Yang Se-jong returns to rom-com as a ghost-fearing prosecutor in tvN's 'Chilling Romance'

Yang Se-jong is back in romantic comedy territory, and he's leaning into the fear. He plays prosecutor Ma Gang-wook in tvN's Chilling Romance (오싹한 연애), which premieres July 18 at 9:10 PM.

At the production press conference on July 14 at Eliana Hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, Yang Se-jong, Park Eun-bin, Ong Seong-wu, and director Lee Min-soo gathered for photos and Q&A. The drama adapts a film of the same name that found audiences across Asia. The original starred Son Ye-jin and Lee Min-ki.

The series follows a chaebol heiress who can see ghosts and a prosecutor who is, by his own admission, absolutely terrified of them. Park Eun-bin plays Cheon Yeo-ri, heiress to Korea's top luxury hotel chain. Her glamorous exterior hides the fact that she sees the dead. Yang Se-jong's Ma Gang-wook is exceptionally intelligent and empathetic—just not when ghosts are involved.

"The character setting is completely different from the original," Yang Se-jong said at the press conference. "Whenever I felt burdened, I focused on the script, looked for new things, and did a lot of rehearsals." He also confirmed the role isn't much of a stretch in one specific way: "I'm actually a coward in real life. I sleep with the lights on even when I'm sleeping." (Method acting, but make it accidental.)

Filming the ghost-scare scenes on set was fun, he added, and the cowardly energy will translate on screen in an entertaining way. Chilling Romance airs Saturdays and Sundays on tvN.