Jang Gyu Ri Talks About How She Prepared for Her Role in "Player 2": "I Gained About 7kg"

Actress Jang Gyu Ri opened up about working in The Player 2: Master of Swindlers following the K-drama's conclusion. 

The Player 2: Master of Swindlers follows elite swindlers joining forces to rob the rich of their dirty money. The K-drama stars Song Seung Heon, Oh Yeon Seo, Tae Won Seok, Lee Si Eon, and Jang Gyu Ri in the lead roles.

Jang Gyu Ri transformed into Cha Jae Yi, the best driver of the team. The actress captivated viewers with her nuanced acting and exhilarating car action sequences.

Here is an excerpt from her interview:

Q: How do you feel about the conclusion of Player 2?

A: I am grateful and happy to have been able to show viewers a new side of myself by portraying Cha Jae Yi in Player 2. Every moment was a learning experience, and I could successfully finish it thanks to the guidance of wonderful seniors and staff members. I had a lot of fun filming with the staff and senior actors, and I hope that energy reached the viewers as well.

Q: How did you come to join Player 2? 

A: I'm embarrassed [to say this], but I heard when the director was looking for an actress to play Cha Jae Yi, who is the younger sister of Cha Ah Ryung, he was looking for someone who had both a similar and different vibe to Cha Ah Ryung. And then, because I starred in It's Okay to Not Be Okay, he proposed the role of Cha Jae Yi to me. Since I was a fan of Season 1 and always wanted to do action scenes, I thought I should do it without hesitation.

Q: You were a master of disguise in the drama. Did you face any challenges in wearing various disguises? Do you have any memorable scenes?
A: I approached filming with gratitude, thinking that opportunities to show such a variety of appearances within one drama are rare. If there is a memorable scene, it would perhaps be the one when I joined as a rookie development team member at KU Entertainment and said "Please help me!" in a cute way, which was an ad-lib. But I was happy as an actor because many people liked it.

Q: There were quite a few action scenes. How did you prepare for them, and which action scenes were particularly challenging?
A: I practiced driving for over two months for the action scenes and attended action school for basic physical training and action practice. Also, the director wanted me to have a healthy appearance, so I gained about 7kg.

Q: As the youngest in the team, what advantages did you have?
A: Just being the youngest in the team got me a lot of love from senior actors and staff members. I was worried that it might be difficult to approach them because they were my seniors, but my worries were meaningless because they approached me first and took care of me like I was their real younger sister. They not only gave acting advice but also always bought me meals. During overseas filming, they even bought souvenirs and gave me pocket money.

Q: What was it like seeing yourself in Player 2?

A: I always do my best during filming, but when I watch the monitor, there are always things I regret. After every project, I think, 'I can do better if I do it now.' If I were to do Season 3 of Player, I would like to try more fun things.

Q: You were the best driver in the drama. Are you still good at driving now?
A: It's been quite a while since I last drove, so I'm not sure if I'm still good at it. Since I don't have a car, I rarely get a chance to drive. I was very nervous when I had to drive with senior actors sitting next to or behind me to shoot car action scenes. The seniors must have been very nervous because they jokingly said their real reactions came out when filming the scene where they were surprised by Jae Yi's driving skills. (laughs).

Q: Is there any [particular kind of] character you want to try portraying in the future?
A: I'm careful to speak because [what I said in] my previous interview became true (laughs). I want to try everything I've never done before, but I [especially] want to try [playing] a character with a profession. So far, the roles I've played required a lot of physicality, so I want to try characters who use more intellect or emotions.

Q: A word to the fans who watched Player 2?

A: I sincerely thank the viewers who chose Player 2 among countless platforms and dramas and loved it. Thanks to the endless trust and love from the fans, no matter what choice I made or what I looked like, I was able to believe in myself once again, challenge myself, and grow. Thank you. And I will do my best to repay you with even better acting.

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