Han Min-jae's Enigmatic Smirk
Of course, it was a sneer crafted for the role, but the face delivering it belonged to Ahn Jong-hoon. There was no sense of incongruity at all. What was this?
“Cut!”
The two-shot of Lee Jung-hyuk and Han Min-jae capped off episode 19. Woo Seung-hyun PD called out the OK sign with a cheerful voice.
“Great shot! Let’s grab one more two-shot with Yoon Tae-oh and Han Min-jae, then connect to episode 20.”
The ending shot for episode 19 would alternate between the ‘Lee Jung-hyuk–Han Min-jae’ and ‘Yoon Tae-oh–Han Min-jae’ setups. Woojin’s one-man-two-roles worked smoothly thanks to Ahn Jong-hoon’s supporting role, making edit points easy to handle. But Ahn Jong-hoon couldn’t pull off both ‘Woojin’s supporting role’ and Han Min-jae’s one-man-two-roles simultaneously under the circumstances. In other words, it was impossible to fit Lee Jung-hyuk, Yoon Tae-oh, and Han Min-jae into the same frame, so they shot individual cuts separately.
“Ready, action!”
Woojin swiftly transformed into Yoon Tae-oh. Same scene, and….
A smirk. The exact same sneer as before. Han Min-jae sneered once more, gazing at Yoon Tae-oh with dilated pupils.
Sure enough, not a trace of incongruity this time either. Watching that face, cunningly laced with mockery, Woojin suddenly thought it was the best performance Ahn Jong-hoon had given on the Justice set so far. Inside the camera, he had to see him as the opponent Han Min-jae, not Ahn Jong-hoon. Yet that expression inevitably invited a sliver of self-awareness….
How about that.
“Cut, next!”
Fortunately, it passed without issue. And with that, episode 19 wrapped.
The staff sprang into prep for the next scene the moment Woo PD gave the signal, as if they’d been waiting. The breathless marathon of nearly five months was finally entering its final stretch: the last episode of Justice.
As Kim Soo-rim had announced beforehand, the script only went up to the early part of episode 20. Leaving episode 19 on a peak of tension. Everyone in the cast was suppressing their surging curiosity about the ending as they dove into prep.
A brief break. Amid the bustling staff, Woojin sat alone in his chair, mulling over his character’s emotional arc. Then,
“Hey, son! Come have some coffee.”
Lee Kang-sik waved him over with a bright smile. The senior had finished his scene and was chatting with the waiting makeup and costume teams.
Woojin’s face, stiff from the intense scene, finally relaxed. He headed over.
“Whoa~ Son! Your acting was killer!”
As Woojin approached, Lee Kang-sik stuck up his thumb with exaggerated flair.
“Right? We’re breezing through thanks to Woojin!”
The makeup team lead and costume team lead chimed in with playful jabs.
Woojin gave an embarrassed smile and took a sip of the coffee Lee Kang-sik handed him.
The costume team’s maknae spoke up. “Woojin oppa’s famous for almost zero NG’s! We’re loving how fast we’re wrapping.”
As the praise for Woojin continued, Lee Kang-sik’s face lit up with mischief.
“Seung-shin, you trying to ditch us quick?”
“Aigoo, sunbaenim! I’d never! That’s not what I meant. I wish this drama never ended!”
“Oh yeah? Then I’ll have to NG a bit later. For Seung-shin’s sake… maybe twenty times!”
“No, no! Not that either, and you don’t need to….”
Makeup team maknae Lee Seung-shin—the youngest of all staff—flustered under Lee Kang-sik’s teasing.
The makeup team lead clutched her stomach, laughing hysterically, almost choking. Like sobbing, almost….
“Appa! Seung-shin’s gonna cry~”
The actors and staff mingled freely in a lively, open vibe. Laughter everywhere. Woojin naturally joined in.
That’s when it happened.
“……”
The cackling makeup team lead suddenly sobered, her face clouding uncomfortably.
Hm? What’s up?
Following her gaze, Ahn Jong-hoon was passing right in front.
“Hey, Jong-hoon junior!”
Lee Kang-sik called him over.
“Yes, sunbaenim.”
“Saw your acting. Good stuff.”
“Ah, thank you.”
Ahn Jong-hoon bowed to Lee Kang-sik. As he straightened, he shot Woojin a quick side-eye.
Fleeting, but Woojin didn’t miss it.
“Junior, why not grab some coffee and chat?”
Lee Kang-sik offered him coffee too, speaking in the same gentle tone he’d used with Woojin. Since joining at episode 10, the junior always retreated to his car during waits. A senior’s gesture of warmth.
“Ah, no thanks. See you later.”
Ahn Jong-hoon refused curtly and headed straight to the parking lot.
“Heh, well….”
Lee Kang-sik chuckled and lit a cigarette.
“That rude punk!”
The makeup team lead bristled. Other staff looked flustered.
But,
“Let it go. Leave him be. He’s comfy that way.”
“Still, that’s too much….”
“These days, call that out and you’re the boomer~ Right, son?”
“S-sunbaenim. If so….”
Costume maknae Yoon Bo-ra took the coffee from his hand instead, pumping her fist.
“I’ll drink an extra cup!”
“Puhahaha! Yeah, Bora. Chug it and power up!”
