Jaehwa Bernardo

Article (news)

How Lee Jun-young prepared for body-swap role in ‘Reborn Rookie’

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781668503662KMS01888_.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Lee Jun-young. <em>Photos courtesy of Viu</em></span></span></span></div><p>Body-swap characters — where individuals switch minds or souls — can present a challenge for actors, as they must navigate two distinct personalities at once: that of the body’s original owner and the new consciousness inhabiting it.</p><p>But South Korean actor Lee Jun-young said he didn’t find the task particularly arduous in his role for the series “Reborn Rookie,” crediting his preparation as well as the guidance from the production staff.</p><p>In “Reborn Rookie,” which is now streaming on Viu, Jun-young plays Hwang Jun-hyeon, a once-promising soccer player whose career is derailed after he is involved in an accident caused by the children of powerful conglomerate chairman Kang Yong-ho, portrayed by Son Hyun-joo.</p><p>Following a confrontation, Jun-hyeon and Yong-ho mysteriously switch bodies, with the businessman finding himself trapped in the former athlete’s body. Now in Jun-hyeon’s body, Yong-ho finds himself a rookie employee at his own company, intending to punish the wrongdoings of his own children.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nh_n9gS-zNs?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><p>If the story involving conglomerates, body-swapping, and revenge sounds familiar to K-drama fans, that’s because “Reborn Rookie” is based on a novel by the same author behind the 2022 series “Reborn Rich,” which starred Song Joong-ki.</p><p>In preparing for his role, Jun-young said he observed how co-star Son Hyun-joo spoke and carried himself.</p><p>“I paid very close attention to Son Hyun-joo&#x27;s way of speaking and his mannerisms. Before filming, we actually met up often to talk and spent personal time together,” Jun-young said through an interpreter in an interview with ABS-CBN News.</p><p>“Because of that, it was a bit easier to get into character,” added the actor, whose past works include dramas such as “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/2024/2/27/ambitious-underdogs-at-center-of-k-drama-the-impossible-heir-613"><strong>The Impossible Heir</strong></a>,” “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/showbiz/movies-series/2025/2/20/choi-woo-shik-park-bo-young-on-working-together-in-melo-movie-1618"><strong>Melo Movie</strong></a>,” “When Life Gives You Tangerines” and “Weak Hero Class 2.”</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781668769521KMS01843_ (1).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Lee Ju-myoung and Lee Jun-young</span></span></span></div><p>It also helped that Jun-young was given directions to act “very fatherly” on set.</p><p>“After getting that kind of direction, we fine-tuned the performance together on set. I didn&#x27;t have any major mental or physical difficulties,” he said.</p><p>The office-set fantasy mystery series also stars Lee Ju-myoung (from “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/02/10/22/k-drama-twenty-five-twenty-one-premieres-feb-12-on-netflix"><strong>Twenty-Five Twenty-One</strong></a>” and “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/12/12/23/jang-dong-yoons-like-flowers-in-sand-soon-on-netflix"><strong>Like Flowers in Sand</strong></a>”) as Kang Bang-geul, Yong-ho’s daughter, whom he had previously kept hidden overseas. Unbeknown to her father, however, she secretly returned to Korea and landed a job at his company.</p><p>“As the hidden youngest daughter, I think Bang-geul probably has a certain void. I figured she must be lacking love and that was her driving force,” Ju-myoung said, explaining her character&#x27;s internal struggles.</p><p>“I believe the one big move that Bang-geul can make all stems from love. So while some people might see it as just ambition, the real motivation deep in Bang-geul&#x27;s heart is her love for her family and her affection for her father,” she added.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:633px;display:block" width="633"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781668617282MSK03683 (1).jpg" style="width:633px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="633"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Ju-myoung</span></span></span></div><p>Portraying both work colleagues and a father-daughter relationship on screen required the actors to build strong chemistry and rapport. In the process, Jun-young and Ju-myoung developed a close friendship off camera — something the actress admitted she never expected based on her first impression of her co-star.</p><p>“When I first met Jun-young, he was more introverted than he is now before we got close, so I wondered, ‘Can we get close quickly?’” Ju-myoung shared.</p><p>“But once we started filming, we were basically like best buds. We were always laughing and having fun on set,” she added.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>DIFFERENT FACE</strong></div><p>When asked what they thought they would struggle with most if placed in a body-swap situation, Jun-young answered: “My different face.”</p><p>“Since I&#x27;m used to my own face when I wake up,” he explained before saying in jest: “If I were to wake up with someone else&#x27;s face, I think I&#x27;d try to go back to sleep.”</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781668864901KMS01771_ (1).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Ju-myoung and Jun-young during their interview with ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><p>Ju-myoung echoed her co-star’s answer that “the [different] face would be the hardest to get used to,” but also pointed to the potential loneliness.</p><p>“I also think of the emptiness and loneliness that comes with it (being in a different body), from wondering how to even get through the day to the fact that everything around you is unfamiliar,” she said.</p><p>Thankfully, the possibility of a body swap happening in real life remains far-fetched, serving instead as a source of fun and chaotic moments in “Reborn Rookie.”</p><p>“We had such a great and enjoyable time filming,” Jun-young said. “To all of our viewers in the Philippines, we hope that all the passion we put into this project reaches you.”</p>

<p>Body-swap characters can present a challenge for actors, as they must navigate two distinct personalities at once. But Lee Jun-young didn't find the task particularly arduous for his role in 'Reborn Rookie.'</p>

Body-swap characters can present a challenge for actors, as they must navigate two distinct personalities at once. But Lee Jun-young didn't find the task particularly arduous for his role in 'Reborn Rookie.'