Byeon Woo-seok in Singapore: Where he was and what he said at press conference

South Korean star Byeon Woo-seok will be meeting his supporters in Singapore for the first time this evening (June 30) at his Summer Letter fanmeet.

The 32-year-old, who shot to immense global fame after playing singer-actor Ryu Sun-jae in the drama Lovely Runner, spoke to the media in a press conference today, personally handing out a yellow rose to each journalist while holding eye contact.

Here’s what he said during the question-and-answer session through a translator.

How do you find Singapore so far? The title of your latest drama is Lovely Runner, if you could run anywhere in Singapore, where would that be?

Woo-seok: I’m very happy and very excited to be in Singapore and to meet all my fans here. If I could run anywhere in Singapore, I’m really looking forward to running to the fanmeet venue of all places.

How do you feel about meeting your Singapore fans for the first time?

Woo-seok: I came to Singapore with one goal to have lots of fun and to make great memories with all my Singapore fans. So that’s definitely something I’m looking forward to do with my Singapore fans. I understand very well that you know, my fans here are spending their time, money and resources to come and see me so I don’t want to waste any minute of the time that I interact and meet them. So I’m looking forward to having lots of fun with them.

What food are you looking forward to try in Singapore?

Woo-seok: Two dishes were on my mind even before I came here. The first one is chilli crab of course. I also heard about chicken rice and it’s really delicious so I hope to try them while I am here.

I actually have a friend who lives in Singapore. When I was talking to him before I came here, he told me Singapore is not just famous for chilli crab, but its local dishes in general. They are really, really delicious, and he gave me a long list of about 10 places that I’m asked to check out. So I’m hoping to check out as many as I can while I’m in Singapore. He told me that there are many great foods, including Italian pasta, pizza, hamburger and all the local dishes are really nice too.

Can you share something that you have been obsessed with lately and the reason why?

Woo-seok: Something that made me really obsessed especially as I started my Asia tour is the cultural differences in each and every place that I visit and also the way people love or express their love for each other, there are some differences there. So that’s something that I’m very obsessed to explore these days.

Your fans love your positive reviews and answers in your interviews. How do you keep up that positive energy?

Woo-seok: I believe that when it comes to results, it’s not something that I can control, it’s really beyond my control. And I personally feel that what’s more important is the process and how much effort I put in to achieve that best result that I can. So that’s something that helps to keep my positive energy.

What are the most important must-have items that you bring during your travels?

Woo-seok: There are two things. First is the medication to subside my allergy. I have a little bit of an allergy. The second one is Theraflu because I pop the pill whenever I feel like I’m going to have the flu so that I don’t fall sick.

You mentioned that you wanted to be called the rom-com genius. How do you keep this qualifier in the future?

Woo-seok: First of all, I was really nervous when I was posed with that question. Well, I don’t think I am a rom-com genius, but I’ll be very grateful if anyone calls me that. In order to be a rom-com genius, I think the first thing is that I need to do my best at my drama and acting. To really do my best, to put out the best acting possible is something that I really need to do before I can earn this rom-com genius title.

Is there a dream role that you would like to play? Do you have any intention to pursue film or theatre?

Woo-seok: Before I acted in Lovely Runner, I was into a lot of different genres including action and fantasy. But after I acted as the role of Sun-jae, it changed my perspective a lot because you know, that was really I think the first time that I got to be really deeply, emotionally immersed into the character.

So my thoughts these days are that I don’t want to choose my next character or a work according to a certain genre or the type of character. But of course, you know, because I personally love romantic comedies, I think there is a higher chance that I will choose such dramas but I really don’t want to limit myself to any specific genre or character.

How do you approach the emotional scenes in your roles? Do you have any specific techniques or methods that helped you get into your character?

Woo-seok: The first thing I do is that I pay very close attention to the character that I’m interacting with. And I try to study very deeply what he or she is feeling, what the character is going through and identify what kind of situation he or she is in. I will also try to put myself into the shoes of my partner’s character first. That helps me to immerse myself into my own role.

You’ve played a lot of roles in dramas and films. Aside from the breakthrough character Ryu Sun-jae, which is the most memorable role for you and why?

