Lee Dong Wook Fought Hard For ‘Goblin’ Role As Grim Reaper, K-Drama Writer Kim Eun Sook Rejected Him Multiple Times [Spoilers]
https://youtu.be/vrO7L5n15qk
2016 may have been a terrible year for K-pop, but the same cannot be said for K-dramas. Though all Korean television stations enjoyed a measure of success, the one that probably enjoyed the most success was the Total Variety Network. Throughout the year, they aired many popular K-dramas including Reply 1988, Cheese in the Trap, Signal, Another Oh Hae Young, Drinking Solo, Cinderella and the Four Knights, and The K2. However, they finished the year in a big way with their 2016-to-2017 Winter Season drama, Goblin.
Also, known as Guardian: The Lonely and Great God and Goblin: The Lonely and Great God, the tvN K-drama has earned a ton of recognition and broke records set by popular Hallyu K-dramas. It has the highest first episode viewership ratings for tvN dramas, surpassing Reply 1988, and has the highest content power index surpassing Descendants of the Sun and Moonlight Drawn by Clouds. At this moment, it is currently the second most popular K-drama to air on Korean cable television. Only Reply 1988 is better than it.
To be frank, there are plenty or reasons why Goblin is so popular. All parts of cinematography stand out, like direction and production, but the acting is also phenomenal. Fans probably can’t think of anyone else playing the K-drama’s beloved characters. Shockingly, that was almost the case for the Grim Reaper. Reportedly, Lee Dong Wook had to fight tooth and nail to get the role of the “amnesiac grim reaper” as he was rejected multiple times. So how did he get the role?
As the situation goes, as reported by DramaFever News, Lee Dong Wook — known for his leading roles in Wild Romance, Blade Man, and Bubble Gum — pursued the role of the Grim Reaper. Apparently, he fell in love with the role after reading the script. Unfortunately, Kim Eun Sook, the writer for Goblin, rejected him saying she did not see him as the right actor to play the role and had other ideas for him. Dong Wook would not accept the rejection and eventually got the CEO of King Kong Entertainment, his agency, to step in. According to AllKpop, Eun Sook would still refuse to give the role to Dong Wook.
Nevertheless, Lee Dong Wook and the CEO of King Kong Entertainment would try and try with Kim Eun Sook and every time, she shot them down. Eventually, the CEO gave up but Dong Wook would not. According to Soompi, a representative at King Kong Entertainment was able to set up Dong Wook a face-to-face meeting with Eun Sook. We do not know exactly what was exchanged, but whatever Dong Wook did, Eun Sook finally granted him the role of the Grim Reaper in Goblin.
[WARNING: Spoilers Ahead! Skip To Last Paragraph To Avoid!] Speaking of the Grim Reaper, K-drama fans got a major revelation in his past. Previously, it was teased that the Grim Reaper was probably Wang Yeo, the Goryeo King who killed Kim Sun, Kim Shin’s younger sister, when he was alive. This belief came about when we found out Sunny was the reincarnation of Kim Sun, Kim Shin’s sister. However, when the Grim Reaper explains his visions to Kim Shin, he provides details that Kim Shim and those close to him at the time would know and that does not include Wang Yeo. Ergo, the Grim Reaper was someone else.
We will have to wait until the next episode of Goblin airs. The show airs on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. KST on tvN. For those who do not have access to Korean cable channels, it is exclusive on DramaFever by its other title Goblin: The Lonely and Great God, but can only be viewed by Premium members from the third episode onward. As for everywhere else, especially in Europe, it is available on Viki.
[Featured Image by Total Variety Network (tvN)]
