How a Loan Shark Survives as an Actor – Chapter 68

Author: Cireng

Chapter 68

After ending up in Yoo Seulho’s body, I made sure to watch as many movies and dramas as possible.

Since I’d decided to make money as an actor, I figured it was important to study the market too.

Among them were several horror movies, but every single one disappointed me.

‘How should I put this?’

The quality felt a bit lacking.

Not that I had some deep understanding of cinema, but even to my eyes, they didn’t seem particularly well made.

And I couldn’t shake the impression that the filmmakers were lazy.

I had even picked them from lists titled “Top Horror Movies You’ll Regret Missing Before You Die,” but most of them only left me dumbfounded.

‘Seriously…’

Is making the characters stupid the only way they know how to advance the plot?

Can they not do anything besides suddenly having some woman scream to startle the audience?

‘And the sound effects are unnecessarily loud.’

Most of the time, I wasn’t scared because a ghost appeared.

I was startled because the volume suddenly exploded.

More than anything, the ghost makeup looked cheap.

No matter how many horror movies I watched, I never once saw a ghost that genuinely frightened me.

After watching several, I came to a realization.

If a movie with ghosts wanted to be scary, then the ghosts shouldn’t appear at all.

I wondered if I was the only one who felt that way, so I checked a horror movie community.

As expected, plenty of people shared my opinion.

According to them, it had been ages since a truly great horror movie came out, and recent films all lacked substance.

➝ As long as it’s scary, that’s enough, though. Sometimes I just want a snack movie I can watch without thinking, not elevated horror.

➝ But if the plot is too sloppy, I can’t get immersed. Tickets are expensive these days! It feels empty going home after watching a movie that only relies on jump scares.

➝ I don’t need some super profound art film, but I’d appreciate it if they at least used their brains while making movies. ㅠㅠ

‘…What are they talking about?’

Elevated?

Jump scare?

I had never heard those terms before, so I had to search them while reading.

‘Let’s see…’

‘Elevated Horror’ refers to horror movies focused more on social messages than simple scares…

And ‘Jump Scares’ are sudden shocks accompanied by loud sounds and abrupt appearances?

I see.

‘So that’s what I hate… jump scares.’

I hadn’t paid attention before, but the deeper I dug into this field, the more endless information there was.

Even after reading several more posts, I still couldn’t organize my thoughts.

Eventually, I concluded that horror movies simply weren’t my thing and stopped thinking about them.

And now I was getting offered one?

“Huh, and I’m the lead?”

I blinked after seeing the words at the top of the synopsis Team Leader Ahn handed me.

“Yep. You’re the only lead. Plenty of other actors appear, but they’re all supporting roles.”

“How…? I’m not at that level yet, am I?”

Team Leader Ahn silently laughed.

“Who’s going to talk about levels with an actor who’s been around for twenty years? You’re more than qualified.”

“Out of those twenty years, I spent nineteen and a half getting cursed at. No matter how good my image is now, a leading role is too much.”

“Come on, you’re too harsh on yourself.”

“It’s the truth.”

I continued reading.

At least from the synopsis, the quality seemed decent.

‘Something like this actually came to me?’

“It’s amazing. They only saw me on the last day of the commercial shoot and made an offer like this?”

“According to them, production’s already been delayed six months because they can’t decide on a lead. They’ve held multiple auditions, but the director hasn’t approved anyone.”

Hmm.

“Sounds like the director’s difficult.”

“What good is being difficult? They have to start filming before autumn. You can’t make a movie without a lead. Everyone had basically given up, and then you caught the casting director’s eye.”

“But what does it matter if the casting director likes me? The final decision belongs to the director.”

Team Leader Ahn shrugged.

“The casting director says you’re exactly the director’s type.”

Type?

That random comment made me ask for an explanation.

“There are all kinds of horror movies, right? Ones where the group survives together to the end, and ones where people disappear one by one. This one’s the latter.”

Meaning they needed a lot of actors to play characters who died.

“They’re mostly casting actors in their early twenties. They need someone who can hold the center. If they make some rookie actor the lead just because he acts well, the more experienced supporting actors could overwhelm him.”

If the lead got pushed around by the supporting cast, the atmosphere on set would naturally fall apart.

“And you’ve been around forever. Experience-wise, very few actors can compare.”

“I understand that part. But what do you mean by the director’s type?”

“The director’s young. Rich family. This’ll be his third movie. The first two bombed completely.”

People didn’t mock him because they saw filmmaking as nothing more than an expensive hobby for a rich kid.

