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Song Joong-ki (provided by HiSTORY D&C)

The disappointment on his face was palpable.

“I don’t want to do an end-of-series interview. Can’t we film a 21st episode? I hate to let go.”

Monday was the day after the final episode was aired in the 20-part series “Vincenzo” on the tvN network. Yet when lead actor Song Joong-ki appeared for a video interview that morning, it seemed like he had not yet put the show behind him.

“There wasn’t an unhappy moment on the set. I developed a strong bond with the other actors — the ‘Geumga Plaza’ family in the series — and we all supported and relied on each other throughout the filming,” he said. “It was my most energizing and enjoyable acting experience to date.”

Song’s character Vincenzo is a Mafia consigliere who was adopted in Italy at an early age, and who comes to share a sense of family with the people of Geumga Plaza. Much like his character, Song himself discovered the value of cooperation in his experience with his fellow actors during shooting.

In particular, he learned from his co-stars about comedy, an area that he had always considered one of his weaknesses.

“I was so worried about how viewers would react to me doing comedy, and I learned a lot from watching Yang Kyung-won [who plays a pawn shop owner] and Kim Hyung-mook [who plays a cook at an Italian restaurant] about how the more comical a scene is, the more you have to play it straight,” he said.

Thirteen years have passed since Song made his debut in the 2008 film “A Frozen Flower.”

Song Joong-ki (provided by HiSTORY D&C)

His subsequent appearances would become major events, with his roles in the 2010 TV series “Sungkyunkwan Scandal,” the 2012 film “A Werewolf Boy” and the 2016 drama “Descendants of the Sun.” But Song himself never felt like he measured up.

That humility may be the secret ingredient that has helped him to grow. By 2021, “Vincenzo” showed him to be an actor capable of greater depths — and with comedy chops to boot.

“Vincenzo” brings together all the different elements behind his appeal to date. It provides effective illustrations of his ability to shift between different extremes.

“Song Joong-ki has the looks of a handsome young man, but when his character is consumed by anger, his face becomes rage itself,” said Jeong Deok-hyeon, a popular culture critic.

Vincenzo is much nastier than the lead characters in dramas tend to be. He is capable of the same brutality as the chaebol chairman villain the characters must band together to defeat.

Throughout the series, we hear the same line of dialogue: “Fight evil with evil.” In the final episode aired on Sunday, Song’s character brutally kills Babel Group chairman Jang Joon-woo (Ok Taec-yeon) and attorney Choi Myung-hee (Kim Yeo-jin).

“Early on, I didn’t know he would end up being that brutal, and I misjudged the character in terms of the tone of my performance,” Song said. “My standards for approaching it changed about midway through.”

Song Joong-ki (provided by HiSTORY D&C)

Viewers have raved about the “dark hero,” viewing his personal vengeance as thrilling to watch.

“I was actually kind of confused myself. I did all these things you aren’t supposed to do, yet I managed to win over the viewers,” Song said.

“If the viewers found it thrilling, then I think it did its job as a commercial drama, even if I found it unsettling,” he added.

“I’m satisfied with how it ended, but I don’t like to use the term ‘hero.’ Vincenzo is not a good person. Just watching the news last night, I saw so many things about bad people. That may be why people find it so thrilling to see that kind of personal vengeance.”

At the same time, he said, “The most exhilaration we feel, the sadder the reality is.”

“There is no justification for punishing villains with the villains’ own methods,” he added.

Song’s empathetic performance also contributed to the viewers’ acceptance of his brutal vengeance tactics. He pulls off a difficult job with a performance that alternates freely and smoothly between seriousness and comedy. In particular, the fury that appears in his eyes when his character’s mother dies in episode 16 shows the greater depths now visible in his face.

After working non-stop for eight months, Song is already moving on to his next gig, as shooting begins later this month for the film “Bogota.” It’s the story of young people who immigrate to Colombia in the 1990s. Filming had to be suspended last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In his career so far, Song has lived by the saying that “people do not change easily.” Just as he has been doing to date, we can expect him to keep working hard to make up for his shortcomings.

By Nam Ji-eun, staff reporter

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