[INTERVIEW] Kim Nam-gil from "Seon-deok" (Part 3)

10: Bi-dam's teeth in "Queen Seon-deok" seem really white? How come?
Kim Nam-gil: It's because I put on make-up to make me look darker. Some people if I got my teeth whitened but I actually don't even go to the dentist that well. (laugh) I don't eat a lot of junk food though and rarely drink coffee. I just eat a lot when I have my meals. And like I said, my teeth look whiter because my make-up makes me look darker, but it applies to everyone. The light shines off it when it's dark so my teeth will seem even brighter when we shoot at night.

10: Is there any data or props you used to create your character?
Kim: Kang Baek-ho from comic "Slam Dunk". And I had read "Vagabond" by the same author a couple of years ago but I was reminded of it while reading the script for "Seon-deok" so I read it again. On top of those characters, I also added the character from "Yul Hyol Kang-ho" to create my own character. Since Bi-dam is a mix of characters from comic books, he is the most unrealistic and a character most unlikely to appear in a historical drama but I think some people actually enjoy it because it's refreshing.

10: You occasionally display acting which I presume is ad-lib. Out of the ad-libs you did, which do you think worked the best?
Kim: The producer allows us to do a lot of ad-libs. We discuss a lot about what might be funny, what would seem Bi-dam-ish, and he sets the line for them. For example, if we're shooting a scene where everyone is serious but I start picking my nose and he doesn't cut it, it means it's okay.

10: Bi-dam seems to like chicken. Do you really like chicken?
Kim: I do. I also like broiled chicken but it's not something you get to eat too often. I often order friend chicken though when I'm at home. But I don't have beer with it. (laugh)

10: Your character Bi-dam has earned the nickname of 'Silla's Anakin Skywalker' from "Star Wars". Have you ever thought you would want to be a certain someone's son?
Kim: That's a great nickname. I like those things. (laugh) Hmm, as a guy and a father, I respect my own father the most. But if I could leave out the 'fatherly' feeling, I would pick singer Seotaeji. I think you could call it deference rather than respect, but I love his musical talent and my acting has been influenced a lot by the way he feels his emotions. I want to follow his example of how he stirred pop culture and changed the flow of things, and be able to the same through acting.

10: You call yourself 'dad' and your fans 'daughters' when writing on your online fan cafe. Is there a particular reason for this?
Kim: One of my seniors who once saw me log-in to my fan page said I look really happy when I go onto the website no matter how tired I said I was. My mind will be at peace when I'm working when my family is happy and my fan page is where people who enjoy my acting or the dramas or films I worked on gather. So if I think of my fan page as my house, I'm the head of the household. That's why I call myself 'dad', my female fans 'daughters' and male fans 'sons' but I've recently gained more sons with "Seon-deok". My own dad came up to me and said, "If they're your sons, am I your son too?" (laugh)

10: You must be extremely busy with your drama but you put up a posting on your fan page very recently too.
Kim: Well, I actually had been just reading what my fans wrote but the people in charge of the website kept asking me to write something. And once, my fans came to see me on set but they compared me to actor Lee Seung-hyo, saying that he treats his fans wells and puts up postings often. So I blurted that they should join his fan club then, but I put up a posting right after that. And all the times I have been good to them! Is the public always like that? Moving on and liking someone else when a new actor appears?(laugh)

Reporter : Choi Ji-Eun five@10asia.co.kr, Wee Geun-woo eight@10asia.co.kr
Photographer : Chae ki-won ten@10asia.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr, Jang Kyung-Jin three@10asia.co.kr