But apparently, he didn’t want to fail again and was becoming quite anxious.

“The casting director says he looks like someone who wants to be guided by others but doesn’t want to listen to just anybody. Apparently, if he meets someone who feels like a role model, he’ll obediently listen.”

“…Do casting directors read faces too?”

Despite my disbelief, Team Leader Ahn nodded seriously.

“They don’t recommend actors simply because they fit a role. There are deals behind the scenes and countless factors to consider. You have to think about the atmosphere after filming starts too.”

After considering everything, the casting director thought it’d be best if I were on that set.

“He’s a rich kid who doesn’t care about investors, writers, or anyone else’s opinions. But the casting director has a strong feeling he’d listen to you.”

“I don’t know. No matter how young he is, a director’s still a director. It’s hard for me to tell him what to do.”

“True. We won’t know until you actually meet him. But do you want to at least try the audition?”

I couldn’t answer immediately.

‘Horror movie. Young and rich director. First leading role.’

Too many things bothered me.

“Oh, right. They’re paying an absurd amount.”

“I’ll do it.”

No, you should’ve led with that.

And just like that, another audition was added to my schedule.

***

“Two iced Americanos, please.”

“Yes, two iced Americanos~.”

Today I was meeting Director Baek, who I’d be working with on my next project.

I bought coffee and waited at the location Wooyeon Entertainment had arranged.

“Seulho!”

Not long after, a friendly-looking middle-aged woman entered.

“We’ve only talked on the phone so far. Nice to finally meet you. I’m Baek Jinhee.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Director.”

“You look even better in person. You’re going to look fantastic on screen. Haha!”

I sat down with Director Baek, who laughed cheerfully.

We chatted happily about our upcoming movie, ‘What I Loved’, when her expression suddenly darkened.

“We’ve got a problem. We still haven’t cast the female lead.”

Apparently, they had nearly signed an actress, but things suddenly fell apart.

Her agency had subtly suggested they might want to consider another project instead.

“Why? Isn’t that a loss for them too?”

“Come on, you know how this works. It’s better than paying a penalty after signing.”

Only after hearing her explanation did I understand.

The actress had already slipped beyond her agency’s control, and her private life was a ticking time bomb that could become headlines at any moment.

No matter how good the contract was, if a scandal broke later, the agency would have to compensate the production company.

Safer to back out now.

‘Entertainment really isn’t an easy business.’

While listening carefully, my phone vibrated.

I glanced down.

Bae Dain.

[Senior! I just got a call saying we need to do ADR for the beer commercial. When are you going?]

I was about to reply later when a thought crossed my mind.

“Director.”

“Hm?”

“Do you know an actress named Bae Dain?”

“Who? Never heard of her. What’s she been in?”

Since I didn’t know either, I searched her profile and showed her.

She belonged to a tiny agency and had no notable works.

‘Maybe this is inappropriate…’

But Director Baek’s face lit up when she saw her profile picture.

“What? She’s got a good face.”

“She does?”

“Yeah. Not stunningly beautiful, just pretty enough. I like that. Who is she?”

Her casual evaluation caught me off guard, but thankfully she wasn’t here to hear it.

“She acted with me in a commercial recently. She’s twenty-six, so she’s a bit young.”

“Hm? Aren’t you twenty-five? She’s older.”

Ah.

Right.

Still, compared to my loan shark days, there was almost a ten-year difference.

‘I’m getting used to living as Yoo Seulho, but age still feels strange.’

It was like my instincts were warning me.

‘You’re an old man, so stop acting up.’

“Twenty-six isn’t old. That’s all I meant.”

“True. But she’s an unknown actress. Hmm. I don’t mind, but the investors will. Ticket power matters more for movies than dramas.”

Director Baek thanked me for the recommendation.

Whether Bae Dain became the heroine or not didn’t affect me, so I quickly forgot about it.

Until she called.

[Senior! I got it!]

“What?”

[You recommended me for the female lead, right?! I auditioned the other day, and the director just called to sign me! He even convinced all the investors!]

Her excited voice practically bounced through the phone.

As I congratulated her, she said something I hadn’t expected.

[I feel like I’m dreaming. My life changed because of you, Senior!]

Without thinking, I replied awkwardly,

“That’s not true…”

I hadn’t really recommended her.

I hadn’t even been rooting for her.

She’d simply seized her own opportunity.

How was that thanks to me?

[What are you talking about?! It’s absolutely thanks to you!]

“You did it yourself. But how did they convince the investors?”

Trying to change the subject, I asked casually.