Kim Woo-bin talks about speaking Arabic and mixed reviews for Netflix's 'Genie, Make a Wish'

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Kim Woo-bin talks about speaking Arabic and mixed reviews for Netflix's 'Genie, Make a Wish'

Published: 14 Oct. 2025, 16:17 Updated: 14 Oct. 2025, 17:55

JIN EUN-SOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Kim Woo-bin [NETFLIX]

Viewers who like Netflix's latest drama “Genie, Make a Wish” caution one thing: You have to bear the cringiness of the first few episodes to really get into it.

And there is a good reason for that.

The drama is inspired by an Arabian myth involving a genie in a magic lamp. Unlike the myth, however, the show is set in modern Korea and Dubai, which means that its protagonist — a genie named Iblis, played by Kim Woo-bin — speaks both Korean and Arabic.

Still from Netflix's ″Genie, Make a Wish″ [NETFLIX]

Bae Suzy, Kim Woo-bin reunite in 'Genie, Make a Wish'

And if there was one mission that Kim wanted to achieve, it was to make his performance look convincing. So perfecting an Arabic accent to give an air of fluency was his first challenge.

“I listened to an audio recording of a native speaker saying my lines at least 1,000 times per line,” Kim said in a recent roundtable interview in central Seoul. “I had 52 lines in Arabic, so I think that makes a total of 52,000 plays.”

“Genie, Make a Wish,” written by Kim Eun-sook, who also wrote the script for the hit drama “The Glory” (2022-23), revolves around Iblis, a genie who has been trapped inside a lamp for nearly a millennium before being summoned by Ka-young, an emotionless psychopath played by Bae Suzy. Iblis believes humans are innately corrupt and tries to prove it to God through the wishes made by Ka-young. But things don’t go as expected, and their unlikely journey — and possibly romance — unfolds.

Still from Netflix's ″Genie, Make a Wish″ [NETFLIX]

With stars like Kim and Bae, the drama was highly anticipated by K-drama fans. But contrary to early expectations, it has received mixed reviews, with some viewers finding the frequent Arabic lines distracting, given that this is a Korean adaptation with Korean actors. Others have called the show childish or claimed its premise is over the top.

Such reactions, however, didn’t come as a surprise to Kim.

“Any project is bound to have mixed reviews, I think. As this drama especially contains a lot of stories and evokes a lot of thoughts, I think it is natural for viewers to have various opinions. But even the bad reviews mean that they watched it, so I'm grateful for that,” Kim said.

Kim said he put extra effort into making Iblis and his scenes as relatable as possible. One of his routines involved rehearsing alone on a dark set before anyone else arrived — something he had never done before.

“There was a scene that I thought was the most important part of the drama, and it had to be convincing. It also had to be done in Arabic,” Kim said. “If it were just me, it would’ve been fine, but other actors were involved, and if I made mistakes, it would have made things harder for them. So I went to the set alone at 2 a.m. and rehearsed for more than an hour. Then I started to see the way.”

Still from Netflix's ″Genie, Make a Wish″ [NETFLIX]

Language aside, playing a complicated supernatural being was still a challenge.

“I thought about the rhythm, expression and reactions of Iblis a lot when playing him because he is not a human being,” Kim said. “One moment, he's silly and ridiculous, and the next, he becomes this horrifying supernatural being. I put a lot of thought into balancing those two sides. There were no references, and I just made the character solely based on the script.”

It is actor Kim's third time collaborating with writer Kim following “A Gentlemen's Dignity” (2012) and “The Heirs” (2013), both of which were major hits.

“When I first read her script, there was nothing I disliked about it,” he said. “There’s a certain color only she can pull off, and it’s full of messages and questions that make you think — which I like because that’s how actors communicate with fans and viewers.”

Kim is currently the only member of the drama's production team doing promotional activities.

Still from Netflix's ″Genie, Make a Wish″ [NETFLIX]

There were some glitches in the production process. The initial director, Lee Byeong-hun, dropped out midway, and Ahn Gil-ho, who had worked with writer Kim in "The Glory," stepped in. Neither directors appeared for the drama's promotional activities.

“It would be a lie to say I don't feel the responsibility, but I think it also is something a lead actor should rightly do. If other members aren't available, I should be doing it,” Kim said.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [[email protected]]