TvN's new fantasy rom-com 'My Roommate is a Gumiho' kicks off strong

Actors Jang Ki-yong, left, and Lee Hye-ri, right, pose for pictures during the online media conference for the series, “My Roommate is a Gumiho,” Wednesday. Courtesy of tvN

By Lee Gyu-lee

• Published May 27, 2021 5:06 PM KST
• Updated May 27, 2021 5:14 PM KST

By Lee Gyu-lee

The tvN series, “My Roommate is a Gumiho,” is off to a good start, with a 5.3 percent viewership rating Wednesday, scoring the network's fourth-highest premiere rating, according to tvN.

Directed by Nam Sung-woo, who directed the rom-com series, “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo” and “100 Days My Prince,” the romantic comedy series is based on the popular webcomic of the same name. The plot revolves around a 999-year-old "gumiho" (a nine-tailed fox-like creature), Shin Woo-yeo (Jang Ki-yong), who is disguised as a handsome man.

One day, Jang runs into female college student Lee Dam (Lee Hye-ri) on the street and she accidentally swallows one of his mystical marbles, which he needs to permanently become human. The event brings the two strangers together to live under the same roof in order to figure out a way to get it retrieve the marble.

The series was scripted by writers Choi Bo-rim and Baek Sun-woo, who are known for writing the hit series, “What's Wrong with Secretary Kim?”

“This show is not a heavy-plotted, mystical fantasy series, but is rather about having a fantasy creature in our normal lives. So the comedy comes from that concept,” director Nam said during the online media conference for the series on Wednesday.

“The genre is a romantic comedy, but it has more comedy. It'll be hilarious. The humor each character offers is different… So it should be fun seeing the relationships between each of the characters.”

Jang plays a male gumiho ― which has often been portrayed as female ― who has lived through centuries going through countless professions. After all those years, he becomes apathetic and finds no purpose in the world, until he meets Dam.

The model-turned-actor said he was excited to take part in the first fantasy series of his acting career. “I was so thrilled and had high hopes, as this series was my first in the fantasy rom-com genre,” Jang said, adding that he also felt pressure to be part of a TV adaptation of a hit webtoon.

“I started with excitement, but at first, the genre was much harder than I expected ― some parts didn't go the way I thought they would … But after some trial and error, I grew into the role.”

Jang and Lee offered a sneak peek of their chemistry early this month through a photo shoot for a magazine to promote the series, which received considerable buzz online. Jang expressed that the on-set chemistry with Lee was more than satisfying.

“Lee just has a great energy and the leadership to oversee what is happening on set. It was very fun,” he said. Describing Lee's character Dam as a bubbly, honest girl, he added that her character is the key that makes this series stand out from previous ones about gumihos.

Lee explained that she was drawn to the character as it portrays hallmark characteristics of young millennials. “Dam is very straightforward, full of confidence and outspoken. The previous characters I played were somewhat introverted, so I really wanted to play this role, which has the outgoing characteristics of today's young adults.”

The director added that he tried to scout actors for the leads based on their actual personalities and resemblances to the characters developed in the webtoon, and found the perfect fit with Jang and Lee.

“Jang plays a 999-year-old character that has a broody side … And Jang actually has a sort of old-school vibe that suits the role of Woo-yeo well,” he said. “For Lee, the webtoon creator told me that she thought of Lee when she drew the comics, and I couldn't agree more with that.”

“My Roommate is a Gumiho” airs on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 10:30 p.m. on tvN.