FROM 'THE MANIPULATED' TO KUMUSTA': HOW JI CHANG WOOK IS CONVERTING NON-FANS

Right now, I could say that Ji Chang Wook is converting a majority of them.

- !hola MJ MARFORI

Ji Chang Wook is starring in a Filipino-Korean reality show on TV5, titled 'Kumusta,' together with Filipino stars Jodi Sta. Maria, Francine Diaz, Janella Salvador, Arci Munoz and Chef JP Anglo. - PHOTO FROM THE INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT OF DR. RALPH DELAS ALAS OF URBAN SMILES DENTAL CLINIC

(PHOTO FROM THE INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT OF DR. RALPH DELAS ALAS OF URBAN SMILES DENTAL CLINIC)

And the catalyst? His new Disney+ thriller “The Manipulated,” which is quietly yet quickly earning the reputation of being one of the best K-dramas of the year.

Fresh from charming Manila just a few weeks ago, Ji Chang Wook returns to our screens with yet another intense thriller.

This is proof that this Korean superstar has no intention of giving Filipino fans a break from the emotional whiplash.

“The Manipulated” has pushed him to the extreme: physically, emotionally and dramatically.

It’s a reminder of why he remains one of the most beloved oppas in the Philippines.

Ji Chang Wook doesn’t just act, he immerses. He breathes life into characters with the kind of sincerity that makes viewers feel every wound, every fear, every injustice.

And in this series, there’s a lot of injustice.

In “The Manipulated,” Ji Chang Wook plays Park Tae Joong, a model citizen who becomes a victim of a crime he did not commit. Accused, abused and emotionally dismantled, Tae Joong becomes the unlikely center of a dark conspiracy that turns his world upside-down.

When I asked him how he prepared for such a painful role, he answered thoughtfully, his calm demeanor contrasting the brutality of the character's journey.