Praised for their chemistry in ‘When the Phone Rings’, actors Yoo Yeon Seok and Choi Soo Bin bring the main couple Baek Sa Eon and Hong Hee Ju to life
The beginning of 2025 marked the end of ‘When the Phone Rings’, a k-drama distributed internationally by Netflix produced by the South Korean network MBC, which addresses the romance of the characters Baek Sa Eon and Hong He Joo, played by the actors Yoo Yeon Seok and Choi Soo Binrespectively — which even caught the public’s attention due to their chemistry on stage, arousing curiosity as to whether the two had ever had a romantic relationship off-screen.
In the title, which premiered on November 22 and had weekly episodes distributed by the streaming platform until the final chapter on January 4, Baek Sa Eon is presented as an influential politician who ends up in a marriage arranged out of interest with Hong Hee Ju, a sign interpreter who became mute after a traumatic event. The relationship, which was unhappy and maintained only for appearances, takes turns after she is kidnapped and he receives threats against his own life.
Full of mystery, drama and romance, the production, which had 12 episodes released, became a huge success and soon occupied the top 10 most watched titles on Netflix, in addition to having accumulated great scores on review aggregator sites, as it has 8.1 audience approval rating on My Drama List.
Much of the acclaim is due to the plot, of course, but the actors’ resourcefulness is also one of the highlights, after all, as explained by the allkpop portal, it is no surprise that Yoo Yeon Seok He won the title of “Kiss Master” once again through this project.
“Each kiss in the drama came from a different emotional state — there was a reunion kiss, a kiss overcoming guilt, a joyful kiss, and a kiss of overwhelming emotion after a proposal. I tried to express each one in a unique way, which may have helped viewers become more involved,” explained Yoo Yeon Seok in an interview held on January 6 at the King Kong by Starship headquarters in Gangnam, Seoul.
Boyfriends in real life?
So much so that, with the delivery of Yoo Yeon Seok and Choi Soo Bin In front of the cameras, some viewers of the K-drama began to encourage, through posts on social media, that part of the fiction became reality by supporting the duo to live a real romance.
Although some even suggested that the two get married, the message was only perceived as a great prestige by Yoo Yeon Seokwho expressed gratitude to the couple’s supporters by stating, “It’s a compliment to our chemistry. It means people were invested in our characters’ romance and relationships, and I’m very grateful for that.”
Furthermore, the artist denied any romantic involvement with the actress behind the scenes: “Although our drama has suspense elements, it is ultimately a love story. We hoped that viewers would be drawn into Sa Eon and Hee Joo’s journey , and seeing these supportive comments makes me feel like we accomplished that. But no, we’re not dating in real life!”
Also read: Did Yoona and Junho, from ‘Sorriso Real’, ever date in real life?
Source: Recreio
