The Third-Gen Chaebol Becomes a Genius Actor

Chapter 151 < You Need to Make More Stories >

Director Lee Jeong-hoon’s ‘Only’ was a movie that targeted people who received low sentences despite the heavy weight of their crimes, to the point where it was called the ‘Only Law’.

The plot was about a victim who was furious that his appeal was rejected for a lower sentence than expected, and went to punish the judge and the criminal himself, who had ties with the gangsters.

The protagonist, who had a lot of stories behind him, did not hesitate to break the law. Bad guys catching bad guys was a theme that had become cliché from being used so much.

‘It’s exactly the public’s taste. If it opens next month, the luck will be good too… It will be a moderate success.’

‘Wow… For a rookie, the directing is decent…?’

‘It’s obvious, but why is it fun?’

The reporters, who were indifferent at first, gradually looked at the screen with more interest as time passed. The refreshing and flashy action, the actors with decent acting skills, and the characters that revealed the narrative with a few lines of dialogue.

(Why are you here?)

(I know someone here.)

And in the middle of the movie, an unexpected character appeared. When the protagonist opened the door of a shabby warehouse, the interior was flashy and antique, unlike the exterior.

(What, what is this?!)

The woman, who was distracted by him, swallowed her saliva too late when a knife stuck on the wall grazed her ear.

[Can you make a special appearance while you’re here? There’s a suitable role for you…]

[Me?]

[You have to use everything you can. You invested a lot too.]

Lee Jeong-hoon, who was flustered at first, spoke quite shamelessly. Yoo Yeon Seo, who was playful, teased him.

[My price is expensive, you know?]

[Hey, if the movie does well, you’ll benefit too, Yeon Seo.]

[Huh, it’s not like it’ll do well because I make a special appearance… What do I have to do?]

And the more ‘Only’ did well at the box office, the more Yoo Yeon Seo gained. He had no reason to refuse.

(Jay, you’re too playful.)

(Are you the only one who can do it?)

On the screen, which was said to be the biggest in Korea, Yoo Yeon Seo’s handsome face filled the screen. Someone in the audience exclaimed. On the screen, Yoo Yeon Seo, Jay, looked like he had become a nouveau riche, wearing a gold necklace and a flashy patterned shirt.

The story was already good, but it left an impact with an unexpected special appearance.

Jay, as he was called, approached the woman who was glaring at him behind the protagonist, with a dance-like movement.

(Are you his partner?)

(…That’s rude for a first greeting.)

(Oh, sorry. Did he pick you because of me?)

Jay snatched the knife that the woman had drawn, with a disdainful expression. Then he threw and spun the knife in the air repeatedly. Amazingly, it stuck to his hand as if it had a magnet. It was a short action, but it gave off an untouchable feeling.

In fact, he had fiddled with the prop while waiting for the special appearance, and the director saw it and decided to use it in the scene on the spot.

(Why are you here? My side still hurts when it rains because of you.)

(What did you say?)

(Don’t trust him. He’s the worst bastard among bastards.)

Jay looked at the woman and smirked. His mouth spat out vulgar curses, but his tone and behavior were frivolous. The people who were captivated by Yoo Yeon Seo’s face wondered what the story was between Jay and the protagonist.

He’s at it again. The protagonist, who had been silently looking at the sky, muttered quietly.

(I need your help.)

(I don’t help just anyone.)

(You know Judge Hong Chang-won, right?)

He was the villain of ‘Only’, played by Oh Jin-sung. As soon as he heard that name, Jay’s face, which had been smiling leisurely, flashed with hatred.

(This bastard is trying to eat me alive.)

Contrary to his answer, Jay took out various weapons and didn’t come out anymore.

‘He came out longer than I thought.’

After that, it was the protagonist’s satisfying revenge play with the victims. The movie ended with Hong Chang-won’s death. It was a perfect killing time entertainment movie. The break-even point was 2.5 million, they said… It seemed like it would pass easily.

