Interview with HaHa + Running Man Cast on 'Run, Brother'

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Viewers at home see the funny aspect of South Korea’s most popular variety show, but a different story takes place when the camera stops rolling.

It's almost noon, and Running Man member Ha Dong-hoon is caught up in a ridiculously tight schedule. We’ve just wrapped up an exclusive interview at a confidential location in bustling Kuala Lumpur, and the man – better known by his stage name HaHa – has to rush to a mall for an autograph session.

“Do you want a selca (selfie)?” he asks in his signature raspy voice. A female member in his entourage is about to protest when he retorts: “Aish, gwaenchanh-a. Gwaenchanh-a.” (Aish, it’s okay. It’s okay.”)

This generous query betrays his image as an A-list hallyu star. It’s also one that would prompt cynics to think it as a ploy, used by celebrities, to detract those who dabble in entertainment journalism from professional objectivity.

The thing about the Seoul native though, is that he isn’t your conventional Korean wave celebrity. Sure, the notorious restrictions affiliated with the republic’s entertainment scene still stands (like how only a handful of questions were approved after a vetting process prior to the interview).

But even when the hard-hitting questions which weren’t pre-approved are successfully sneaked in, he happily answers without hesitation. The entertainer also obliges, when I politely ask him to remove his dark sunglasses – much to the chagrin of his public relations manager – for the photography session.

If anything, talking to the 35-year-old feels like talking to a hyung (a honorific term for “older brother”, as addressed by younger men). He tries to drop some Korean pop culture references during our chat, although some of those analogies are probably lost in the halting translations provided by his earnest friend Jay, who has accompanied him.

But then again, this kind of affable demeanour is what makes the Running Man franchise so appealing in the first place. The cast are endearing and relatable in a way that put the people-friendly theatrics of elected officials to shame.

Since its inception in 2010, the urban reality series has captivated viewers across the region with its winning brew of slapstick humour and zany antics.

“It still feels like a miracle every day. When I joined the show, I didn’t expect it to be this big. I’m really appreciative of people’s response towards Running Man,” says HaHa, whose moniker comes from the repetition of his surname.

The series sees HaHa and other regular members – Yoo Jae-suk, Kim Jong-kook, Lee Kwang-soo, Kang Gary, Song Ji-hyo and Ji Suk-jin – travelling all over South Korea to perform special missions in a treasure hunt fashion. Week after week, the cast performs incredulous acts and exchange lively banters with the prominent guests who grace the show.

That is, of course, what viewers who watch the show in glee from the comforts of their homes see. What happens behind the scenes though, tells an entirely different story.

“The filming of the show is rather tough at times, especially for Suk-jin hyung who (at 48) is the oldest in the group. But there are many people who love what we do, so there’s no way we can slack off,” he reveals.

“The show is all about physical activities. But during the filming of certain scenes, the members including myself, do get hurt and suffer from injuries. If you take a look at our bodies, you’ll find scars,” HaHa divulges as he pulls up the hem of his black pants to show me some healing wounds on his shins.

“When that happens, we just take painkillers, put on a smile and do the scene all over again. The members console each other because the camera has to keep rolling,” he adds.

After a brief pause, he finally says: “I love being a part of Running Man. All of us do. Eventually, the thought of our audience helps push us through any obstacles.”

Perhaps the infectious chemistry amongst the members is the result of this shared hardship. On screen, the ensemble comes across like a tight-knit family.

“Our relationship is the same with or without the camera. Sometimes, we eat and drink together at my restaurant. Occasionally, we go to the spa and sauna together,” the new father shares (he and his singer wife Byul welcomed a son named Dream, in July last year).

With such amazing kinship, it’s only natural that HaHa answers, “The Running Man members”, when probed about his role models.

“There’s something to learn from each and every one of them. Jae-suk hyung for his leadership qualities, Jong-kook hyung for his healthy lifestyle, Suk-jin hyung’s caring manner, Kwang-soo’s kindness...,” he says, before adding with a laugh, “and Ji-hyo’s strength!”

Born in Berlin, Germany, HaHa’s journey to fame hasn’t always been rosy. The earlier days of his career were plagued by a failed singing venture.

