Jung Jun-won on '유부녀 킬러' finale: "Appearance criticism is something I have to endure"

The show ended on a high

MBC's Friday-Saturday drama 유부녀 킬러 (Married Woman Killer) concluded its 14-episode run with a 10.7% viewership rating on the finale per Nielsen Korea national figures — the series' highest. The drama follows a working mother navigating the most brutal job in the world, with Gong Hyo-jin in the lead role of Yoo Bo-na.

Jung Jun-won played Kwon Tae-sung, Yoo Bo-na's husband and an investigative reporter, across the full run. On September 14, he sat down for interviews at a café in Gangnam-gu, Seoul to mark the end of the series.

The webtoon gap he didn't see coming

In the original webtoon, Kwon Tae-sung is written as a conventionally handsome character. Jung Jun-won said the drama script he first read carried none of that framing. "When I first saw the script, there was no such setting," he said. "Later when I saw the original webtoon setting, the unrealistically affectionate husband and father aspects were stronger in the drama script, so I focused on how to make that better."

He discussed with the director that realistic charm mattered more and didn't dwell on the discrepancy. Fans expecting the source material's version of the character, though—he gets it. "Fans who were expecting the original work must have been disappointed enough. I didn't feel resentful, and I thought it was understandable that they would think that way."

On the looks commentary

The casting gap fed into a wave of appearance-focused criticism online. Jung Jun-won didn't pretend it rolls off. "Of course it doesn't feel good," he said. "They say 'you're ugly' but I can't say 'oh I'm happy.'" He added that he's doing his best with self-management, but acknowledged that viewers have different tastes and standards.

What keeps it from stinging too hard: "If I got criticized for acting, I would really be upset. But I know I'm not that kind of actor, so I'm not that upset." Appearance, he said, is not his priority.

Early reactions to the show were largely negative. Something shifted as the series moved into its second half. "I was grateful and thought it was a blessing to see the change."

(He also flagged a separate regret—a variety show appearance where he froze up because he was too nervous, and said he'd want to make up for it if given another shot.)