‘Confession’ shows a new side of its stars

From left, actors Lee Jun-ho, Shin Hyun-been, Nam Ki-ae and Yoo Jae-myung pose for a photo at a press conference where they spoke about their roles in tvN’s upcoming series “Confession” at Imperial Palace Seoul Hotel, southern Seoul, on Friday. [NEWS1]

What’s more important - the judgement of a court or the truth?

TvN’s upcoming drama “Confession” - starring actors Lee Jun-ho, Yoo Jae-myung, Shin Hyun-been and Nam Ki-ae - revolves around the theme of double jeopardy, a law that prevents a person who has already been acquitted or convicted of charges from being tried again for the same crime.

Choi Do-hyeon’s (Lee) father is falsely convicted of murder while the true murderer gets exonerated. Five years later, a murderer in a different case comes forward, claiming that he was the killer in Do-hyeon’s father’s case and argues that “he cannot be tried twice for the same crime.”

In order to prove his father innocent, Do-hyeon becomes a lawyer. Together with his friend Ha Yu-ri (Shin), a former professional journalist, Gi Chun-ho (Yoo), a former detective who was in charge of the case, and Jin (Nam), a mysterious lawyer assistant, Do-hyeon chases after the truth behind the murders.

“All four characters share a similarity in the series - each has suffered the loss of a family member,” said director Kim Cheol-kyu at a press conference held Friday at Imperial Palace Seoul Hotel, southern Seoul. “But as time passes, they realize that what they’ve believed until now turns out to be totally different. Each of them therefore investigates the truth in their own way.”

Kim says that he was motivated by real life murder cases that have occurred in Korea.

“The murder case in the beginning of the series was motivated by an actual case,” he said. “However, the series, as a whole, is a reflection of various issues from Korean society like corruption, conspiracy and power play. Although these are not central themes of the story, they are important issues that [we must think about.] Also, the series asks the questions, ‘What is law?’ and ‘How do you interpret the law?’ I hope that the [viewers] think about these [questions] while watching the series.”

For singer-turned-actor Lee, who is also a member of boy band 2PM, this series could be one of his last before he heads off to the military.

“I will probably enter the military before the end of this year,” he said. “When I first read the script of the series, I had a good feeling about it. Although I thought [the script] was quite complicated, it sounded fun. [When I got the role of Do-hyeon,] I thought a lot about how to express him in a way that doesn’t look too serious or too flexible.”

The past few years have been very busy for Lee - he has appeared in various films and movies, ranging from romance to comedy and action. At the same time, he has released various singles as a solo singer.

The reason for being active in so many projects, he says, is because he wants to “try out many different things in many different ways.”

“I wanted to try out things I had never done before and show [the public] the different sides of who I am. But I’m also faced with endless worries about whether I can do things well.”

Actor Yoo, who plays a former detective in the series, also says that he wants to show his “different charms” to the public.

“Although I feel a lot of pressure due to the responsibility, I constantly think about how I can contribute to my dramas. In the end, it’s all about synchronizing well with my project.”

The 16-episode series “Confession” is set to premiere March 23 on tvN.

BY YEO YE-RIM [yeo.yerim@joongang.co.kr]