Lee Min-ho on Life After Romance Roles: "I Want to Show Grown-Up Sexy"

"I think I'd be most satisfied if people called it fresh."

For years, actor Lee Min-ho has been shorthand for one kind of role: the rich heir, the prince on the white horse. The romantic leads in dramas that built that image, including "Boys Over Flowers," "The Heirs," and "The Legend of the Blue Sea". Lee still speaks warmly about the work he did in his 20s. But as he has gotten older, he says he has felt a growing pull to try something different.

His new film "The Assassin(s)," directed by Heo Jin-ho and set to release on Sept. 23, is where that shift shows up. The film is based on the assassination of the first lady on Aug. 15, 1974, and follows the people trying to uncover who was behind the attack and what really happened.

Lee plays Young-il, a reporter who was at the scene on the day of the incident. He is one of the most driven characters in the story, chasing the truth behind what happened. He is also, once again, the youngest son of a wealthy family. Asked why he keeps landing chaebol-family roles, Lee joked, "People do tell me in private that I have a refined look."

The setup was familiar, but the Young-il that Lee wanted to put on screen was not. After witnessing something shocking, the character keeps reporting even as his body shakes. He also throws himself into physical action to protect what he believes in.

"Young-il grew up protected and loved by his family," Lee said. "If he had accepted that, he could have lived a stable life. But I think he decided that path wasn't the one he wanted. As a reporter, in his own way, he was trying to take responsibility in the movement for freedom and democracy."

Lee has usually been the lead carrying a project. This time, he said, working alongside senior actors Yoo Hae-jin and Park Hae-il gave him a real sense of support. "I felt I had to blend in well between these two," he said. "After I watched the monitor on the first day of shooting, I was sure I could relax and just do the work."

Park had said in an earlier interview that Lee showed up on set even on days he wasn't filming. Lee returned the compliment. "Actually, Park Hae-il is the one who comes to set before the props and space are even finished, like he's inspecting the place," Lee said. "Once I saw him doing that, I couldn't not go. Even on days I wasn't shooting."

"Sometimes I went because I was curious about how the senior actors work," he added. "The set felt comfortable, like family, so I ended up going more often. Ha ha."

Lee has topped the "Most Influential Hallyu Star" survey by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange in the actor category for 13 consecutive years. When asked how, he pointed back to the romances he made in his 20s. "The projects I did in my 20s were mostly about characters expressing love that was sometimes clumsy and pure," he said. "That kind of feeling is something people can relate to across cultures and languages."

"Back then, I heard a lot of, 'Why do you keep doing romance? An actor should do more films,'" he said. "But I'm really glad I left behind as much of that emotion as I could in my 20s. I'm grateful that overseas fans seem to love that side of me."

Approaching his 40s, Lee said he wants to show a wider range. One thing on his list, he said with a smile, is "grown-up sexy." Asked what exactly that meant, he laughed. "I have to start figuring that out starting next year."

"I think I'll be thinking about it a lot," he said. "I want to do a grown-up romance too. And maybe the characters I take on will feel less like a houseplant in a nice place and more like a weed. Instead of love at first sight, the way it was in my 20s, I feel like I need to bring in the emotions that fit my age now."