“Agh, that jerk! Thinks he’s king of the universe. I beat the crap outta Ahn Jong-hoon back in the day?! Thought he’d changed this time, but nah… dogs don’t quit shitting!”
Lee Kang-sik patted the fuming makeup team lead’s shoulder with a hearty laugh, as if it was nothing.
“Son, you were right.”
“Huh? About what?”
“Some meddling’s just the right amount.”
He winked, voice low. Woojin, getting it, smirked.
“Meddling? What’s that?”
“Why’s it only fun for sunbaenims! Let us laugh too~!”
“Haha, it’s a thing~”
-Thwack.
Lee Kang-sik slapped his knee and stood.
He pressed a finger to his lips toward the curious staff. “Shh!”
“Su-sunbaeniim!”
“Later!”
Lee Kang-sik slung an arm around Woojin and walked off. He murmured softly.
“Eavesdropping spreads tales.”
“Pardon?”
“Eyes everywhere on set—word flies fast. No need for me to say; it’ll spread on its own.”
Lee Kang-sik grinned.
“Was gonna set up a spot, but nah~ I’ll shelve the meddling.”
“Thanks for caring.”
“Nah. Ahn Jong-hoon’ll figure it out.”
The senior stretched and continued. “Son, drinks after wrap?”
“You got it!”
* * *
Early episode 20. Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, Special Division Investigation Room.
Han Min-jae was now openly clashing with the protagonists, so every cut in this scene got doubled. Linking to the close-up of Han Min-jae’s vile smirk.
-Thud.
Lee Jung-hyuk and Yoon Tae-oh sat. Han Min-jae, who’d seemed like an emotionless robot exercising his right to silence with eyes shut tight, now spoke up, face alight with glee.
“Finally seeing you, huh?”
Almost like an excited kid.
“Why… did you want to see us?”
Lee Jung-hyuk spat the question, chewing it over. His twitching brow betrayed his state. Barely holding back rage.
“Lee Jung-hyuk, I’ve been dying to know who you are. Heard so much about you.”
“What?”
“Couldn’t hold back my curiosity. Had to meet and ask myself!”
What? Psycho?
Han Min-jae spouted nonsense from the jump, hinting he knew all about Lee Jung-hyuk.
“Hoo… Fine. Skip the crap—tell us what happened.”
“Heh heh, first things first.”
Han Min-jae arched one brow and his voice slyly.
“I ask, you answer. That’s the order, right?”
His face and tone screamed he was set on toying with them. Outright saying, I’m gonna piss you off.
“???????????????????!(This fucking bastard!)”
“Lee Jung-hyuk-ssi, stop!”
Lee Jung-hyuk grabbed Han Min-jae’s collar and yanked him up. Yoon Tae-oh wrapped his trembling fist in his own hand.
“Pfft!”
Han Min-jae’s laughter echoed through the room, as if the whole thing was hilarious.
“You messing with people’s lives, you bastard?!”
Lee Jung-hyuk bellowed through ragged breaths.
That instant,
-Flash.
Han Min-jae’s eyes sharpened. His grinning face morphed into a cold terrorist’s.
“Aren’t you the one playing games?”
His low voice pierced Lee Jung-hyuk’s ear like a blade.
“What?”
“You should’ve stuck with us to the end.”
The roles reversed. Now Han Min-jae chewed the words.
“…You traitorous bastard.”
Trait or….
“You were in ‘Recoil’ too….”
He’d suspected since hearing about the surrender. But he’d never imagined a ‘Recoil’ member among them that even Lee Jung-hyuk didn’t know about.
Han Min-jae’s identity hit like fresh shock.
Father…. No, Lee Jin-tae, you… how far did you plan this? What’s your endgame for this tragedy?!
“Uwaaa!”
-Crash!
“Kuhk!”
Lee Jung-hyuk hurled Han Min-jae hard. Yoon Tae-oh rushed to block him.
“Stay calm. The more you rage, the more he plays you!”
“……”
Lee Jung-hyuk turned away, swallowing his fury with effort. Yoon Tae-oh helped the fallen Han Tae-jin back to his seat.
“Stalling won’t help either of us.”
“Why’s that?”
“You surrendered—you’re not escaping. Planning to take all the blame solo?”
“Threat?”
“No. Fact. Stay silent, and you’ll pay for the National Assembly terror and every crime Lee Jin-tae’s crew committed.”
Yoon Tae-oh leaned in toward Han Min-jae. “It’s over. Truth’s your only way out.” His low voice nailed it. The cool prosecutor’s gaze, tone, gestures interrogating a perp. Speak. Now! No flaws, his intent plain.
Han Min-jae’s lips quivered.
Then, he spoke. Yoon Tae-oh and even turned-away Lee Jung-hyuk now glared at him.
But,
“Puh, pfft….”
Huh?
“Puhahahahaha!”
Not what they expected. Bigger than a sneer—a laugh of utter ridicule.
After his gleeful fit, Han Min-jae caught his breath.
“You really think it’s over?”
“……!”
“So naive.”
“You little….”
Lee Jung-hyuk strode toward Han Min-jae. Just then,
-Ding-dong!
Text alerts chimed simultaneously from Lee Jung-hyuk and Yoon Tae-oh’s phones.