Woo-seok: This question reminds me of my past work, [the movie] 20th Century Girl. Why I chose that is because that was the project that helped me overcome my camera phobia as well as some trauma that I was going through. So I had some issues like that before playing in 20th Century Girl, but thanks to this work, I could overcome all these issues and I could more deeply immerse myself into the character.

You were seen taking photos with watermelons in Taipei. Could you tell us more?

Woo-seok: First of all, the size of the watermelon was nothing like I’ve seen before. It was so huge and I love watermelon. At the time, I just happened to be in a supermarket buying groceries and I saw this huge watermelon and I was so amazed and impressed.

You were often seen in roles with tragic endings, how does it feel like to overcome that for a change with the ending of Lovely Runner?

Woo-seok: In most of my past works, the characters I played pursued a one-sided love and most times he was not successful. But finally when it comes to Lovely Runner, it was a happy ending of course. But despite that, after I received the script for the final episode, even though it was a happy ending, personally I was a little sad. There were these sad emotions that overwhelmed me. I remembered I actually called the scriptwriter to have a long chat with her about why I was feeling so sad despite this being a happy ending.

While filming with actress Kim Hye-yoon, were there any challenges or funny episodes that arose on set from your height differences?

Woo-seok: I don’t recall anything being very difficult, but if I had to recall a funny episode, I remember that we were shooting in a house with Hye-yoon and the house was an old house, so the ceiling was rather low. The door was not very tall either. I remember everyone was joking about how I was as tall as the door.

(Woo-seok is 1.9m tall.)

How has life changed with the success of Lovely Runner?

Woo-seok: Thanks to the success of Lovely Runner, I got to travel the world for my fanmeets, meeting fans worldwide. I’m here meeting all the local media in this press conference and I’m very grateful.

The theme of your fanmeet is Summer Letter. Can you share any particular fan letter that you have received which made an impact on you or inspired you?

Woo-seok: I received a lot of letters from my fans. As I am touring Asia on my fan tours, I have received a lot more letters from my fans. There are so many of them that I can’t recall, but I feel that it’s every moment of interaction I have with my fans worldwide that is like a gift, it’s like a letter to me.

Just like the lyrics in the song Sudden Shower, you are a gift to Tong Tongs (name for his fans). Do you have a message to fans who have been with you on this long and exciting journey?

Woo-seok: Just like all the Tong Tongs are telling me I’m a gift to all of them, likewise, all the Tong Tongs are such a wonderful gift to me too. The journey I had till today hasn’t been easy. There were difficult times of course, but I can say very confidently that I did my best and I always had my Tong Tongs giving me unwavering support and love. And thanks to that, I think that’s what really kept me going until today. Thanks to that, it will keep me going for the next long journey ahead.

Arriving in Singapore

Woo-seok arrived at Changi Airport Terminal 2 on the evening of June 29 and was welcomed by excited fans waiting inside the terminal. As he exited the plane, he waved to them before boarding the airport buggy.

A fan tried to pass him a letter and was waved off by a security guard, but Woo-seok extended his hand to receive it. Before the buggy drove off, he waved to the fan.

On social media, fans have been discussing since mid-June about going to the airport to welcome him to Singapore. Despite his fan club’s advisory that he would be using the VIP route, hundreds of fans still gathered at Changi Airport Terminal 2 yesterday, hoping to catch a glimpse of Woo-seok in person.

On Xiaohongshu, some netizens claimed that when they were told Woo-seok had left the airport through the VIP route, there were fans who went to the airport carpark to see him get on his transportation, but he wasn’t there.

However, others reportedly saw a black van, allegedly with Woo-seok inside, exiting the carpark at about 6.10pm, with a few other vans following closely behind.

He was also seen at Marina Bay Sands later that evening.

Woo-seok debuted as a model in 2010 and began his acting career in 2016 with the drama Dear My Friends. Over the years, he appeared as leading and supporting characters on screen, including Record of Youth (2020), 20th Century Girl (2022) and Strong Girl Nam-soon (2023).

His sold-out fanmeet will be held at Singapore Expo Hall 3A at 6pm today.