Chapter 50
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Casting Backlash
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Actor Lee Jun-hyung settled into the car and stared at his phone.
A luxurious face that suited his tailored suit perfectly, paired with an impressive physique. Solid acting chops.
It wasn't surprising at all that he, the top name anyone would list first for a chaebol heir lead role, had been cast in Oh, My Cat.
The articles he was browsing mostly focused on him and Park Min-ha's casting.
[Official] Park Min-ha Confirmed for MVT's Oh, My Cat! Transforming into a Job Seeker
Seo Ji-hye's New Drama Oh, My Cat: Lee Jun-hyung x Park Min-ha x Han Yeo-ul – Anticipation Builds for Fresh Couple Chemistry!
Hyped Drama Oh, My Cat: Lee Jun-hyung x Park Min-ha's Insane Chemistry Unleashed
The casting for Oh, My Cat was now fully confirmed. This new MVT Wednesday-Thursday miniseries (directed by Kim Shin-hyo, written by Seo Ji-hye, produced by Byeokjo-mok Pictures) follows a jaded job seeker who picks up a stray cat on the street and the events that unfold from there.
Lee Jun-hyung and Park Min-ha take on the roles of Kim Jin, the spoiled unemployed heir dodging his father who wants to hand over the company, and Park Ji-eun, the perennial job-hunting failure, respectively.
Han Yeo-ul plays Lee Joo-eun, the capable successor who inherits a rival group...
Not a bad reaction.
Lee Jun-hyung's eyes drifted to the comments below the article.
Just Park Min-ha being in it makes this the most anticipated drama ㅠ Lee Jun-hyung's not bad either
Not bad? With Lee Jun-hyung, it's the best, right? He's top five among 20-something male actors
Top five is exaggeration – he's easily top two
Olympics only medals top three lol top five ain't the best ㅋㅋㅋ
Seo Ji-hye's script + Park Min-ha + Lee Jun-hyung = ㄷㄷ Ratings already guaranteed
The article hadn't been up long, but comments were already piling up. Mostly positive, all buzzing with excitement.
Lee Jun-hyung was enjoying the comments with a pleased smile until his face hardened at a related article that popped up below.
[B.O.Y's Lee Do-jun to Star Alongside Agency Senior Park Min-ha in Oh, My Cat!]
He clicked the article with a scowl, and the rapidly growing comments came into view.
Is this the idol who caused that accident?
Yeah, that's him. Looks like they're really pushing him
Pushing him with terrible acting? ㅋ Just feeding him scraps ㅋㅋ
Never seen him act, how do you know it's bad? Always hating for no reason ㅉㅉ
If he was good at acting, he'd be an actor, not an idol
His personality seems decent at least ㅋㅋ I'd push him too if I were the boss
Tap, tap tap.
His fingers flew across the screen.
If his personality's so great, why not a brave citizen award instead of stealing spots from real actors? Am I the only one who thinks this is weird?
As expected from a hot article, replies poured in beneath it immediately.
For a brief moment, he smirked at the replies agreeing with him and bashing Do-jun. But as defenses started piling up, the smile vanished from his lips.
Thwack!
"Damn it!"
The manager, driving, glanced up at the rearview mirror at the sound of the phone being hurled into a corner of the car.
"What's up?"
"No, fuck! It's pissing me off. Does it make sense to flip the entire script over one idol? My lines got cut, I have to reanalyze everything. And these random nobodies are commenting 'good for him' like it's nothing."
"Can't be helped."
Lee Jun-hyung seemed even more irritated by the manager's calm response.
"Doesn't it bug you at all, hyung? Bluntly, is the writer sane for scrapping the script over some no-experience punk? And the production company that allowed it—they're all crazy!"
"Yeah."
"Honestly, without Park Min-ha, he wouldn't even have gotten the role. This is the real rot in the industry."
"Right."
The manager was agreeing, but there was zero conviction in his voice. Lee Jun-hyung scowled at the half-hearted attitude.
"Whose side are you on, hyung?"
"Yours, obviously. But don't say that in interviews. You know better."
They were on their way to an interview about Oh, My Cat, after all.
Given the stakes, questions about Do-jun's casting—perfect clickbait—were inevitable.
A slip-up there would spawn headlines about on-set feuds before filming even started. That had to be prevented.
Of course, Lee Jun-hyung had enough experience now not to go that far, but...
Better safe than sorry.
Cautious is never too much. The manager pressed Jun-hyung, who wasn't responding.
"You hear me? This ties into the production company and network too..."
"Argh! Yeah, yeah, I got it! How many times you gonna say it? I'm not a kid."
Finally, Lee Jun-hyung snapped with irritation at the repetition. Still unsatisfied, he ranted incoherently for a while longer.
The manager waited until he'd vented everything and the car fell silent again before offering comfort.
"Don't sweat it too much. On set, skill speaks for itself. If Park Min-ha really skyrocketed him, it'll end there."
"Hmph, like that punk has any skill?"
"I heard Seo Ji-hye was at the audition."
"Obviously for Park Min-ha. His accident probably boosted his name recognition. Without that, no way he passes."
The manager swallowed the retort rising in his throat at Jun-hyung's snide, dismissive tone.
