Speaking at a press conference for the Disney+ original series 'The Manipulated' at the Conrad Seoul in Yeouido on Nov. 3, Do said, "It’s my first time playing a villain, so I was curious what kind of energy would come through on screen."
'The Manipulated' follows Tae-jung (Ji Chang-wook), an ordinary man who’s falsely swept into a heinous crime and lands in prison―only to discover every beat was orchestrated by Yo-han (D.O.). What follows is a high-octane revenge thriller as Tae-jung sets his sights on payback.
D.O. plays Ahn Yo-han, the head of an elite security firm catering to the top one percent. He’s a meticulous mastermind who feels a rush from “reframing” cases by manipulating evidence―and when Tae-jung threatens to become his one and only failure, Yohan resets the board to take him out.
On crafting a character who’s truly unsettling, D.O. said, "I thought a lot about how to make Yohan feel chilling." He also obsessed over the look: "I permed and dyed my hair, then dyed it back to black. It took more than four hours every time. I worked closely with the costume team so Yo-han read clearly―crisp suits, some flashier pieces, too."
Because he couldn’t draw from real-life experience, D.O. turned to screen study. "I revisited films and documentaries and imagined the mindset of people with those tendencies," he shared.
Penned by Oh Sang-ho―known for the turbocharged revenge franchise 'Taxi Driver'―'The Manipulated' promises tight storytelling and a cathartic blaze of vengeance. The series bows Nov. 5 with four episodes, followed by two episodes weekly, for a total of 12.
[Photo by Baik Seung-Chul]
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Sun-ae)
