Yook Sung-jae Talks Romance With Park Min-young in 'Nine to Six'

"I wanted to do something realistic that people could relate to, unlike the genres I've done so far," actor Yook Sung-jae said.

That is why he signed on to "Nine to Six" (Nain Tu Sikseu), a new SBS drama that premieres on Nov. 25 at 9 p.m. KST. He spoke about the project in a written interview.

The show is an office romance. A rational woman who has spent her life proving herself through work meets a kind, emotional man. Together, they start to rewrite what work, love and happiness mean to them.

The drama centers on Kang Yi-ji (played by Park Min-young), a deputy general manager, and Han Seon-woo (Yook), a warm and caring intern. Their relationship follows the older-woman-younger-man romance trope. Yook was born in 1995, while Park Min-young in 1986, giving the co-stars a nine-year age difference.

He put his own similarity to the character at 50%.

"Seon-woo is a character who says things out loud, without making it feel like too much," he said. "They're things I would probably only think to myself. He has an F-type personality and a kind of warmth that's far from who I am."

The "F" refers to the "feeling" type in the MBTI personality test, which is widely used in casual conversation in South Korea.

To close that gap, he did some homework before the cameras rolled.

"Before filming, I met up with friends who are emotional and kind, and I talked with them and watched them," he said. "I'd think, 'So that's how they talk. They can see things that way, too.'" He said that spending time with them helped him understand how to portray a character so different from himself.

The role is also his first time playing an office worker since his debut. He joked about the change of pace.

"In my last project, I teleported and walked on air," he said. "Seon-woo keeps his feet on the ground and walks around, so it felt a little different."

"There's a scene where Seon-woo rides a motorcycle, and that was more thrilling than walking on air," he added. "It was my first time playing an intern, and I had a great time filming because I had a great boss in Park Min-young."

On screen, Yi-ji and Seon-woo don't get along at first. Off screen, he said, things went much more smoothly.

"Yi-ji and Seon-woo start out on bad terms, and their chemistry builds with every episode," he said. "On set, the more Park Min-young and I filmed together, the better our chemistry got. During rehearsals, just reading the script together, I could picture how each of us would act it. That made it easy."

He also highlighted one question he hopes viewers will keep in mind.

"'When did Seon-woo start having feelings for Yi-ji?' Everyone who watches might read that differently," he said. "Thinking about that while you watch is the key."

"We filmed the moments where Yi-ji changes because of Seon-woo, and where she learns what love is, with a lot of excitement," he said. "I hope those moments stay with people."

For him, the heart of the show is simple.

"'Nine to Six' tells the story of people who face the real struggles and worries of working life together, not alone," he said. "I hope it can reach a lot of people and give them a sense of comfort and connection."