Just before landing his first major film role, Ahn Hyo-seopseriously thought about quitting acting. Despite a growing list of TV credits and a rising reputation, the introverted actor admitted in a recent interview with Dispatch that he had trouble adjusting to life on set.

He even questioned his place in the industry like:

"Acting was fun," he said, "but it wasn't easy to adjust. I wondered if this path was right for me."

A brief comment from veteran actor Han Seok-gyu helped Ahn reconsider:

"Hyo-seop, acting is fun, right? But it's even more enjoyable when you do it well."

Those words struck a chord.

"That moment woke me up," Ahn recalled. "My passion for acting was reignited."

Shortly after, he was cast as Kim Dok-ja, the lead role in the high-stakes fantasy action film Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint. The script, the character, and the emotional depth of the story solidified his decision.

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The impact was immediate. Ahn remembers the exact café, the table, and even the color of the sofa where he first read the script.

"I usually choose roles that make my heart react, and Kim Dok-ja did that," he said. "He's ordinary, human—and that's what makes him powerful."

Ahn was struck by the character's internal conflict over choosing between self-preservation and saving others in a crumbling world. He found that theme both compelling and relatable.

Portraying ordinariness proved to be unexpectedly challenging. Ahn and director Kim Byung-woo spent two months before filming exploring the concept.

"We concluded there's no one definition of ordinary," he said. "So I focused on living Kim Dok-ja's life instead of just performing it."

To embody the role, Ahn adjusted his gestures and expressions—avoiding eye contact and carrying his bag in front of him on the subway—to show his character's humility and social awkwardness.

The film required Ahn to fight imaginary monsters, perform difficult stunts, and act in computer-generated environments. Initially, he found the CG scenes disorienting, but then he shifted his mindset.

"If I don't believe it's real, how can I convince anyone else?" he said. "So I decided to believe."

This immersion led to his most mentally taxing scene—being trapped in a psychological illusion of the past. "I didn't know what expression to make," he admitted. "It was the hardest scene."

Before acting, Ahn was a JYP Entertainment idol trainee for three years. He originally hoped to debut as an acting idol but later chose to focus solely on acting.

"I hated standing out," he said. "Becoming an actor meant constantly going against my own nature."

Now, ten years into his career, Ahn says he's just starting to feel comfortable on screen.

"Everything before this felt like watering a seed," he said. "Through Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, I finally feel confident in my path. From now on, I'll keep growing."

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