Lee Je-hoon Steps Up for Junior Actor Yoo Tae-joo in Indie Short Drama Cameo

Actor Yoo Tae-joo is opening up about a quiet act of kindness from senior actor Lee Je-hoon. The younger actor shared the story behind Lee's special appearance in a new short drama, calling it a small miracle that started with a single text message.

On the June 28th, Yoo posted on his social media about the project. He wrote that what began as a video shoot with director Lee Yu-jin on a budget of 2 million won grew into a full collaboration with the short-form platform Lezhin Snack. The bigger surprise, he said, was that Lee Je-hoon agreed to help after just one message on KakaoTalk, the messaging app most South Koreans use daily.

"I sent the offer without expecting anything," Yoo wrote. "But he came on board without asking for anything in return, just saying he was proud of his juniors." He added, "Someday, I want to live in a way that makes me someone else's Lee Je-hoon."

Yoo also shared a screenshot of their conversation. The exchange happened past 4 a.m. Yoo wrote, "I will never forget this. I love and respect you." Lee replied, "Tae-joo, you are an amazing and impressive actor. I was grateful to be part of it. Let's stay in touch and keep cheering each other on."

The drama, "Cast Me If You See the Way" (Giri Boimyeon Kaeseuting-hae), is the first short-form directing project from actor Lee Yu-jin, a former participant on ENA's "Director's Arena." The series runs 74 episodes. Yoo stars in the project, and Lee Je-hoon makes a special appearance in the final episode. The cameo was reportedly arranged through Lee and Yoo's existing connection. The two worked together on the SBS drama "Taxi Driver 3," which wrapped its run in January.

Yoo most recently appeared in the Netflix series "Hot Spot" (Chamgyoyuk), which was released to viewers.