KUALA LUMPUR: Did you miss Lee Seung-gi while he was away on his military service these past couple of years?
Here’s some great news! According to news portal Soompi, the South Korean singer, actor and host has decided on K-drama Hwayugi as his first acting project upon his return.
The 30-year-old will be playing the leading role of Son Oh-gong in tvN’s upcoming weekend drama series which is a modern spin-off of the Chinese classic novel Journey To The West.
Oh-gong is an extremely powerful god who is exiled to the human world. Due to his mischievous and prideful nature, he has his powers sealed, making his stay a rather difficult one.
The production team said, “This is a casting that we laboured over so much because Lee Seung-gi was already in our minds when we were conceptualising the character of Son Oh-gong.
“It is a huge honour for us that he has chosen to be involved in Hwayugi.
“We’re excited because we think that Lee will be able to showcase another aspect of his acting that he hasn’t shown before.”
The cast will also include top actors Cha Seung-won, Oh Yeon-seo and Lee Se-young, rock group FT Island’s vocalist Lee Hong-ki, former girl group Sistar’s member Bora, and rapper One.
“We promise a drama that is worthy of its star-studded cast,” added the production team.
Set to premiere on Dec 23, Hwayugi is written by the renowned scriptwriter duo Hong Sisters, whose works include the popular drama series My Girl (2005), You're Beautiful (2009), My Girlfriend Is A Nine-Tailed Fox (2010) and Master's Sun (2013).
Lee made his debut in entertainment at the age of 17, through his iconic debut single Because You're My Girl, earned him several Best Newcomer awards. To date, he has more than six albums under his belt.
His acting career kicked off in 2006, and so far he had starred in seven drama series including My Girlfriend Is A Nine-Tailed Fox, Gu Family Book and The King 2 Hearts.
He sealed his status as the “Triple Threat” when he became a host for the top variety show Strong Heart, and won multiple awards for his hosting.
Following his discharge from the military on Oct 31, Lee joked that he planned to appear on television a lot so that his fans would become sick of seeing him.
“I think that I’ll be able to greet fans very soon,” he stated. “I will be spending a lot of time with them from now on.”