One of the most popular actors in South Korea, Kang Ha-neul has done everything from appearing in films, television dramas, variety shows and even music videos. He has now spoken about his upcoming action, comedy movie Midnight Runners and describes his character as one like Sheldon Cooper from American TV show The Big Bang Theory, played by actor Jim Parsons.
As noted by website Soompi, in an interview with Grazia fashion magazine, Kang Ha-neul said about Midnight Runners: "It's a story about my character and Park Seo Joon's character, who are both students at the police academy, as they try to solve a kidnapping case that they witnessed together. The character that I'm playing, Hee Yeol, is a lot like the character 'Sheldon' from the 'Big Bang Theory.' He's a fairly nerdy character who only has his brains to count on."
The actor who began his career in theatre, starring in musicals such as Thrill Me (2010), Black Mary Poppins (2012) and Assassins (2012) was also asked about his hectic work schedule. He responded saying, "A lot of people see me and think that I have a lot of [professional] greed; however, I also just want to rest and am not someone who wants to constantly be working," adding, "That being said, all of the projects that I've completed until now are meaningful because they were made with good people and filled with good energy."
As for his image as the industry's "nice guy," Kang Ha-neul said, "I can't remember a moment in which I lost my temper. When you think about something from the opposing person's perspective, it's hard to find a reason to become angry; however, there are some people who see this in a negative light and say that I'm just bottling up my anger. I've heard people say that they think I'm weak-willed or that I'm wearing a mask. When I was younger, I was so busy trying to explain away each of these criticisms but now I have learned to just accept that some people will always think that way."
Soompi also noted that Kang Ha-neul, who made a special appearance in The Bride of Habaek, will film season 2 of drama Bad Guys before enlisting in the military this fall.
