Chae Soo-bin Talks Netflix Hit 'Take Charge of My Heart' and Kim Young-kwang Chemistry

"I'm not someone with a strong color or an obvious personality," Chae Soo-bin said. "That's actually my strength. I blend in well with anyone I work with."

The actress was answering a question about her appeal as a romantic lead. Romance is a genre closely associated with her name. She has built her career in the genre, taking lead roles in one romantic comedy after another.

Her latest project, "Take Charge of My Heart," recently premiered on Netflix. The show follows Baek Ho-rang (played by Kim Young-kwang), a man whose artificial heart battery has run out, and Na Bo-bae (Chae), a woman born with the power to generate electricity. The two clash at first, then slowly fall for each other. It is a classic K-rom-com setup, played straight. Just two days after its release, the series hit No. 3 worldwide on Netflix's TV shows chart.

Na Bo-bae has a hard time getting close to people because of her electric powers, but she maintains a sunny disposition anyway. She is also a drama writer who has never been in a relationship. Chae said the role came easily to her.

"Bo-bae is such a lovable character that I didn't really have to build anything or force it," she said. "My friends watched the show and said, 'Isn't that just Bae Soo-bin?'" — a reference to her real name. "I'm pretty cheerful in real life, and I think that helped me play Bo-bae."

But the genre she is best known for has also been a source of concern. Chae said she went back and forth on whether to take the project.

"I kept thinking, 'What if I get stuck in rom-coms?'" she said. "I wanted to try other genres, but almost everything that came to me was romance. At some point, when I'm older, I won't be able to do romance anymore. I started wondering, does that mean I won't be able to act at all?"

The production team persuaded her to take the role. Chae said the experience of making "My Dearest Nemesis" helped ease some of those concerns. She credited her conversations with Kim Young-kwang on set.

"He told me not to get trapped in that kind of thinking," she said. "If I keep stacking up the work I can do now, the time to try other genres will come. I think I was holding myself to a strict rule for too long. I still have questions as an actress, but I'm not overthinking it the way I did before this show. I'm focused on what's in front of me."

She was happy with how she and Kim clicked on set. "He's really tall, and I'm not short, but standing next to him somehow made us look cute together," she said.

"Acting with him was so funny. At first I thought, 'Who is this stiff guy?' But once we got close, he was hilarious. I'm glad we got to meet as Ho-rang and Bo-bae."

Chae also looked back on the people she has worked with over the years. She recently reunited with the lead cast of her drama "Love in the Moonlight" to mark the show's 10th anniversary. "I was proud that we all grew up without any of us going off the rails," she said.Her approach to work has changed over the past 10 years. "I worry more now," she said. "Back then, I just thought about doing my part so I wouldn't hurt the project. Now I think about how the project is going to land with viewers." Her roles have grown, her view of the work has widened, and the pressure has followed. For now, she said, she wants to stay focused on the part in front of her.

"I think I'll keep growing by stacking up experiences like this," she said. "Right now, I'm trying not to overthink. I'm just working hard on what's been given to me."