“Good job. Director.”

The main OST and ending credits of the movie went up. Yoo Yeon Seo looked at Lee Jeong-hoon’s face next to him and paused for a moment.

<Special Appearance>

Weapons Dealer “J” Yoo Yeon Seo

He left Lee Jeong-hoon in his seat and headed outside. On the screen, Yoo Yeon Seo’s name was just coming up.

“Where’s Jeong-hoon?”

“I thought it would be better to leave it as it is.”

Lee Jeong-hoon was silently shedding tears. He didn’t want to interrupt the appreciation. Director Cheon nodded his head, understanding the meaning of his words.

“I get it, I’ve been there too.”

“You too, director?”

“Yes. I didn’t leave right away, but looked at the names of all the people in the credits.”

He had risen from the bottom staff who were not even allowed to have their names on the credits, rolling and crawling his way to the position of a master. Director Cheon finally realized that his former scriptwriter had become a junior director.

“Anyway, thank you very much.”

“What did I do? The result shows that you have a lot of talent.”

“It would have been hard to discover your talent if it wasn’t for you.”

As soon as he left the theater and headed to the lobby, reporters from the media rushed in. Lim Seunghyun and Cha Yoon-ho, who were waiting in advance, stopped them from taking pictures.

“Yoo Yeon Seo!”

“Can we have a brief interview with you?”

Yoo Yeon Seo said goodbye to Director Cheon and stopped in front of them.

“Yes, please tell me.”

“Well… You gave the best support in the industry for the production of ‘Only’…”

“Did the director say that?”

“Yes, he said you were his benefactor. Why did you support him like this?”

Lee Jeong-hoon, did he blabber about this behind his back? Yoo Yeon Seo gave a plain answer that he invested in the potential.

“People who know would know, but didn’t Director Lee Jeong-hoon get involved in an unpleasant incident before ‘Only’?”

“Involved? He was one-sidedly victimized.”

“What? Yes… That’s right.”

Some people called Yoo Yeon Seo a weirdo for taking care of Lee Jeong-hoon’s trouble. I think I did the right thing, but a weirdo… How strange. It must have been someone from ‘Movie Idea’.

“Then, do you have any plans to nurture someone like Director Lee Jeong-hoon?”

“Nurture sounds a bit odd. Let’s say I push them. I don’t care if they are rookies or veterans, as long as they have the ability.”

Some people were saying that Yoo Yeon Seo was picking out promising rookies and nurturing them to make his own group.

“Do you think that will work well?”

One reporter raised his hand and asked a snarky question, but Yoo Yeon Seo answered with a relaxed smile.

“Yes, didn’t I already prove it with my actions?”

Even before 2018, Yoo Yeon Seo was called ‘the hope of rookies’. In fact, he was half-mocked as a rookie who only appeared in rookie works because his acting skills were not good enough, but he was so famous that there was a rumor that ‘if you have a really precious work that you can’t make into a movie, send it to Yoo Yeon Seo’.

His actions became more prominent after the accident. He took over ‘Baekhoham’, which had no investors and was only wandering around, and ‘Dreaming’, which was almost stolen by a veteran writer because it had no name value.

“Did you enjoy the movie today?”

And he didn’t just spend money recklessly. Director Lee Jeong-hoon’s movie was so well-made that it was hard to believe he was a rookie. He was originally a scriptwriter for Director Cheon, so he had enough potential…

“I’ll take his question and go.”

Yoo Yeon Seo pointed to a reporter who was desperately raising his hand in the back.

“Can I ask you about the direction you are pursuing as a director of JSENM, not as an actor?”

“Direction…”

Yoo Yeon Seo paused for a moment. Lee Jeong-hoon’s scenario was not the only one he had. He had countless ideas and synopses.

[Why didn’t you think of making these into movies sooner?]

[I don’t want to learn how to direct.]

