid close attention to how closely the drama would follow the original webtoon. "I think I was particularly interested in how similar the script would be to the original," he said. "I was excited imagining the different sides of Tak Mu I that I could portray and how closely I could capture the original character."
That range became his main task in performance, because Mu-i behaves one way on the job and another way entirely around the person he likes. "Tak Mu I shows different sides of himself when he's working, in his everyday life, and when he's around someone he likes," Kim Hyun-jin said.
The affectionate side of that range was built collaboratively on set. For the scenes where Mu-i openly expresses his feelings for Yu-il, Kim Hyun-jin said he worked closely with the director and his fellow cast members to create even more heart-fluttering moments and compelling scenes.
The two leads also credited each other for how easily those scenes came together. Kim Hyun-jin noted that being the same age as Joy made acting opposite her comfortable, and that she helped him a great deal in expressing the pair's relationship and emotions. Joy, in turn, said their chemistry clicked in a surprising way from the very first shoot.
The cast later expanded on those themes when all four leads shared their personal viewing points for the series through BNT News. Joy pointed to the way Yu-il and Mu-i gradually seep into each other's lives, discovering similar pain as they naturally fill each other's empty places, and she asked viewers to notice the small comforts tucked inside the fun, heart-fluttering scenes.
Kim Hyun-jin pointed to the adaptation itself, noting that many scenes carry the original character's journey and story, making the drama more fun when compared with the webtoon. It is a direct invitation to webtoon readers to spot what carried over and what the drama reshaped.
Shin Hyun-soo and Kang Na-eon, meanwhile, both singled out the four-way romance as the thing to watch. Shin Hyun-soo, who plays star chef Kang Hee-soo, said the four leads each show love from a different perspective, with a heart-fluttering romance that slowly gives way to mysterious situations. Kang Na-eon, who plays confident top star Joo Da-hong, added that each character carries their own version of love inside them and changes with every episode.
One of a Kind Romance is directed by Kim Jin-young and written by Jeon Hyun-mi, with Corpus Korea producing the 12-episode series. The drama adapts Dooboo's webtoon of the same name, which was serialized on Naver Webtoon.
One of a Kind Romance premieres on November 9 at 6 p.m. KST on TVING. International viewers can watch it on Viu across Asia, the Middle East and Africa, and on ABEMA in Japan, where it will be released as an advance exclusive.
Sources: Herald Muse, BNT News
