[SBS Star] "Not for Women in 50s?" Jeon Do-yeon Breaks the Bias that She Is Too Old for Romance

Jeon Do-yeon reflected on her career as a non-conforming actress.

On March 29, Jeon Do-yeon starred in tvN's television show 'You Quiz on the Block'.

Jeon Do-yeon said she is thankful for all the attention her latest work tvN's series 'Crash Course in Romance' has received, which was her first acting in a romance genre in 18 years.

She acted as 'Nam Haeng-seon', the owner of the banchan (Korean side dishes) shop who falls in love with her daughter's math instructor 'Choi Chi-yeol' (actor Chung Kyung-ho) in 'Crash Course in Romance'.

"We all were happy. Viewers gave us more love than we deserved.", said Jeon Do-yeon.

However, the actress revealed that not everyone responded well to her return to romance.

"Some doubted that my joining the 'Crash Course in Romance' cast is a mistake. I was concerned by the words that said women over 50s are not suitable for on-screen romance. Now I feel relieved to see my character 'Nam Haeng-seon' under so much love.", she stated.

This is not the first time Jeon Do-yeon received controversial opinions on her role.

An 'atypical' actress for 32 years, Jeon Do-yeon has been bashed and smashed but never crushed.
 
She experimented with a wide range of scenarios throughout her career, broadening her acting spectrum from early on.

In 1999, she was cast in the film 'Happy End' as the character 'Choi Bo-rah' who is married to 'Seo Min-ki' (actor Choi Min-sik), later brutally murdered by her husband following the disclosure of her affair with 'Kim Il-beom' (actor Ju Jin-mo).

She risked full-frontal nudity for the film and ended up under fire.

"I was warned not to do it by everyone around me. But at that time domestic films were divided into the one actor Han Suk-kyu stars in, and the others. It may sound childish but I wanted to prove that our movie can be successful without him. It was my first challenge as an actress."

Having to run the gauntlet of judging eyes under the conservative view of that era, Jeon Do-yeon, 26 at that time, was obviously hurt.

She confessed how she felt about all the consequences, saying, "I chose the film out of pure passion. But all the commercials I was in ended their contracts with me. At first, I didn't get the reason behind it, but gradually I understood that it was because I broke out of a certain image of the actress people expect."

"It was hurtful but the experience made me unbreakable as well. There was a wide conception of viewing actresses as passive actors. But in 'Happy End' I led the scene. I did my job as an actress so wasn't discouraged by criticism.", said the unfaltering actress.
"I am the same person I was before but people see me differently now that I'm in my 50s, I guess.", Jeon Do-yeon, now 51, seemed astonished to still be the subject of prejudice.

The actress voiced her frustration by bringing up the controversy about her eligibility as the heroine in a love story once more.

"I felt as though I was confined by bigotry. It would have been a challenging decision if I were someone who cares about what others think.

"In this business, there often are the occasion where you are caged by the bystanders.", the actress disclosed the real-life difficulties of the job.

Still, the actress says she is optimistic.

"As there are many genres that I haven't explored yet, I want to travel more characters. I want to be used by someone who discovers something in me that I didn't even know I had and chooses me since I, as an actress, am the one waiting for the filmmakers to choose me."

"I am still curious about my future. I want to be an actress who has something to look forward to.", said Jeon Do-yeon.
(Credit= '유 퀴즈 온 더 튜브' 'tvN Drama' YouTube, CJ ENM)

(SBS Star)