NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor

– Beep. –

“That will be 8,700 won in total. Please insert your card here.”

“Thank you.”

Exiting the convenience store, Gwak Ji-cheol packed the items and soju into a plastic bag. With a worn-out face and weary eyes, he resembled the epitome of a failed entrepreneur.

“How did I end up here? Why has my life become so tangled?”

Muttering in frustration, Gwak Ji-cheol trudged towards a shabby inn.

Just then, as tension-building music gradually filled the air, the camera nervously captured Gwak Ji-cheol entering the room, setting an uneasy atmosphere.

In the audience, Jeong Soo-yeon recalled the scene where Gwak Ji-cheol had opened the door earlier in the movie, silently pleading.

‘No! Don’t go in.’

As the suspenseful music peaked, Gwak Ji-cheol opened the door and turned on the light, revealing a man lying on the bed.

“Is it you? Gwak Ji-cheol who hired me?”

Pierre Choi, the troubleshooter who had been appeared after receiving a request, lay on the bed, munching on leftover snacks from yesterday.

“Phew.”

A sigh of relief echoed in the audience.

Meanwhile, on the screen, Gwak Ji-cheol, contrary to the audience’s reaction, was astonished to see Pierre Choi.

“Oh my. I almost had a heart attack.”

Gwak Ji-cheol, startled by Pierre Choi’s imposing figure, jokingly leaned against the wall, causing laughter to erupt from the audience.

“Where’s the one who’s supposed to be in trouble?”

Mockingly eyeing Gwak Ji-cheol, Pierre Choi’s dry remark elicited another round of laughter from the audience.

Seemingly on the verge of fleeing at any moment, Gwak Ji-cheol cautiously grasped the doorknob and, with furrowed brows.

“Are you Pierre Choi?”

“Who else would I be? The motel room is so shabby, there’s no chair. Either lie down here or shut up.”

Casually tapping his side of the bed, Pierre Choi adjusted his posture with a nonchalant attitude, prompting Gwak Ji-cheol to awkwardly sit at the edge of the bed.

The stark contrast between Pierre’s laid-back demeanor and Gwak Ji-cheol’s uneasy appearance continued to amuse the audience with gentle laughter.

Throughout the film, Ryu Yeon-woo and Ma Seok-do, embodying Pierre Choi and Gwak Ji-cheol respectively, engaged in a comical back-and-forth, breaking the tension and lightening the mood for the audience who had been emotionally invested in Gwak Ji-cheol’s perspective from the beginning.

Renowned film critic and journalist for CinePlan, Yu Kang-jin, nodded in approval as he watched the movie.

‘So that’s why the lead actor, Ryu Yeon-woo, made a late entrance. The director deliberately raised the tension from the perspective of a weak, ordinary citizen with inner conflicts before reaching the climax, and then brought him in at the peak. It must be Park Chan-hong, after all.’

On the screen, Pierre Choi smoothly snatched the convenience store bag from Gwak Ji-cheol, took out some snacks, and began to speak.

“Let’s wait a bit while snacking. I called those lowlife gamblers. Will the deer come out first?”

“The deer?”

With a smirk, Pierre Choi picked up a snack, chewing it crisply, as if trying to evoke memories of their first encounter scene.

As Yu Kang-jin, the critic, admired the screen where Ryu Yeon-woo appeared, he mused.

‘Park Chan-hong’s direction aside, the allure the actor possesses is another level of intrigue. To heighten tension and focus expectations on a single point requires exceptional charisma that can command the entire stage.’

Suddenly, Pierre summoned experts to a small motel room, and soon it was packed with people.

“Pierre, why did you gather us in such a place? Ugh, it’s filthy.”

“Oh, come on, old man. You’ve gained some weight. Just like a hammer. Ugh, dwarf.”

“While you were away, it seems you’ve lost even more hair. Can’t you draw hair?”

Infiltration, seduction, acting – ‘Deer’.

Information gathering and technical expertise – ‘Old Man’.

Set design and makeup – ‘Picasso’.

And the planner, Pierre Choi.

While ‘Deer’ Jennifer complained, others greeted each other after a long time, with Gwak Ji-cheol awkwardly sitting at the edge of the bed, trying to blend in and occasionally laughing.

Then Pierre stood up from the bed, holding a briefcase, and took out what looked like a kindergarten sketchbook or something equally childish.

“Everyone, pay attention.”

As Pierre laid the sketchbook on the bed, everyone stopped talking and focused.

Laughter erupted from the audience as a pink sketchbook with a princess character drawn on it appeared on the screen.

“Oh, why does your taste have to be so peculiar?”

Jennifer, shaking her head, and Pierre, chuckling at her, turned the first page of the sketchbook.

Contrary to its appearance, the sketchbook contained dense briefing materials and photos attached, detailing their mission.

“Shall we expand the plan?”

“Let’s make it big.”

The teaser’s last line delivered by Ryu Yeon-woo.

Following that, with upbeat music, Pierre explained the operation and members refined the plan, engaging in lively discussions.

Every time Jennifer, exuding charm with her seductive red lipstick and flawless appearance, appeared on screen, male viewers swallowed hard, while female viewers blushed with excitement at Pierre’s focused explanation, revealing muscles and veins under rolled-up sleeves.

At one point, Gwak Ji-cheol glanced at Jennifer and asked Pierre.

“Do you all call her ‘Deer’ because of her deer-like eyes?”

“No. It melts men’s hearts.”

As they conversed, Jennifer’s face, habitually sending seductive smiles, suddenly turned awkward with a hint of confusion.

