Joo Ji Hoon Addresses Thoughts on Discharge and Past Drug Scandal

After his military discharge, actor Joo Ji Hoon spoke his mind about the drug scandal that occured three years ago. He said, “My smile is not really a smile right now.” Joo Ji Hoon, who was discharged on November 21, will be having his comeback as an actor through the musical, “Doctor Zhivago,” which will open on January 27. 

A press conference was held for “Doctor Zhivago” on November 30 and Joo Ji Hoon brightly greeted everyone. However, as soon as questions about the drug scandal arose, he said, “I think I have an eternal debt to those around me. My smile is not really a smile right now. Please understand the nature of my occupation as I always have to seem bright and comfortable even if I’m not.”

He continued, “A time that’s neither long nor short has passed. But I always think about what happened. I’m filled with an apologetic and sorrowful heart but in the end, I concluded that I should just work hard and become a better actor. It might sound selfish but if I want to right my wrongs, I think I should do it in a way that I do best. Not only for this upcoming musical, but for any other work, I will try harder than when I first debuted – I will give it my all and try my best.”

Joo Ji Hoon also received the inevitable question for recently discharged celebrities: which girl group was his favorite during his service?

To that he jokingly answered, “What finger wouldn’t hurt if I bit all ten of them,” meaning, that he pretty much liked all of them. He also stated, “I don’t know many girl groups in the military, but it seems that Brown Eyed Girls strike me the best.” He continued, “Out of the recent songs, I really like songs by Brown Eyed Girls. The members are a similar age to me and most girl groups these days are too young for me to make a tactless comment.”

He also shared his feelings on picking a musical as his first comeback project. “I started with the musical, ‘Don Juan.’ But when I was performing for ‘Don Juan,’ I really didn’t have much interest in musicals. Back then, I watched a lot of movies and did a lot of research on how to act according to different genres. But when I came across this opportunity, singing and performing live on stage had great appeal and charm to me. Filming dramas or movies are equally as hard but I felt a great attraction to the fact that I can focus solely on rehearsing for this musical.”

Joo Ji Hoon received great love for his performance in “Princess Hours,” not only in Korea but in Japan, China and other countries as well, marking him a Hallyu star. He will be taking the lead role in “Doctor Zhivago,” (This musical is based on the novel by Russian author Boris Pasternak) along with others such as Hong Kwang  Ho, Kim Ji Woo and more.