Actor Koo Kyo-hwan is going viral for his pitch-perfect “enemies” chemistry with Oh Jung-se, landing the duo at the center of the buzz.
Premiering on the 18th, JTBC’s weekend K-drama We Are All Trying Here (hereafter 'We Are All Trying Here') follows Hwang Dong-man (played by Koo Kyo-hwan), a man consumed by jealousy and resentment as he alone struggles while all his talented friends seem to thrive.
In the series, Hwang Dong-man is an aspiring film director who has been stuck preparing his debut for 20 years. He desperately prays that the new film from his best friend, director Park Kyung-se (played by Oh Jung-se), who already has five releases under his belt, will flop—hard. Watching others succeed makes him boil, while watching them fail sends him into euphoria. The explosive push-and-pull between the unhinged Dong-man and Park Kyung-se—who literally shakes with rage at Dong-man’s petty provocations—is a key draw of 'We Are All Trying Here'.
Though they’re adults, their constant bickering is downright grade-school level—loud, petty, and hilariously messy—and it shows up every episode, driving the show’s fun. Things cross the point of no return when Dong-man gets banned from the group’s hideout by Go Hye-jin (played by Kang Mal-geum), the charismatic enforcer of the Eight, amping up his feud with Park Kyung-se.
After the broadcast, viewers reacted: “Is this drama just the two of them exchanging hate comments every week?”, “At this point, it’s love,” “This is legendary hate-chemistry,” and “Their fights are the best part.” The two actors’ electric synergy is winning rave reviews.
‘We Are All Trying Here’ airs Saturdays at 10:40 p.m. and Sundays at 10:30 p.m. KST on JTBC, and is also available on Netflix.