“That guy’s starting again. Lame jokes… Not funny, Pierre.”

“Hehe. I find it amusing. Why? Melting hearts.”

Picasso chuckled as he sketched facial features needed for the operation on a smart pad.

Then, the members left the motel room and began their respective tasks in earnest.

Son Jin-yuk also focused on the movie.

‘Yeon-woo’s acting has really improved. It’s embarrassing to compare it to when he first filmed a drama. And Soo-yeon has truly transformed her acting. It’s completely different from her usual characters. This movie is enjoyable. Moving from the small inn room to the outside expands the world within the movie. Indeed, Director Park Chan-hong.’

Nodding, Son Jin-yuk speculated on the success of this movie.

‘If it continues like this, it could easily reach four million viewers… No, if the latter half is good, it might even reach six million.’

While unsure of how the latter half would unfold, the story so far was engaging, with lively characters and an intriguing plot keeping the audience captivated.

The movie then unfolded vigorously, relentlessly driving the audience to the edge of their seats.

“Hello, how do you do, senior!”

“Hmm? Do I know you?”

“I’m Kim Ji-hoon from the 59th batch. We met at the alumni association last time.”

“Ah, I see.”

Approaching Director Koo’s confidant, with a natural acting, Pierre recorded voice samples.

“Hmm, isn’t it supposed to be done like this? Why isn’t the ball carrying enough power?”

“Miss, would you like me to show you how?”

“Oh, please do. I’m sure I learned it, but… It’s not working well?”

Using golf practice as an excuse, Jennifer smoothly approached Park Kang-woo and replaced the SIM card, watching from a small storage room as Pierre took out a lighter gun from his pocket when Gwak Ji-cheol quietly watched from the audience, reminiscing about an indescribable joy reminiscent of a doll shop.

‘Feels like I’ve contributed something to the filming.’

And the screen shifted to other members.

“Hey, put that over there. Have we finished recruiting people? We can’t be indecisive. Only with reliable people.”

“Yes, team leader. We only called professionals who worked well with us.”

Members of Old Man’s team busied themselves, decorating the set and recruiting swindlers.

Then, Picasso, holding utensils, made an impression.

“Old man, these utensils shouldn’t be used cheaply. Let’s get Norwegian ones. Norwegian.”

“Hey, man, that’s Norwegian.”

“…Is it? No wonder it’s so shiny on the surface. I tested it myself.”

Seeing Picasso like that, Old Man shook his head and quickly moved elsewhere.

“Anyway, you fool. I went to the market and bought it. No such thing as Norwegian.”

Bickering but adeptly transforming an old factory into a perfect party venue, Old Man and Picasso.

As the movie’s buildup continued, the audience’s curiosity grew.

The same was true for professional journalist Yu Yeoul.

‘I understand trying to deceive Park Kang-woo, but why go to such lengths to prepare? Can that person really be manipulated? No, then there’s no need for Ryu Yeon-woo to secretly obtain a voice sample.’

Later, Pierre succeeded in deceiving Park Kang-woo by using a modified voice and impersonating Director Koo.

Thus, the day of reckoning arrived on the screen, and Park Kang-woo arrived at the fabricated party venue.

Passing through the elegant door and climbing the high marble stairs into the hall, Park Kang-woo entered.

“Oh, I thought you were a golf pro. You’re not?”

“No, lady of the golf course?”

Approaching Park Kang-woo under the guise of a second chance encounter, Jennifer began to control him, making him increasingly excited as he drank champagne and his voice grew louder.

Then, Pierre suddenly appeared on the screen.

“Oh, excuse me… What the heck?!”

“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s my first time in a place like this, so I was curious and got a little distracted.”

He deliberately bumped into Park Kang-woo as part of the plan, provoking him to anger.

Watching Ryu Yeon-woo’s endlessly pathetic expression on the screen, fan cafe manager Lee Jin-ah was surprised.

‘My actor can make such an expression.’

The characters from ‘Summer Promise’ and ‘The Star Beyond the River’ are more similar than I thought.

A wealthy young man who initially treats the female lead with a cold attitude but later realizes his affection, a cliché character.

‘It’s an expression I can’t find in Cha Woo-joo and Seo Hee. It’s so fascinating.’

As a fan who has watched every video featuring Ryu Yeon-woo, Lee Jin-ah was surprised by every new face and expression Pierre Choi brought to the movie from the moment he appeared on screen, feeling amazed and thrilled with each scene.

The following scene showed Park Kang-woo grabbing Pierre Choi by the collar and dragging him toward the restroom. While being pulled away, Jennifer and Pierre exchanged glances, playfully making faces to avoid Park Kang-woo’s gaze, with their antics edited in a cross-cutting manner.

Observing this scene, both Director Park Chan-hong and actor Ryu Yeon-woo simultaneously thought.

‘This scene aimed for just one particular image…’

As if responding to their concerns, numerous audience members in the theater collectively had the same thought when they saw Yeon-woo.

It wasn’t just Pierre’s name; his slightly intoxicated makeup and versatile facial expressions, hiding a playful heart behind them, combined to create an exaggerated but somewhat frightening figure. He resembled a clown, reminiscent of Pierrot.

In the subsequent scene, Park Kang-woo, after turning the corner while gripping Pierre’s collar, was struck and fell to the ground. Then, the screen went dark.

With the blackout, it seemed as though question marks appeared over the heads of all the audience members.

‘What’s this? Putting so much effort into deceiving and then knocking him out? Why not just kidnap him from the beginning?’