[Interview①] YG’s CEO YANG HYUN SUK Says “I want to make GANG DONG WON a global star”
[엑스포츠뉴스=김현정 기자] “I want to make GANG DONG WON a global star. I want people to know that Korea has an actor like him.”
GANG DONG WON, once the most pursued free agent in the entertainment industry, has joined hands with YANG HYUN SUK. YG Entertainment announced that GANG DONG WON signed an exclusive contract with them on January 18, which was coincidently GANG DONG WON’s birthday. GANG DONG WON, who has the looks and can also act, has now YG’s ample management expertise and vast network on his back to help him become a global star.
YANG HYUN SUK recently told XSports News his thoughts on YG signing an exclusive agreement with GANG DONG WON.
He explained how it all started, “GANG DONG WON is a top star. We have never contacted a top actor before. But GANG DONG WON seemed to be so focused in acting, I wanted to meet him.”
YANG HYUN SUK met GANG DONG WON several times, and they talked about what they will do together in the future and their visions. By having in-depth conversations, they have gained trust in each other and realized that they have much in common: they both like architecture and furniture.
YANG HYUN SUK said, “After talking to GANG DONG WON, we found out we share many similarities. He majored in civil engineering, and I am very fond of architecture. I also like vintage furniture, and so we had a lot to talk about.”
The reason why GANG DONG WON joined YG is that they share the goal of entering the overseas market, especially the Asian market, with good Korean movies.
After debuting as a model, GANG DONG WON’s first role as an actor was in MBC’s “Country Princess” in 2003. Afterwards, he appeared in various movies such as “1% of Anything” in 2003, “A Wolf’s Temptation” in 2004, “Duelist” in 2005, “Maundy Thursday” in 2006, “Jeon Woo-chi: The Taoist Wizard” in 2009, “Secret Reunion” and “Haunters” in 2010, and “Kundo: Age of the Rampant” and “My Brilliant Life” in 2014, “The Priests” in 2015, and “A Violent Prosecutor” in 2016.
12 years have passed since he debuted and he is already in his mid thirties. But GANG DONG WON is making preparations to become a global star. YANG HYUN SUK will make a special team to manage GANG DONG WON and will give full support to help his career in and out of the country.
YANG HYUN SUK said, “To actors, making choices for themselves is important so I don’t want to interfere with GANG DONG WON’s career within Korea. I gave a lot of thought into what I can do for GANG DONG WON. He has done fine by himself until now and I wondered how can I help to making things better for him? If I can’t help him, there is no point in us working together.”
He went on to say, “He has done mostly movies but not dramas, which have become a huge hit across the world. I want to focus on making a structured system for overseas marketing. We’ve laid the foundation with BIGBANG and PSY’s world tours, so I want to use this to make GANG DONG WON a global star. It is not just about talent management. I want to introduce him to a bigger market.”
Once GANG DONG WON’s acting was underrated because of his good looks. But he has continued to show good acting in various movies and proved his excellent acting skills.
YANG HYUN SUK said, “Although he was a model, GANG DONG WON overcame his image as a model and proved he is a good actor. My role is to make more people know GANG DONG WON and show them that Korea has an actor like GANG DONG WON. This is what I can do for him.”
2016. 1. 26.