[Because it’s hard to survive in the movie industry as a story writer?]

[Yes. Fortunately, I have some talent in directing. But… there must be people who don’t.]

People who only create stories, like Lee Jeong-hoon or Kim Dae-sung, the writer of ‘Baekhoham’, were either ripped off their fees or didn’t get the promised running guarantee even after the movie was released and taken down.

And they often get overshadowed by the directors… Kim Dae-sung sometimes sent him a message saying that he was lucky to meet Yoo Yeon Seo.

‘Actually, the first time I invested in Lee Jeong-hoon was to win over Director Cheon’s favor…’

He couldn’t say that.

“First of all, we need to create a lot of stories.”

“So, you mean… writers?”

“Yes.”

“Not dramas, but movies?”

“I don’t want to define the genre… I just want to invest in people who can bring their own stories to life.”

The writer should focus on creating an original story, and he should pay a fair price for it. 

That was what he told Lee Jeong-hoon, who had talent and could succeed as a director, but others shouldn’t waste their time learning how to direct.

‘While I’m at it, I’ll pick a work that I like and act in it.’

Usually, the synopsis is sent to all the actors’ agencies. 

The reason he accepted Choi Yoo Jin’s offer to become an internal director was because he could review more works faster and earlier than the actors’ agencies as a production company director.

‘The sooner the rumor spreads, the better.’

Yoo Yeon Seo smiled slyly.

“I hope you’ll get a lot of interest from the aspiring actors.”

He heard that he wouldn’t spare any investment to grow the industry, but some reporters had a different perspective.

If a movie or a drama that grew the story like this became a hit… he would not only monopolize the story, but also own the IP itself.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, sir.”

While the reporters were busy taking notes, he left the theater with his two secretaries and manager.

‘Only’ received unanimous praise from the press and the insiders

‘Only’ Yoo Yeon Seo involved in production investment “I’ll enhance the power of the story.”

‘Only’ Yoo Yeon Seo made a bold investment in a rookie director “I’ll invest in anyone who has potential.”

The place where ‘Only’ had its preview boasted the largest screen in Korea. There were also many seats, and only a few were empty.

Lee Jeong-hoon had few friends and reporters from the media, and even the staff and extras of ‘Only’ were invited, but there were still some seats left. Yoo Yeon Seo had mobilized people to boost the morale of the rookie director.

Yoo Yeon Seo, ‘Only’ mobilized JSENM employees for the insider preview

‘Only’ JSENM employees forced to attend the insider preview “Controversy”

The article sparked a flurry of posts on the online community of office workers.

-Did we go there by force?

We were happy to go there because they showed us the movie and didn’t deduct our half-day off

└We watched the movie at lunch and left early, it was awesome

└└Wow, I’m so jealousㅠㅠㅠ

└I was so sad that I didn’t win the lottery, I wasn’t joking

└Forced mobilizationㅋㅋ The article is creating controversy

-What’s the fuss about the preview?

I wanted to go there so bad, the competition was fierceㅋㅋ How was the movie for those who watched it?

└It was awesomeㅇㅇ

└Do you think they’ll give us incentives if it’s a hit? I’m already looking forward to it

└But do you know that our vice president also failed the lottery?

└└Can’t the vice president just go there anyway?

└└└He said he wouldn’t go if he failed the lottery because of the privilege controversy

-How was the director’s face for those who went to the preview?

Why haven’t I seen him even though we work for the same company?

└Did the director come? I only saw the light

└If you want to see the director, it’s faster to go to the JSE headquartersㅋ

└└ㅋㅋ The screen quality there is better than IMAX

└└└I want to see him in person!

└Hey, I was in front of the director, I kept turning around pretending to be uncomfortable, and he smiled at me, I died

└Did you die while writing the comment?

The controversy article was quietly taken down, and all that was left was the angry reaction of the fans who were upset by the forced mobilization.