Ahn Jae Hong: The Transformation Journey from Reply 1988 to Mask Girl and the Secret Love Story

Since its broadcast, the Korean drama Mask Girl has become a "craze" for viewers around the world. In particular, actor Ahn Jae Hong also received a lot of attention from the audience thanks to his excellent performance.

In the drama, actor Ahn Jae Hong takes on the role of Joo Oh Nam – Kim Mo Mi's colleague, who is so sick that he is so infatuated with the heroine that he is willing to become a killer to help his idol – which is praised by the audience and experts for his "goosebumps" acting.

From his comedic role in Asia's best-selling series Reply 1988, the actor surnamed Ahn has really transformed when challenging difficult characters. This can be said to be a big turning point in the acting career of the actor born in 1986. Then Who is Ahn Jae Hong?

The most impressive supporting actor on Korean screen

Ahn Jae Hong was born in 1986. In 2009, this actor began his acting career and became a familiar face in both film and television. Back in his childhood, Ahn Jae Hong had a passion for movies and started making short films and performing on the musical stage. In 2005, Ahn enrolled in an acting program in film studies. And when he entered his 2nd year of college, Ahn Jae Hong was invited to play the lead role in the school musical. Throughout the years of his bachelor's degree, the actor continued to participate in short film projects as a director and actor.

It is known that in 2021, Ahn Jae Hong became 1 piece in Management mmm, sharing a house with 2 popular actors Kim Tae Ri and Jeon Yeo Bin.

Currently, Ahn Jae Hong has bagged 27 movies and 8 dramas. And because of his appearances in so many works, this actor has become a familiar face to the mass audience. However, his role as Kim Jung Bong in the drama Reply 1988 became a big hit that made his name known throughout Asia, following success in Fight for My Way and Be Melodramatic. It is known that after Reply 1988, OSEN reported that the heroine of Hyeri received 11 individual advertising contracts out of a total of 17 contracts of the group Girl's Day, along with about 10 open invitations. And despite only accepting supporting roles, actor Ahn Jae Hong has signed a total of 9 contracts.

What amazed the audience even more was Ahn Jae Hong playing the extremely young character in Reply 1988. And although in the drama, the character Jung Bong (Ahn Jae Hong) is 24 years old and the main character Jung Hwang Jung Hwan (Ryu Joon Yeol) is 18 years old, in real life Ahn Jae Hong is actually 3 years younger than Ryu Jun Yeol.

In recent years since Reply 1988, audiences still only remember Ahn Jae Hong with the image of a gluttonous and funny boy. However, the actor was completely self-motivated to make a complete change in his performance. By this year 2023, the chilling role in "Mask Girl" has really highlighted Ahn Jae Hong's career.

"I read the script and thought that this character had a unique and quirky side," Ahn Jae Hong said of the role, "I felt that burying the real face would confuse the viewers, bring a sense of strangeness and alienation."

To play this character with an unusual personality, the actor had to go through a rather long process, during which the character's shape also helped him to be more immersed.

"I told the director that I wanted my character to have a peculiar appearance, to show the character with just one look. Therefore, the special effects and makeup gave many ideas. I also wondered if I should go so far as to experiment with different versions to create Joo Oh Nam's appearance and physique."

"And finally, when we got the Joo look you see in the movie, I felt like I found the character's strong point," the star continued.

Ahn Jae Hong spent two hours applying makeup for each scene. In addition, special effects also help his physique increase by 10kg for character creation.

The actor then explained that he had to develop many small details to add quirks to the character: "He's not the type to communicate much, so I felt he would have a hoarse voice every time he spoke. I also developed a weak voice, lack of confidence and bad posture for this self-contained character, locked in this room and private space."

It can be said that the character Joo Oh Nam of Mask Girl is an unexpected transformation of Ahn Jae Hong.

The makeover caused a stir in Korea

Always appearing with a casual image and chubby appearance on screen, Ahn Jae Hong attracts fans more in the way he portrays the character than his appearance. Therefore, the actor's makeover in 2019 made waves in Asia. It is known that the actor surnamed Ahn appeared on the show Please Take Care of My Refrigerator with a different appearance than when he transformed into the fattest character in the famous movie Reply 1988.

Ahn Jae Hong revealed that he lost 8-10kg for his latest role. After losing weight, the fat actor has been molting every day, delighting the public with his dashing appearance than in the past. In a series of photos showing off on Instagram, Ahn Jae Hong seems to have gotten used to a more scientific diet, supplemented with more vegetables.

Secret love story

Ahn Jae Hong is very private about romance, and the only time the actor shared about his love life was about his mysterious love affair with an actress in 2016. It is known that Ahn Jae Hong dated 1 apprentice actress for 2 years. The two got together before Reply 1988's chubby boy became famous, and didn't bother to hide their relationship even when his name flashed.

His girlfriend, who is 5 years younger than Ahn Jae Hong, also attended the same Konkuk University school as the actor but in the film industry. Unexpectedly, his girlfriend was in the same class as Jae Hong's co-star actress Ryu Hye Young in Reply 1988. Ahn Jae Hong's girlfriend was mentioned by her classmates with outstanding talent and beauty, ready to debut as an actress.

Despite being busy filming for Reply 1988, Ahn Jae Hong still finds time to meet and eat with his girlfriend. And despite becoming famous, the actor never hesitated to go public with his feelings or hide his identity whenever the two dated outside.

Nana - The heroine of Mask Girl: Known as the most beautiful beauty in the world, once suffered many bitterness Thảo Mai16:47:30 25/08/2023As one of the 3 actresses who took on the lead role of Kim Mo Mi in the feverish movie Mask Girl, idol singer Nana received the attention of the audience.