Kim Young Kwang returned to romantic comedies after a long break from the genre with Netflix’s Take Charge of My Heart.
The series follows a man whose artificial heart is running out of power and a woman with extraordinary electrical abilities. Within just three days of its release, Take Charge of My Heart logged 3 million viewing hours, ranking No. 3 on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV Shows list.
Kim plays Baek Ho Rang, the heir to a wealthy conglomerate who has an artificial heart. He shares a sweet yet thrilling romance with Na Bo Bae, a drama writer played by Chae Soo Bin, who gained electrical abilities after being struck by lightning as a child.
Reflecting on the response to the series, Kim said with a laugh, “I’m happy people are enjoying it. I haven’t had much time to look into the reaction because I’m filming another project, but my older sister and the martial arts director called to tell me they enjoyed it.”
He added, “I also bingewatched the series and had a great time. I even felt my face getting hot while watching some scenes. I wondered, ‘Did I really act like that?’ But overall, I was satisfied because I felt the series wrapped up the way a romantic comedy should.”
One of the main reasons Kim accepted Take Charge of My Heart was that he had been longing to return to lighter roles.
“Before this project came along, I kept playing villains, so I wanted to do something brighter,” he explained. “I’d worked on romantic comedies before, and I wanted to recapture that energy.”
“When I play villains, I’m constantly thinking about how to build tension, so there aren’t many opportunities to laugh,” he continued. “But working on a romantic comedy made me happy and got my heart racing. Even my eyes seem to have taken on a more smiling expression. I feel like I’ve been recharged, too.”
Going All In on Romantic Comedy Clichés
Take Charge of My Heart embraces many of the familiar tropes of romantic comedies. According to Kim, the director made that approach clear from the start.
“The director told us from the beginning, ‘We’re going all in on the clichés,’” he recalled. “There were moments when I thought something might be too cheesy, but the director said he liked it. So I trusted his vision and went along with it.”
Some of the more exaggerated scenes were challenging to film. Kim recalled a scene in which he plays a bodyguard in Na Bo Bae’s imagination.
“When I read the script, it didn’t seem strange, but seeing it on screen was hilarious, especially when I became a bodyguard who was completely in love with her,” he said. “I felt a little shy and embarrassed as soon as the director called ‘cut.’ I even tried to playfully toss her over my shoulder to shake off the embarrassment.”
Kim Young Kwang Reveals How Chae Soo Bin Made Him Blush on Set
Kim also credited his co-star Chae Soo Bin for helping their on-screen chemistry come together.
“Soo Bin is really good at going along with my shyness and playful antics,” he said. “Sometimes things change between rehearsal and filming, but she always adapts so well. She’s so cute that I naturally found myself being more affectionate around her, which I think made our chemistry even better.”
He also shared a lighthearted observation about Chae’s habits on set. “She was always lying down somewhere,” he said with a laugh. “Not exactly like a koala, but she’d find somewhere to lean. Her perm suited her really well, too.”
Kim noted that working on a romance often brings the actors closer as their characters grow closer in the story. “I couldn’t joke around with her much at first, but we naturally started playing more pranks on each other as we got further into filming,” he said. “People around us would see us fooling around and say we were like characters from the movie Zootopia or Tom and Jerry. We thought we had good chemistry, too.”
He initially thought of Chae as cute and youthful, but working with her gave him a deeper appreciation for her acting. “I initially had this impression of her as someone small, adorable and innocent,” he said. “But after working together, I realized how deeply she thinks about each scene and how hard she works to make her performances feel real. I came to see her as an actress with real depth on the inside.”
He was especially grateful for the encouragement she gave him during awkward moments on set. “Soo Bin kept telling me it was okay whenever I felt nervous and shy,” he said.
Kim Young Kwang’s Diet and Favorite Scene
Kim also revealed that his height made it challenging to find clothes that fit his character. At 190 centimeters (6 feet 3 inches), he had many of his suits and casual home outfits custom-made. “I eventually decided I needed to lose some weight, so I went on a diet,” he said. “I lost 3 to 4 kilograms, gained a little back and then lost another 5. I think I look my best at around 72 to 73 kilograms (159 to 161 pounds).”
His favorite scene was the ending of Episode 2. When he first read the script, he wondered how the scene would look on screen. “But when I saw the finished version, it really looked like something straight out of a comic book,” he said. “I thought, ‘This is what a romantic comedy should look like.’ I’m grateful to the art team and all the staff who worked so hard on it.”
‘Take Charge of My Heart’ Brings New International Attention
The series has also drawn attention from international viewers, ranking No. 2 in Thailand and helping Kim gain new followers on social media. “My follower count has gone up by about 110,000, which feels great. I’m also seeing a lot more comments in English,” he said. “I’ll work hard to become a global star,” he added jokingly.
Now in his 40s, Kim also reflected on how quickly time has passed since his debut. “Time goes by so fast. Sometimes I wonder if I could have done more,” he said. “Someone recently reminded me that it’s been 20 years since my debut. It feels like only about 12 years have passed. Since they say it’s been that long, could you write about 12 fewer years in the article?” he joked.
Why Kim Young Kwang Wants to Keep Doing Romantic Comedies
Kim hopes to continue taking on romantic comedies for as long as he can.
“I feel like I might stop getting offers for romantic comedies as I get older, so I want to keep doing them while I can,” he said. “Romantic comedies have a special charm in their playful, youthful feel, and I think they might become harder to do once you lose that side of yourself.”
He had previously taken on villain roles because he wanted to challenge himself with characters who were completely different from him. “I wanted to try something totally different, so I took on villain roles, and I enjoyed playing them. I think I portrayed some very wicked characters,” he said. “But after playing those roles for so long, I became even more reserved than I already was. That’s why I wanted to return to romantic comedies. I also thought I should have done more romance projects earlier in my career.”
For Kim, one of the biggest appeals of Take Charge of My Heart is the whimsical fantasy that lets viewers escape reality. “The series really captures the look and feel of a romantic comic,” he said. “It tells a story that probably wouldn’t happen in real life, but it’s the kind of thing anyone might dream about at least once. There are so many realistic stories these days, but this project gives viewers plenty of moments to escape into another world. I think its sweet, heart-fluttering romance is what makes it special.”
He concluded, “I was excited about it myself, and I had so much fun filming. It had been a long time since I’d enjoyed a project like this.”
>> ‘Take Charge of My Heart’ Review: Chae Soo Bin, Kim Young Kwang Power Up Familiar Rom-Com Formula
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