Park Bo Young plans to get rid of her cute girl image; Here's why

Actress says she would like to express herself more through diverse roles.

Park Bo-young
Actress Park Bo-young in a still from JTBC drama 'Strong Woman Do Bong Soon.' facebook.com/Strong Woman Do Bong Soon

'Strong Woman Do Bong Soon' is enjoying a serious ratings peak in South Korea and has become the most popular JTBC drama ever. Everyone is talking about the chemistry between Park Hyung-sik and Ji Soo. However, the major contributor to the drama's popularity is, of course, lead actress Park Bo-young, who plays a cute girl with superhuman strength; a character that has been described as Wonder Woman-like. However, Bo-young feels that her cute image is stagnating her as an actress and she wants to change that image.

At a press conference for the JTBC drama, as noted by Soompi, Park Bo-young said that she is aware of a growing perception among viewers that her acting roles are quite similar to each other. "As I have appeared in a number of fairly similar projects recently, many people have been saying that I always take on the same role no matter what I act in so I've made it my goal [to change that]. I also feel like my role in 'Strong Woman Do Bong Soon' is somewhat of a continuation of my role from my last project, 'Oh My Ghostess,' and I feel like I may be reaching a limit with this [lovely, cutesy] image," Bo-young said, as quoted by Soompi.

Being stuck playing similar roles leads to type-casting, which is never god for any actor's career. Though her character in 'Strong Woman Do Bong Soon' isn't just cute and lovely, she's also a very powerful individual who can do things that ordinary human beings cannot. Still, as the actress has discovered the pattern in her career, she now seeks to avoid stagnation.

"I see it as a huge mountain I'm going to have to cross over eventually as an actress. I'm grateful because I think viewers have enjoyed and appreciated my acting so far. I think I'm going to have to take some time to think about what kinds of roles I would like to take on in order to show a different side of me to viewers," Park Bo-young said at the press conference for 'Strong Woman Do Bong Soon.'

Well, at least the actors are sincere with their performance. If the leads weren't good actors, then the drama wouldn't have achieved 8.7 percent ratings. Regarding the solid ratings, Park Bo-young also said, in the same press conference, "Everyone has been feeling good on set and we've been filming well. We will work hard in the future as well." That hard work definitely shows on-screen.

This article was first published on March 18, 2017