Ko Mun Yeong is an atypical Korean drama heroine. Unlike most female leads who are immediately likeable, she comes across as cold, arrogant and self-centred thanks to her antisocial personality disorder. However, although she seems strong and fearless on the outside, she is vulnerable on the inside due to her past traumatic experiences.

When asked about his casting process, director Park Shin Woo said that he thought that it would be difficult for anyone to play a complex character like this. However, when he saw Ye Ji, he felt that the actress was the one who would be able to depict the multi-faceted character.

The stylish Mun Yeong always attracts attention with her bold fashion looks and dramatic outfits. Unsurprisingly, some viewers have even drawn comparisons between her character and IU’s character Jang Man Wol in Hotel del Luna who also has a fabulous wardrobe.

During the press conference for It’s Okay To Not Be Okay, Ye Ji shared that although her character makes eye-catching fashion choices, it is not for the sake of being fashionable and showing off. Instead, she puts on these outfits as a form of protection and to prevent others from coming too close to her.

If you have watched Soo Hyun and Ye Ji’s previous works, you may have recognised a few familiar faces when watching It’s Okay To Not Be Okay. Kim Chang Wan, who plays the director of the psychiatric hospital acted alongside Soo Hyun as his old friend in My Love From The Star and also acted together with Ye Ji in Hwarang. Kim Mi Kyung, who plays a nurse working at the hospital acted as Ye Ji’s mother in the drama Super Daddy Yul.

During an interview with the main cast of the drama, Soo Hyun was asked which of Mun Yeong’s lines made his heart flutter the most. He revealed that it was when Mun Yeong took off Gang Tae’s cap and said to him, ‘Don’t wear a hat. I can’t see your pretty face’ in episode two. Although it’s just a simple line, this just goes to show how charismatic Mun Yeong’s character is when it can make the top actor’s heart skip a beat.

Mun Yeong is a successful children’s book writer who is famous for her harsh fairy tales. In real life, they are illustrated by the artist Jamsan. Titled The Teenaged Boy Who Grew Up Eating Nightmares, The Zombie Child and The Cheerful Dog, the illustrations may seem dark and scary at first but read on, and you will find deeply meaningful stories that are written not just for children, but also for adults. The books can be found on Korean websites Yes24 and Kyobo Books. You can also find them on Gmarket which offers international shipping.

After Ye Ji wore a pink 2-piece outfit that accentuated her tiny waist in episode six, one of the trending internet search terms in South Korea was ‘Seo Ye Ji’s waist’. The svelte actress is known for her small face and slender figure, but K-netizens were still shocked by her ‘ant-waist’, a term they use to describe very tiny waistlines. Some netizens even thought that the waist looked too unrealistic on the actress and suspected it was the result of digital retouching. However, it’s probably in her genes. The actress once said in an interview that her entire family is tall and skinny.

Are you in love with the beautiful views at the psychiatric hospital? Filming was done at a café named Secret Blue in Gangwon province which is now open to the public. The spectacular coastal views and immaculate gardens provided the backdrop for the exterior scenes of the hospital while the interior scenes were shot in a studio. Although it may be some time before we can travel again, you can still add this beautiful café to your must-visit list for future trips to South Korea.

Amazed at Soo Hyun and Ye Ji’s sizzling chemistry? This is actually not their first time working together. Back in 2014, both of them appeared in a commercial for a dessert pudding called Petitzel.

Titled Pudding Kiss, the 30-second commercial features Soo Hyun sitting down next to Ye Ji and saying, ‘Does a kiss taste like a pudding? Or does the pudding taste like a kiss? If you just imagine, you will never know.’ She then imagines him leaning over to kiss her, but it turns out that both of them are just eating the puddings. After six years, fans can finally get to see them kiss for real in this drama now.

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Text: Valerie Toh/Her World