Nam Goong-min admits '우리영화' flopped at 3-4%, eyes comeback with KBS2 crime thriller '결혼의 완성'

Nam Goong-min is back on KBS2 for the first time in seven years. He's not pretending his last drama went well.

At the production presentation for 결혼의 완성 held July 1 at The Saint in Guro-gu, Seoul, the actor acknowledged that his previous SBS drama 우리영화 "didn't reach many people entertainingly," despite facing no strong competition and still landing in the 3-4% viewership range. He peaked at 19.1% with 스토브리그. Then came 검은태양, 천원짜리 변호사, and 연인.

His pitch for the new show: he read episodes 1 through 4 of the script without stopping once. "I thought it could be loved by various age groups," he said. The drama, which premiered July 4, is a crime thriller following doctor 강태주 (Nam Goong-min) as he fights criminal 노만희 (Kim Dae-myung) to rescue his wife 고세윤 (Lee Seol), who was kidnapped just before their divorce was finalized.

Episode 1 opened at 4.4%. Episode 2 climbed to 6.4%. The competition is brutal: SBS 김부장 crossed 15% in just two episodes and hit 21% by episode 4 in the same broadcast window.

Nam Goong-min addressed the overlap directly. "It's unfortunate that 결혼의 완성 starts at the most entertaining time for 김부장," he said, before drawing a distinction: "If 김부장 has a rich imagination feel, 결혼의 완성 has depth that touches reality."

(Seven years since 닥터 프리즈너 — KBS2 apparently still has his number.)