On the October 29 broadcast of SBS's "The Great Hang-jun," actor Cho Jung-seok appeared for an audition.
On this day, Cho Jung-seok personally revealed why he and Jang Hang-jun had not crossed paths until now.
He said, "There was a time when our paths almost crossed, but due to scheduling issues and other factors, it didn't work out." He also drew attention by sharing, "And the director personally asked me a favor, but I couldn't do that either. He offered me the MC role for the Jecheon International Music & Film Festival."
In response, Jang Hang-jun joked, "Actually, there was a financial issue. He asked for 780 million won for doing it once, so there was a gap between us." Cho Jung-seok quipped back, "You got that slightly wrong; it was 790 million won. It was originally 800 million won, but I gave a discount of 10 million won," drawing laughter.
Jang Hang-jun then countered, drawing bursts of laughter, "Back then, my feelings were really hurt and I cried a lot. Seeing me cry, Eun-hee said, 'Oppa, don't cry, I'll bury Cho Jung-seok,' but I scolded her, saying, 'Eun-hee, you shouldn't do that, colleagues shouldn't do that to each other.' Didn't I do really well?"
Cho Jung-seok also shared stories from his school days, showing his potential from an early age. After his high school days when he even had a fan club, he captured the hearts of professors during his college entrance exams with his guitar skills.
He also revealed the behind-the-scenes story of auditioning for "Nabdeuki," a memorable supporting character in Korean cinema history. Cho Jung-seok even performed Nabdeuki's acting on the spot, drawing applause.
Noting that he was cast in many musical productions through auditions, Cho Jung-seok shared a behind-the-scenes story of how he was recognized for his skills: "I auditioned for 'Hedwig' too, but I actually failed at first. However, that production company cast me in a different production. And while doing that show, they cast me, suggesting we do the next 'Hedwig' together."
Cho Jung-seok, who never shies away from new challenges, spoke about the movie "Pilot," which drew attention for his cross-dressing role and earned him the Best Actor award at the Baeksang Arts Awards. He revealed the secret behind his convincing transformation, saying, "Because I had experience with 'Hedwig,' it didn't feel unfamiliar or foreign."
Additionally, Cho Jung-seok delivered a realistic script reading for "The Man Who Lives with a King Elephant," a historical fantasy human comedy based on a true story, drawing enthusiastic love calls from Jang Hang-jun, Song Eun-i, and Kim Poong.
Meanwhile, at the end of the broadcast, a preview showed actor Park Minyoung and singer-actor Yook Sung-jae visiting Jang Hang-jun for auditions, raising anticipation for the next episode.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.