Seo Ji-hye wouldn't care about something like that.
But he kept it to himself as the car continued down the road.
At the same time, in the Oh, My Cat conference room at MVT's drama department.
CP led the meeting with production company CEO Lee Sung-hoon, chief producer Ha Chae-rim, and director Kim Shin-hyo.
In the thick tension, CP spoke first.
"Park Min-ha, Lee Jun-hyung. Leads are solid. Overkill, even. Sub-lead Han Yeo-ul too."
His words were positive, but his tone carried a sigh.
He stared straight at Lee Sung-hoon, who kept averting his eyes, and continued.
"But what's this sudden Lee Do-jun?"
It wasn't unreasonable.
Lead Kim Jin was played by Lee Jun-hyung: intellectual image, proven actor from several hits.
His last role had been so strong, he was now top-five among advertisers' favorite actors.
Han Yeo-ul had less popularity but a solid resume.
And the supporting cast? All heavy-hitters, veterans. Yet one rookie upended everything overnight.
"Does it make sense to rewrite the script for a kid with zero acting experience? Just casting him feels like favoritism over snagging Park Min-ha, but changing the script? What kinda rumors will fly then?"
CP scanned them with a menacing glare, but no one spoke up clearly.
"Seo won't pick up, says she's writing. What are we supposed to do?"
"..."
"Say something, damn it. I'm losing my mind here."
Under CP's persistent pressure, Kim Shin-hyo finally spoke.
"Hyung—no, CP. What can we do? Seo decided it."
"Tch! How can the director be so irresponsible?"
"Then you fix it, CP."
Now that he'd started, Kim Shin-hyo shot back bluntly. He was just as baffled, even if he hid it.
CP jabbed a finger at his flushed face.
"If I could, would I be stressing?"
"Why push it on us if you can't?"
"Ugh, shit!"
Frustrated, he ruffled his freshly cut morning hair, then turned to Lee Sung-hoon.
"Lee CEO! You're closest to Seo. Do something. This favoritism is too obvious—it's killing our vibe."
"We're scrambling too. Rescheduling shoots is a nightmare, you know."
"I know, but..."
He knew Byeokjo-mok Pictures was in a bind too; it was just venting.
In the end, the only one to blame was the culprit: Seo Ji-hye.
"The writer just got obsessed with this weirdo kid."
Then, quiet Ha Chae-rim cautiously raised her hand.
"Um... CP?"
"What?"
"Honestly, ratings are what matter right now."
"True."
"Why not just go full open with it?"
"What do you mean?"
Intrigued by any potential fix, CP leaned in as Ha Chae-rim licked her dry lips.
It's a gamble, but...
The audition footage alone showed promise. Staff reactions backed it up.
Seo must have her reasons for rewriting.
"Just officialize that the script changed for Lee Do-jun."
"What?"
CP couldn't believe his ears.
"Everyone from the network to actors is freaking out over this, and you wanna promote it?"
Viewers only knew of the casting so far—still quiet. But script changes? Backlash inevitable.
"How's that boost ratings? It'll just tank the drama as a mess."
This meeting was to figure out how to bury it.
Mid-drama noise? Maybe survivable. Early? Disaster.
But Ha Chae-rim thought differently.
"Truth is, this bomb was gonna drop eventually. Can't revert the script now."
Locations and schedules were already shifting. Reversing that? Worse mess.
"Right."
"Better to hype it as the rookie the writer cared enough to rewrite for. Sure, initial hate, but no buzz is scarier than bad buzz."
"Hm, fair point..."
CP saw the potential.
But a new issue.
"Won't that raise expectations sky-high?"
The unspoken target was obvious.
Ha Chae-rim smiled with her eyes.
"If it blows up mid-run, we'll get slammed for hiding it. Acting and nepotism flak? Not our loss. We're already catching heat either way. Might as well milk it."
CP nodded unconsciously.
Like she said, casting rookie idol Lee Do-jun in a key role meant hate was unavoidable.
Might as well front-load it. Controversies often spiked episode 1 ratings.
Just one hang-up.
Ugh...
If they went this route and Do-jun's acting didn't match 'script-rewrite worthy,' one more person catches hell.
CP asked worriedly.
"Will Seo approve?"
"Actually... I already got her okay."
"What? When?"
The room's eyes widened in shock.
Ha Chae-rim spoke more confidently.
"This morning."
After the meeting, the internet exploded with the story: Seo Ji-hye rewrote the script for Lee Do-jun.
Leads starring alongside her—Seo, the actors, Do-jun—all hit real-time search trends.
Seo Ji-hye rewrote for one guy? For real?
Nah, exaggeration. Probably planned anyway
What'd they change? No acting experience anyway. Desperate to shake the Park Min-ha piggyback image ㅋㅋ
Just ride the wave quietly and eat less hate ㅋㅋㅋ
Episode 1 will tell ㅇㅇ No way he's good, hate after watching
Reactions were predictably critical.
Do-jun's carefully built image faded as some hurled vicious insults just over the casting.
One undeniable fact: interest in the drama had undeniably spiked.
And so, slowly, the script reading for Oh, My Cat drew near.