“I seriously considered retiring”: Lee Dong-wook shares how Gong Yoo helped him overcome one of the hardest periods of his life

On February 6, 2024, South Korean actor Lee Dong-wook participated in a live stream on Na Yeong-seok, aka Na PD's radio show, Egg is Coming. The live broadcast of the radio show is later uploaded to the YouTube channel (channel fullmoon) of the producer. During the interview, the Bad and Crazy actor confessed that he once considered retiring from the entertainment industry and moving to a different country. Lee Dong-wook said,

"Actually, I was going to retire. I never said this on air, but I seriously considered retiring and moving to another country."

The Bad and Crazy actor shared that his Goblin: The Lonely and Great God co-star Gong Yoo helped him overcome his slump.

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"I started to think I was to blame": Lee Dong-wook confesses he didn't leave his house for a month until Gong Yoo got him out of his slump

Lee Dong-wook talked candidly about the severe professional downturn he went through after working on the medical series Life. The actor said that he struggled while filming the drama, in which he portrayed the lead role, and that the audience was hostile to him.

"I experienced a deep slump after working on 'Life'. It was so serious that I didn't leave my house for almost a month."

Following the triumph of the first season of tvN's popular series Stranger (2017), many anticipated that writer Lee Soo-yeon's following endeavor, Life, would also be a massive success. However, Life received a viewing rating of 4-5%.

Lee Dong-wook conveyed his dissatisfaction with both his performance in the drama and the overall circumstances. He said that, following the series, he was the target of hate mail online. He started to feel guilty since he believed he was at fault.

"I was unhappy with my acting in the series and the whole situation. The drama was getting online hate, and all of that negativity seemed to be directed at me. I started to think I was to blame, and felt bad about it."

Lee Dong-wook said that he was considering quitting acting due to the hate he was receiving after the release of the drama Life. The actor declared his previous intention to retire, adding that he never planned to admit it onscreen and recall such a tumultuous phase of his life.

He continued by saying that he started thinking back then that he shouldn't be performing any longer and blamed himself. Lee Dong-wook elaborated on the fact that during that time in his life, he even believed the project would have done well at the box office without him. The A Shop for Killers actor said:

"I thought the series would have been more popular and successful without me. I felt I shouldn't be acting anymore."

According to the actor, exercising was his way of escaping the harsh realities of life. However, stress prevented him from getting the body he desired, so he ended up drinking after working out. Dong-wook said:

"The only thing I did during that period was exercise because I started to feel like I was a useless person. I thought exercising would help me get out of the negative thoughts that had been recurring in my head. But I didn't become more muscular or anything because I drank after working out."

Lee Dong-wook added that Gong Yoo was the one who helped him leave my residence. One day, he just gave him a call and asked him to come outside and join him. He clarified that Gong Yoo visited him even though Lee Dong-wook didn't want to talk to or meet anyone in that particular circumstance.

The Tale of the Nine-Tailed actor revealed further that his friend and colleague, Gong Yoo, did not for once ask him about his situation but rather talked about several other things in life.

Lee Dong-wook revealed that it was that conversation that made him realize that there's a world out there where he is loved and his friends care for and respect him immensely. A world where people are grateful for his presence and appreciate his profession—a place where he "belongs." He said:

"Gong Yoo was the one who got me out of my house. He just called me one day and told me to step out and join him. He didn't ask anything about my current problem and we just had casual conversations, and it got me thinking. 'This is the world I belong to.' I had been obsessed with how people on the internet perceived me. But there was a real world outside, and that was where I belonged."

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Fans and viewers are well aware of Lee Dong-wook and Gong Yoo's years-long friendship. The two popular actors even starred in the famous 2016 drama Goblin: The Guardian And The Lonely God.