“Kill Me, Heal Me” helped Ji Sung gain an insane amount of popularity, but he was not the first choice for the role.
The hit K-drama “Kill Me, Heal Me” was once all the rage across Asia, with the male lead role receiving huge attention for its unique characteristic. In particular, the main character Cha Do Hyun has 6 personalities inside his body, and each of these “identities” boasts different features and stories. Playing Cha Do Hyun, famous actor Ji Sung has managed to deliver an outstanding performance with 6 separate portrayals, and became widely popular over this role.
Therefore, it’s hard to imagine anyone else playing Cha Do Hyun.
And yet, this also happened, as the production team of “Kill Me, Heal Me”, initially offered the role to Hyun Bin, a top star at the time after starring in hit drama “Secret Garden”. However, the husband of Son Ye Jin opted out of the project.
At the time, Hyun Bin turned down “Kill Me, Heal Me” in favor of picking “Hyde, Jekyll, Me”, which also tackled the multiple personality topic. However, the actor’s fame wasn’t able to save the series, and while “Hyde, Jekyll, Me” saw ratings lowering over time, the viewership for “Kill Me, Heal Me” surpassed 10% in its finale, leaving the former far behind.
Hyun Bin in “Hyde, Jekyll, Me”
Meanwhile, Ji Sung’s natural and brilliant acting in “Kill Me, Heal Me” turned the actor into a recognized talent in the acting industry, and even won him a Grand Prize Daesang at the 2015 MBC Drama Awards. Now 45 years old, Ji Sung has starred in various critically-acclaimed and hit K-dramas, and still receives lots of love from the audience. Even now, many viewers can’t help but recall his “turbulent” role of Cha Do Hyun, and the iconic “Ahn Yona” personality, who is feminen, loves idols, and is super fond of handsome guys.
Ji Sung’s role in “Kill Me, Heal Me” still receives attention despite it having been years
