Joo Won has fun with comedy in latest drama 'Stealer: The Treasure Keeper'. Photos: Handout
Some of Joo Won’s most memorable roles in Korean films and drama are in the action genre.
One of his earliest action gigs was in the 2012 drama Bridal Mask, which had him fighting soldiers while riding a horse, jumping out of windows and making daring escapes.
In 2021, he starred in the movie Carter, which boasts nonstop action and some stunts performed on different types of moving vehicles – all executed by a ripped Joo Won.
His latest drama, Stealer: The Treasure Keeper, is no different.
In it, he plays an officer with the government division of the Cultural Heritage during the day and a masked thief who specialises in stealing cultural artefact at night.
The character’s nocturnal activity naturally requires the actor to do more than a few stunts.
According to the 35-year-old, he didn’t set out to pick the action genre on purpose.
“It’s not that I’ve grown to love the action genre, it’s more like the dramas that I enjoy and choose have action scenes in them,” he tells StarLifestyle in an exclusive email interview.
'Stealer: The Treasure Keeper' has a total of 12 episodes.
Whether it’s a conscious decision or not, Joo Won keeps himself in “tip-top condition” at all times, working out just as rigorously even when not filming just so he can “carry out both action scenes and acting well” when a new project comes along.
However, no matter how prepared he is, the actor says there was a new challenge he faced when filming this K-drama.
“It was really difficult to film action scenes in the costume. When I put on the mask and goggles, I couldn’t see clearly and the constant humidity also affected my vision.
“The leather material of the outfit made it rather inflexible so the costume always felt tight and stuffy,” Joo Won says of his cat burglar attire.
“Nonetheless, a lot of effort was put into creating the costume before filming started, so it really looked cool on the outside. But to be honest, it was really difficult to move around and act while wearing it (laughs).”
According to Joo Won, it was hard to move in the burglar outfit.
Stealer: The Treasure Keeper kicks off with Joo Won’s character, nicknamed Skunk by the police, stealing an artefact from a triad that had obtained the item illegally.
As the series progresses, we learn that Skunk targets those who are lining their own pockets with items that should be exhibited in the museum for the general public to appreciate.
When not playing the good thief, he is Hwang Dae-myung – a happy-go-lucky civil servant who often takes naps during working hours wherever he is ... at a cafe, at his desk in the office, etc.
As Dae-myung, Joo Won gets to tap into his comedic skills.
“The mischievous and playful side of Dae-myung is a part of me, but so is the serious side of Skunk. Dae-myung is like a child.
“So when Dae-myung puts on Skunk’s clothes, he is serious, but he also knows how to enjoy the situation. That’s what I tried to focus in my portrayal.
“I think I like Dae-myung,” Joo Won says, before adding, “As Skunk is portrayed by Dae-myung, I don’t really want to make a distinction between the two.
“While acting as Dae-myung, I personally found it really fun and also thought a lot about how to portray him even more vividly and cheerfully. It was really interesting playing him.”
At the same time, Joo Won reasons that it was crucial to establish that Skunk is not a superhero at all.
The Korean actor says Skunk is just a guy wearing a cool outfit and does some neat tricks while putting the baddies in their place. But underneath that mask is just Dae-myung.
“Dae-myung is the main character, hence I focused on how Dae-myung should be like.
“The most important point for this character isn’t for Skunk to be a capable hero; it has to be that of Dae-myung acting as Skunk.
“So, I couldn’t act too much like a hero or be too serious. I tried my best to make Dae-myung seem like a sloppy hero and worked hard to portray his serious side when he appeared as Skunk.”
Besides Joo Won, Stealer: The Treasure Keeper also features actress Lee Joo-woo (Why Her?), Jo Han-chul (Reborn Rich) and Kim Jae-won (Our Blues).
They play three police officers working in the unit who track down artefact smugglers.
Although one of their targets is Skunk, they decide to team up with him in order to catch a bigger thief – a politician who’s willing to kill to get his hands on some rare coins.
In Stealer: The Treasure Keeper, the K-drama hunk plays an officer with the government division of the Cultural Heritage during the day.
Being first on the call sheet, Joo Won took it upon himself to create a friendly atmosphere with his co-stars on the set of the 12-episode drama.
He says: “As there were many scenes we had to film as a team, I wanted to create an atmosphere on set where we could talk freely with the senior actors.
“As my age and seniority just happens to be in the middle, I took the lead to set up gatherings where we could all enjoy each other’s company.
“I worked hard to act as a ‘communicator’ (laughs).”
In a separate email interview, actress Lee describes Joo Won as “a really sweet guy” and someone who has “a remarkable understanding of this drama”.
She adds: “When we were filming together on set, he always allowed me to experience something new and learn from it.
“So, I’m very grateful. He’s always very considerate, and worries about our safety (when performing stunts).
“I’ve learned a lot seeing those sides of him.”
Since making his debut in 2010, Joo Won has been named Best Actor and Excellent Actor in several award shows in South Korea – namely for his roles in Bridal Mask, Good Doctor, Yong-Pal, Alice – as well as Best New Actor at the 2012 BaekSang Arts Awards for his role in Ojakgyo Family.
But, he tells StarLifestyle, he still has so many more roles that he looks forward to tackling in the future.
“I’m the kind of actor who feels excited, more than being afraid, when trying something new.
“Whatever new character or genre that comes to me, I’ll be able to film with excitement. I think I’m the type who is stimulated by new things.
“Regardless of the role, be it a familiar character or genre, or trying something completely new, it’ll feel fresh to me.
“Because, personally as an actor, each new work will definitely have something that feels different to me,” he adds.
In that sense, he feels especially charged and thankful that Korean titles are receiving the attention of the global audience.
“I think this is a wonderful opportunity to show the world the strength of Korean dramas. As an actor, I think this is a good time to make myself known worldwide.
“To me, it’s also important to consistently greet the audience with new challenges and different kinds of work.”
As for his Malaysian fans, Joo Won has this message: “I miss my Malaysian fans so much. I haven’t seen you for a long time. I hope we have a chance to meet.
“If the opportunity arises, I’ll definitely visit and greet everyone. I will work hard to make that possible.”
The final episode of Stealer: The Treasure Keeper airs Friday (May 19) at 9.15pm on tvN Asia (Astro Ch 395/unifiTV Ch 211). The series is also available on Astro Go, unifi playTV and tonton.
