Lee Jun Ho is taking on his first fantasy romance role since debut in tvN’s upcoming drama Embassy of the Otherworld in Korea.
The production team confirmed on July 23 that Lee Jun Ho and Hong Hwa Yeon will lead the new romantic comedy.
Embassy of the Otherworld in Korea follows a rookie human diplomat who is accidentally assigned to a secret embassy responsible for managing supernatural beings living in South Korea. Her new boss appears to be an ambassador, but his true identity is a dragon.
The embassy helps beings from another world, including haechi, mermaids, and nine-tailed foxes, live peacefully alongside humans.
Lee Jun Ho will play Cha Yeon, the dragon who leads the mysterious diplomatic office. As a water deity, he can be calm and gentle, but his emotions can also become powerful enough to shake mountains.
Cha Yeon has remained on the same land for more than 1,000 years, living a quiet and lonely life. His routine begins to change when a human with a much shorter lifespan unexpectedly enters his world.
The role marks Lee Jun Ho’s first time playing a nonhuman character. He previously showed his range across historical romance, romantic comedy, youth drama, and superhero projects through The Red Sleeve, King the Land, Typhoon Family, and Cashero.
Hong Hwa Yeon will star opposite him as Go Mi Woo, a newly appointed human diplomat. The character is a former Asian Games gold medalist in archery who unexpectedly receives a position at an embassy where humans are normally not allowed.
Hong Hwa Yeon first gained wider attention after earning her role in Buried Hearts through a 100-to-1 audition competition. She later appeared in Tastefully Yours, The Price of Confession, and Secret Audit.
The drama was created by Shin Ha Eun, the writer behind Hometown Cha Cha Cha and Love Next Door. It will be directed by Bae Hyun Jin, who worked on Big Mouth, Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow, and Hierarchy.
By combining a modern diplomatic system with Korean fantasy creatures, Embassy of the Otherworld in Korea will introduce Lee Jun Ho and Hong Hwa Yeon as an unusual pair caught between the human and supernatural worlds.
