Suzy reflects on similarities to character in Netflix series 'Doona!'

K-pop idol and actress, Suzy, discusses her latest role in the new Netflix series "Doona!" where she portrays a former idol with emotional ups and downs. Suzy enjoys playing the imperfect character and capturing Doona's personality.

Suzy plays Doona, a retired former K-pop idol, in the new Netflix series ″Doona!″ [NETFLIX]

Suzy is Korea's first love. She grabbed people's attention as soon as she debuted as a member of girl group Miss A in 2010 and proved that she's more than just a pretty face by acting in "Architecture 101" in 2012. Many may have noticed that Suzy herself is similar to her latest character in the new Netflix series “Doona!”

Suzy agrees and disagrees.

“When I first received the script for ‘Doona!,’ I was surprised at how similar I found the character of Doona was to myself,” Bae Suzy said during an interview with reporters at a cafe in Jung District, central Seoul, on Thursday. “We are similar in that we have both received attention as a K-pop idol. But we are also different — Doona has much more emotional ups and downs than I do.”

In “Doona!,” Suzy’s character Doona is a former idol who mysteriously and suddenly announces her retirement from the entertainment industry and goes into hiding at a share-house near a university. Doona meets a university student named Won-jun, played by Yang Se-jong, and forms a would-be friendship with him.

Actor Suzy [NETFLIX]

Doona is far from the perfect image of an idol, as she is constantly smoking a cigarette, swearing or angry at everyone around her. Playing such a character exhilarated Suzy, and the actor wanted to portray Doona’s loneliness through such aspects.

“When playing Doona, I wanted to express how she feels that she is very messed up,” Suzy said. “The smoking part is an element that shows how lonely and depressed Doona feels, and was very important. Playing the scenes where Doona is swearing and being unruly was very fun and exhilarating for me.”

Although Doona does not explicitly state her desire for a “normal life,” it is clear in the series that the character wants that kind of life — away from the spotlight and attention. This also resonated with Suzy, according to the actor.

A scene from the Netflix series ″Doona!″ [NETFLIX]

“Doona wants normality very much, and she thinks of it as a big dream, and to me the word ‘normal’ also has a big meaning,” Suzy said. “This is also one of the similarities between the character and me. But for Doona, the normal life is a fantasy, while for me I would have lived well just by imagining it.”

When Suzy first received the script for “Doona!,” she went straight to Naver Webtoon to read the webtoon on which the series is based, and found the character to be very appealing.

“As I read the webtoon, I thought that the character had her own charm and that I could express something that I didn’t know that I had through her,” Suzy said. “Doona is very sensitive, has a lot of wariness against people and also has a lot of anger. I think I also have those traits, but I didn’t have a chance or place to show that. By playing Doona, I was able to finally express those things.”

A scene from the Netflix series ″Doona!″ [NETFLIX]

Suzy also had a lot of input in the characterization and details for the way Doona looks in the series, as she had also been active as a member of a girl group and has experience on stage.

“Doona’s styling in the series is very different from what I had done during my Miss A days, but I still had some suggestions about how the character should appear,” Suzy said. “For example, I suggested that her hair should be long and have thick bangs, as in the original webtoon.”

The parts in the Netflix series that particularly resonated with Suzy were when Doona receives malicious comments online — the actor has had nearly the exact same experiences, and while she said she does not feel fazed by them too much now, she remembers when such comments would hurt her.

Actor Suzy [NETFLIX]

“When Doona acts cool and unaffected by the negative comments about her, I felt like I wanted to hug her,” Suzy said. “Doona’s heart is burnt like the burnt cookie they show alongside in the scene, and I empathized a lot with that. But I admit also that I am less affected by negative comments about myself nowadays.”

Suzy has been seeing new highs in her career since her leading role in the Coupang Play series “Anna” (2022), for which she received the Best Actress awards at the Blue Dragon Series Awards and the Director’s Cut Awards. While she said she was surprised with such good reviews, Suzy was also uncomfortable receiving those awards.

“I know that I still have a long way to go with my acting, so I was unsettled when I received those awards,” Suzy said. “I have always approached acting with the same attitude and goal, so I think I was uncomfortable when suddenly I was praised for it. But now I think that I should stop denying the good responses that I have been getting and feel more confident in myself.”

To find out more about Suzy, visit Celeb Confirmed!

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]