"We go back a long way": King The Land's Lee Jun-ho dishes on working with Lim YoonA

Lee Jun-ho shed light on working with his co-star Lim YoonA on their hit romantic-comedy drama King The Land. The second-generation K-pop idols-turned-actors have been paired opposite each other for the first time for the charming love story. In the drama, Lee Jun-ho plays Goo Won, the head manager and the heir of The King Group, a luxury hotel conglomerate.

He is serious, and uptight and detests smiling until he meets the beautiful and warm-hearted Cheon Sa-rang, played by Lim YoonA. The pair embark upon a clandestine romance, away from the prying eyes of his father and sister, with whom he is engaged in an inheritance battle.

In an interview with Forbes, the 2 PM star dished on his long-standing friendship and camaraderie with Lim YoonA. When asked what it was like working with someone he has known for a decade and a half, he said:

“Since long before we hosted MBC Gayo Daejejeon together, as a singer and an actor, we go back a long way, more than 15 years."

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"We felt comfortable as colleagues and friends" - Lee Jun-ho discusses his long-standing friendship with YoonA and working on King The Land

Two years after starring in the critically acclaimed The Red Sleeve opposite Lee Se-young, Lee Jun-ho returned with the charismatic and light-hearted King The Land. Playing a K-drama style chaebol (rich man), he was paired opposite his long-time friend and fellow Gen 2 idol, Lim YoonA. The duo has been friends for over 15 years now.

For those unversed, Lee Jun-ho debuted as an idol with JYP Entertainment's group 2 PM and Lim YoonA is part of the legendary girl group Girls' Generation by SM Entertainment. They made their idol debuts only a year apart (Girls' Generation debuted in 2007 and 2 PM debuted in 2008) and hosted the Korean music show Gayo Daejejeon in 2021 and 2022.

In his interview with Forbes, the Insomnia singer mentioned that he has known the Gee hitmaker for over 15 years and felt comfortable working with her due to their longstanding friendship.

“It also applies in my younger days, but at this point in my career, if I meet someone, we become comfortable colleagues and friends wherever we meet. Since we both have careers as singers, we felt comfortable as colleagues and friends. But it was a different feeling to work together as an actor on the set. We approached the work professionally with each other’s role and had fun shooting with good chemistry,” he told the publication.

However, Lee Jun-ho confessed that it was a different feeling to work together as actors in a fictional love story. The Next to You singer insisted that they worked together professionally and had a great time shooting, showcasing their palpable chemistry.

Additionally, Lee Jun-ho revealed that he wanted to work on something fun and lighthearted after the emotionally taxing The Red Sleeve. Hence, working on King The Land was like a blessing as people could put their worries aside and enjoy a fictional love story unfolding on screen.

“Rom-coms have the power to make viewers' hearts flutter and bring joy at the same time. I wanted to do something that would bring happiness and comfort to people, and happened to encounter this project," he said.

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King The Land's Lee Jun-ho and YoonA rated as the most buzzworthy drama actors

King The Land stars Lee Jun-ho and YoonA became the most buzzworthy drama actors for the fourth consecutive week on Good Data Corporation's weekly list. Lee Jun-ho ranked at number one while the Girls' Generation star ranked in second place.

King The Land is currently in its last leg and fans are eager to see how Gu-won and Sa-rang will reunite after facing several trials and tribulations. It is left to be seen whether Gu-won mends his relationship with his estranged mother, who will be introduced in the last two episodes of the show, and if he will inherit the property over his scheming sister.

King The Land's final two episodes will air on Saturday and Sunday, respectively at 10:30 pm KST on JTBC and Netflix.