Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
Shin Ye-eun, Ryeoun excited about their first period series with 'The Secret Romantic Guesthouse'
Actors Shin Ye-eun, left, and Ryeoun from SBS' upcoming period series “The Secret Romantic Guesthouse” / Courtesy of SBS
By Lee Gyu-lee
By Lee Gyu-lee
Actors Shin Ye-eun and Ryeoun have expressed excitement about the first period series of their careers as they are playing the lead roles in SBS' upcoming romantic comedy series “The Secret Romantic Guesthouse.”
Based on the web novel of the same name, the period series, set in the Joseon Dynasty, revolves around an energetic woman named Yoon Dan-oh (Shin) who runs a guesthouse called Ihwawon Inn.
She used to be the careless, beloved youngest daughter of her family, living a comfortable life. But after her parents died, she becomes the breadwinner and takes over the family business, offering rooms to people traveling to the capital city to take the national exam for government official positions.
While running the inn, she comes across three completely different men who come to stay ― charismatic Kang San (Ryeoun), friendly Kim Shi-yeol (Kang Hoon), and shrewd Jung Yoo-ha (Jung Gun-joo) ― and gets caught up in a complicated romantic relationship with them.
“It's meaningful because this is my first period series. As I've poured in so much effort throughout the whole shoot, my heart especially goes out to this series. I can't wait to showcase it to the viewers,” Shin said through the network. “I hope you can enjoy and have a good laugh watching 'The Secret Romantic Guesthouse.'”
Describing her role as a confident and lovely character, Shin added that she fell for the series' genre-bending story.
“The characters all have unique traits. And as the series is a fusion of different genres, I was drawn to the fact that I could have more to show through my character,” she said.
Ryeoun plays the role of Kang San who is preparing to become a military official for the royal family. With his handsome looks, he becomes the center of attention everywhere he goes.
The actor shared that he was overwhelmed by taking on his first role in a period series, but was drawn to the character.
“After reading the script, I wanted to know more about the character of Kang San. I felt there were a lot of similarities between the character and myself and was attracted to it,” he said, describing his character as a responsible person. “He can be tough, but he also stays by (Dan-oh's) side.”
The series, which is scheduled to start airing on March 20, is led by director Kim Jung-min, who previously led the period detective series “Royal Secret Agent” (2020) and the romance series “The Princess' Man” (2011), and is co-written by Kwon Eum-mi, who wrote the 2011 series “Royal Family,” and newcomer Kim Ja-hyun.