Playing Yoon-su’s descent into desperation, Korean screen veteran says she discovered expressions she never knew she had
Netflix’s “The Price of Confession,” which was launched Dec. 5 as one of Netflix Korea’s year-end tentpole projects, is a propulsive thriller engineered for uninterrupted bingeing.
Blending a whodunit with a touch of human drama, the series opens with a unique premise: A husband is murdered and his free-spirited art-teacher wife, Yoon-su (Jeon Do-yeon), gets locked up despite her protests of innocence.
Inside prison, she encounters fellow inmate Mo Eun (Kim Go-eun) who suddenly offers a bargain: Mo will take the fall for the murder if Yoon-su agrees to kill someone on the outside once she’s released.
The narrative accelerates from there. Yoon-su is freed, only to find herself stalked by Mo’s escalating threats pushing her to fulfill her side of the deal.
For Jeon, a stalwart of the Korean screen, known for heavy-hitting turns in “Kill Bok-soon” and “Beasts Clawing at Straws,” the project’s appeal lies in the cat-and-mouse mystery at its core: Discovering who is behind the killings.
Jeon notes that beyond its tightly constructed detective framework, “The Price of Confession” is also a story steeped in prejudice.
“I think this project has the kind of elements that let viewers enjoy tracking down the culprit themselves. But when I was working on the show and filming it, what I focused on the most was the women’s personal stories. I felt it was more important to show how this dangerous deal changes the lives of Mo and Yoon-su and what choices they end up making,” Jeon said during a Friday press interview.
“The director seemed to be exploring how frightening people’s prejudices can be and how they can completely sway someone’s life. It’s not an overt or heavy-handed message, but I felt that aspect still comes through. I think the director wanted to talk about those things through this project,” she added.
In portraying Yoon-su’s spiraling desperation, Jeon said she found new sides to herself.
“A close acquaintance of mine told me they saw expressions in me that they’d never seen before — expressions they discovered through this role. I really liked hearing that. I think I conveyed a lot of Yoon-su’s desperation and urgency through my facial expressions. I felt like I used more facial muscles than ever, trying so hard to portray what she was going through,” she said.
As with many veteran performers, Jeon also had a strong hand in shaping her character — particularly in crafting the motivations driving Yoon-su’s desperate bid for freedom, even if it means killing a stranger. While returning to her young daughter is a crucial on-screen motivation, Jeon said she wanted the character’s urgency to feel layered.
“I always felt that motherhood is something that inevitably appears in women-centered narratives. But in Yoon-su’s case, motherhood is something inherently built into her character, so I told the director early on that I didn’t want to force it or highlight it twice over," said Jeon.
“So while there isn’t just one single reason behind Yoon-su’s desperate struggle to survive, it’s a mix of many things. Among them is her determination to uncover her husband’s killer, to reveal the truth, and several other factors," said Jeon.
The series also brought Jeon together with a number of junior cast members.
"It was a bit overwhelming, but not to the point where it weighed me down — the younger actors have grown so much that it actually felt fine. I’m sure the juniors felt something new while acting alongside an actor who also directs, and I think I felt the same way," she said.
"That’s why, in this project, having actors I truly admire deliver such wonderful performances — even in roles that aren’t very big — felt like a deeply appreciated opportunity for me."
yoonseo.3348@heraldcorp.com
