Because of Byeon Woo-seok’s acting controversy… Gong Seung-yeon became the biggest beneficiary of ‘King and Queen’… a bittersweet reality [Ha Su-jeong’s Up & Down]

[OSEN = Reporter Ha Su-jeong] Due to actor Byun Woo-seok's somewhat awkward acting, Gong Seung-yeon, who comes across as relatively calm and weighty, is enjoying an unexpected windfall and looking more radiant. Byun Woo-seok and Gong Seung-yeon work at the same agency and have long been close colleagues, so the situation has become one where it is not exactly easy to laugh when only one actor is receiving praise for acting.

'A Tyrant's Bride', which aired for the first time on the 10th, ranked No. 1 in its time slot with 10.1% viewership in the Seoul metropolitan area and 9.5% nationwide after just two episodes. Not only did it break into double digits in viewership within just two episodes based on metropolitan households, but it also recorded 5.3% in the 20-54 ratings, a key indicator of channel competitiveness reflecting changes in the media consumption environment, and is drawing attention by taking first place overall on Saturday. (Based on nationwide broadcast households)

Interest is already building toward viewership above 15%, and expectations are soaring that it might even surpass the dreaded 20% mark that MBC Friday-Saturday dramas have never broken. Separate from this pleasant surge in ratings, however, evaluations of the lead actors' performances are sharply divided. In particular, a wider range of assessments is being poured onto the male lead, Byun Woo-seok.

Byun Woo-seok debuted in 2016, but the only work in which he truly carried the main title role as the lead of a drama is tvN's 'Lovely Runner' (2024). 'Strong Girl Nam-soon' (2023), 'When the Flower Blooms, I Think of the Moon' (2021), 'Record of Youth' (2020), and 'Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency' (2019) were also listed as lead roles in his profile, but in reality Ong Seong-wu, Yoo Seung-ho, and Park Bo-gum, among others, were the ones anchoring those projects, so it is hard to say that Byun Woo-seok was the main one.

For many people, their first encounter with Byun Woo-seok's acting was probably the mega-hit 'Lovely Runner'. At the time, he benefited greatly by displaying unexpected chemistry and synergy with Kim Hye-yoon, whose acting skills are excellent.

That same year, Byun Woo-seok appeared on 'You Quiz' and said, "If it hadn't been for Hye-yoon, I don't think I could have expressed Sun-jae's emotions to this extent. The emotions given on set came across as so sincere that I think I was able to express them better," adding, "Hye-yoon, I really learned a lot from the energy you gave me during filming and your attitude on set. Thank you for helping me play the role of Sun-jae so well. If you ever want something delicious to eat, contact me anytime. I'll buy it for you anytime. I was so, so grateful," crediting his opposite Kim Hye-yoon for the popularity syndrome.

Byun Woo-seok rose to stardom through 'Lovely Runner', and in order to prove that he was not just a fleeting overnight sensation, he had to demonstrate his acting skills with 'A Tyrant's Bride'. He was already carrying that burden from the start.

In fact, compared with Sun-jae in 'Lovely Runner', Grand Prince Ian in 'A Tyrant's Bride' is a much more difficult character to act. This is because he often has to conceal his true feelings as much as possible amid power struggles within the royal family, and must express deep anguish and emotional shifts solely through facial expressions and a single line of dialogue. Compared with Seong Hui-ju, who openly shows all her emotions on her face and acts freely, Grand Prince Ian may be the character that requires even more depth.

In particular, the scene in episode 1 where Grand Prince Ian and Queen Dowager Yun I-rang (played by Gong Seung-yeon) engage in a war of nerves over the regency of the young king fueled the controversy over Byun Woo-seok's acting.

The queen dowager expressed frustration, saying that the young king had almost died and yet no one was worried, and that it was all because of the regency. In response, Grand Prince Ian retorted, "His Majesty the King is only eight years old now. He is far too young to perform state affairs, so my regency is unavoidable," and added, "Besides, is regency really such a great thing? Politics! Politics is what politicians do. Commerce is what merchants do. The royal family cannot do anything. Doing nothing at all is the only thing we can do."

It was a scene in which the delicate balance of power between Grand Prince Ian and the queen dowager was not broken, while Grand Prince Ian instead raised his voice at her. However, in the nearly two-minute-long scene, Byun Woo-seok's expression remained rigid, making it hard to feel any emotional change, and many pyeongga said he failed to properly convey Grand Prince Ian's turbulent emotions. The scene spread online as a meme on various SNS and community boards, and negative reactions saying he "can't act" poured in. At the same time, people gave the queen dowager, Gong Seung-yeon, who radiated charisma, a starkly contrasting response, asking, "Has she always acted this well?"

Earlier, at the production presentation for 'A Tyrant's Bride', Byun Woo-seok was asked, "How will you portray the complex character of Grand Prince Ian?" and replied, "I talked a lot with the director, and I had already discussed it a lot beforehand in order to do better," adding, "For this work as well, I tried my best and paid more attention to making sure that when people see the character, they can empathize with him emotionally. I tried to focus solely on the character's narrative."

The drama is still in its early episodes, and since it was produced as a total of 12 episodes, there is still a long way to go. Depending on how the story develops, Byun Woo-seok's image may improve in a more positive direction going forward, but the acting controversy that has arisen around one of the most anticipated dramas is still disappointing.

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[Photo] Capture from 'A Tyrant's Bride'