CHAPTER 031: Casting
CHAPTER 031: Casting
The air inside Nine Film’s office was filled with a subtle tension.
CEO Park Kyungsu stared at the two people sitting across from him, at a loss for words.
One was top actress Seo Yoonha, and the other was Hallyu star Park Juwon.
“So you’re both saying… that you want to audition for the role of Professor Baek. Is that correct?”
At Park Kyungsu’s stunned question, Team Leader Jo Sehun and Team Leader Heo Jeongseok scratched their heads at the same time.
The two team leaders, each in charge of Flash Entertainment’s top actors, were already exhausted to the bone.
“We should’ve coordinated this internally first. But as you can see, neither of them is willing to back down.”
“At this rate, it feels like the company itself might split in two, so we figured it’d be better for the production side to make a fair decision.”
No sooner had the two managers finished airing their grievances than the head of production spoke up.
“You do know that Professor Baek isn’t the lead role, right? He’s closer to a sub-protagonist, but still…”
“Of course.”
“But even so…”
The head of production looked utterly unable to comprehend this absurd situation.
‘Two top actors—on top of that, from the same agency—going this far over a supporting role?’
Under normal circumstances, it was unthinkable.
Actors of that caliber usually picked and chose leading roles.
Yet here they were, fighting so fiercely over a non-lead role in a film by a rookie director, to the point where the agency had given up on mediating.
‘Was the reaction to this film like this from the start?’
No.
The script had already made the rounds through multiple agencies.
While its quality was praised, it was repeatedly rejected as being too risky.
At that moment, a face flashed through his mind.
‘Ryu Sunho…’
Ryu Sunho, who belonged to Flash Entertainment.
And Park Juwon and Seo Yoonha were also under the same agency.
The three of them had already worked together in Divine Investigation.
‘No way… Is all this chaos because of that kid, Ryu Sunho?’
The moment his casting was confirmed, the two of them had rushed in as if on cue.
It felt like the final pieces of a puzzle snapping into place.
‘Just what kind of spell does that rookie have? To move those two like this…’
As the head of production clicked his tongue inwardly, the two actors’ battle of nerves began.
“Yoonha… why are you doing this? Professor Baek is a man.”
“The script never specifies a gender. It just says ‘professor.’”
“No, but the age? Yoonha, you’re too young to be a professor. You’re still in your twenties.”
“I turn thirty next year. And I looked it up—there are quite a few professors appointed in their twenties. KAIST had a professor at twenty-six, and at UNIST there was a case where someone was appointed as an electrical engineering professor at twenty-eight…”
When Seo Yoonha countered with facts, Park Juwon pulled out his final weapon.
“Yoonha… you’ve already won tons of awards, at Baeksang Arts Awards and at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. I desperately need one more solid project in my filmography right now…”
A pitiful emotional appeal.
Seo Yoonha’s gaze wavered for a brief moment, but—
“You should’ve acted better.”
“…Are you a T or what?”
There was no chance.
Watching the scene, CEO Park Kyungsu muttered softly.
“Honestly… that side of Yoonha kind of suits Professor Baek perfectly…”
Park Juwon’s pupils shook violently.
Meanwhile, Seo Yoonha happily brushed back her disheveled hair.
At that moment.
Director Ji Seongwoo, having heard the news, rushed into the office in a panic.
The sight before his eyes left him speechless.
Two actors he wouldn’t dare even look at were fighting over appearing in his film.
Experiencing something like this for the first time in his life, dopamine seemed to surge through him, his face flushing bright red.
“Ah, h-hello! Director! I read the script, and it really moved me!”
“Professor Baek is such a fascinating character. I could really feel how deeply you struggled over it.”
Left Juwon, right Yoonha.
With a top star on each arm, Director Ji Seongwoo felt as though he’d crossed into another era, completely at a loss.
‘Is this a dream?’
He couldn’t rein in his excitement.
He wanted to cast both of them on the spot.
But the moment his gaze fell on the script lying on the table, his overheated heart cooled.
It was a script he’d revised again and again over countless sleepless nights, like his own child.
How much had he sacrificed for this work?
‘Get a grip, Ji Seongwoo. This isn’t just a movie. It’s a project I poured my entire life into.’
He looked again at the two actors smiling at him.
Right.
They were simply actors who wanted to play characters in his film.
What he needed was the single person who could most perfectly embody the Professor Baek he had imagined.
As Director Ji Seongwoo’s expression suddenly turned serious, the previously noisy office fell into a heavy silence.
CEO Park Kyungsu and the head of production also held their breath, watching his lips.
“I’m truly… truly honored that you both have taken an interest in my work.”
Director Ji Seongwoo bowed politely.
Even his habitual stutter stopped for a moment.
“But Professor Baek is a very special character to me. So… I’d like to see with my own eyes what kind of Professor Baek each of you has in mind. W-would that be all right?”