Actor Hyun Woo-seok made a strong impression playing the role of Ha-jun in the Netflix original series "GiriGo." Known as a former model, he delicately portrayed his character with stable acting and a calm voice.

"GiriGo" is an eight-episode series about high school students who are suddenly foretold of their deaths due to a curse from an application that grants wishes, and their struggle to escape the curse. Since the full release on the 24th of last month, it recorded 2.8 million views as of the 29th, ranking 4th in the global top 10 non-English shows. It entered the top 10 in 37 countries including South Korea, Mexico, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and Turkey.

In a recent interview held at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Hyun Woo-seok shared his thoughts on the work and his character. He joined "GiriGo" through an audition and read the scripts up to episode 2, performing lines for both Gun-woo and Ha-jun. However, he said he was more drawn to Ha-jun.

About the character Ha-jun, Hyun Woo-seok explained, "Ha-jun seems very cold and quiet on the surface. But the way he reacts to the strange events caused by the app felt very human. I became eager to explore how to express this character's sadness, joy, and anger. Even just reading the text, I could easily imagine how Ha-jun would speak and show expressions."

The chemistry among the "five friends" in the series was finalized after much consideration by Hyun Woo-seok. He asked the director who Ha-jun was closest to, and the director replied that he was equally close to all. Accordingly, he carefully divided the emotional nuances of Ha-jun in his acting.

He set a loving gaze when looking at Se-ah, maintained a subtle conflict with Na-ri, and portrayed Gun-woo and Hyung-wook as reliable friends. He added that he acted with the thought that Ha-jun and Na-ri might be unaware of each other's unrequited love.

The scene where Ha-jun is trapped inside the barrier with Se-ah, showing concern for her discomfort first, became a hot topic. Hyun Woo-seok said, "When you like someone, your gaze changes," and he tried to project the warmth of someone truly in love onto Ha-jun.

To Ha-jun, the younger brother of Haet-sal, Bang-ul is a bothersome "brother-in-law," but Hyun Woo-seok revealed that he actually relied on No Jae-won so much that he called him "my benefactor." He explained that the chemistry between the two as brothers-in-law provided a comedic relief that eased the tension in the work.

In the scene where Ha-jun transforms into a "bulldozer" during a crisis, Hyun Woo-seok said he wore heavy sweat makeup. Although Ha-jun was the slowest in the group running scene, his heart was ahead of everyone else. "Ha-jun isn't really a character who uses his body well. But in scenes where his feelings for Se-ah had to be shown, he ran really hard," he said.

As a former model, Hyun Woo-seok cited his ability to change his image depending on angles and hairstyles as his strength. He appeared as a 26-year-old idol in the film "Time to Hunt," showing himself in everyday clothes rather than a school uniform. He said he is ready to show new sides to the audience through various external transformations in the future.

Hyun Woo-seok expressed his wish to continue acting for a long time. "My current wish is simply for 'GiriGo' to become even more successful and go on to season 2, and for the audience to be safe and healthy," he said.