It took years of moderately successful television appearances before he finally found global recognition through Running Man. In addition to being on the show today, he is also forging a reggae music trail back in his native country.

His arduous climb to popularity is testament of the make-it-or-break-it nature of show business.

The multi-faceted entertainer’s success story does warrant the question, despite objection from the public relations person: What is that one important thing to know early on in the republic’s highly competitive entertainment scene?

“Sacrifice,” he answers as he stares intently into my eyes. A solemn expression briefly passes over his face before being replaced with a genuine smile.

He puts his heavily-tinted shades back on. It’s time to face the crowd again.


Running Man Cast appears on "Run, Brother".

Start at around 28mins for Running Man Cast entrance.


The Star | 奔跑吧兄弟&极速前进 Youtube Channel


Interesting article from HaHa. I wish they would do a behind the scenes Running Man special. | Who is AngelaBaby and why is she so annoying? I wanted to stop watching the 'Run, Brother' episode because of her. Thoughts about the RM appearance?

Comments

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

I didn't watch the episode, but jaesuk and haha talked a little about it on infinity challenge.

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Yeah. It's apparently in this (http://kshowonline.com/kshow/2535-[engsub]-infinity-challenge-ep.399) episode. (I haven't watched it yet...)

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

yes, the one with the hidden camera.
I don't remember exactly what they said, but I think there was something about the chinese cast flying with private jets. lol

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I watched it (happens around 20 minutes I think?) Chartered jets, something about 300 people (crew members?), and that they weren't respectful but "confident" to the RM cast (which to me translates as cocky, I guess. :( ) YJS tried to turn it around saying that the cast promised the directors that they will succeed (as a program) and YJS agreed with them.

Oh to have been a fly on the wall during that conversation (since I know some was cut out)...

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

me too! jaesuk seems to be a super polite man with and without camera so I was surprised to see him talking this. made me think how much more "confident" they were for real...

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Right? Like he is one of the most polite and positive people I have ever seen...so for him to be a bit negative it must have been really bad.

[fullmoon-secret.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't doubt that to be honest.

Because although both Korea and China follow Confucius ideas, Korea is so much bigger in regard to respect toward sunbae-nim, all the bowing and general etiquette toward sunbae-nim in anything is held in higher regard than in China.
Not saying that Chinese are not respectful, but they just generally don't go the whole length like Koreans, and it's funny how some Chinese Kpop artists get praised with being super "polite" while working in China because they were so ingrained with all the respectful etiquette they learn in Korea.

[leighbee333.livejournal.com]

Kinda OT, but during that hidden camera meal (the only part of the episode I watched) why were they counting the number of English and Japanese words used, in addition to the expletives, and calling them "inappropriate," lol?

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

It was a Hangeul day special and they had just done a segment where some of the cast complained about the slang the "kids nowadays" use. So they were doing that to show them that they didn't even use Hangeul correctly

[leighbee333.livejournal.com]

Ahh, I see, thanks!

[domokuniscute.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad someone posted the Run Brother X RM nametag battle! Angelababy is definitely on par with the more annoying female guests... I wanted to poke her with a fork and was just hoping Jihyo would just destroy her (spoiler: it didn't happen they let her whine through the end). I give her props for doing research on RM and stuff though.

I must say, the variety-centric Korean entertainment has really made the RM members so much better at banter, gestures, etc, you could tell they were trying to make it more inclusive with the China team and trying to crack jokes, KS and SJ especially.

The interview was also really nice, pretty good writing it was overall very objective and clear!

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

I agree that that if it were a showdown between the girls that Jihyo would kick her butt. I don't know why they (Running Man cast) let her whine through the end because to me it made it for an anti-climactic ending. (I was like, REALLY? This is how it's going to end?) Still though, I sent my sisters a text at the beginning of the episode that I would seriously cry if Running Man team lost so I am glad they got the win at least.

SJ was hilarious in this episode. I am glad he got some screen time in his battle of the weakest.

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

running man will always have a special place in my heart. they filled the empty space that family outing left and gave me so many memorable moments and guests (can we talk how AMAZING park ji sung and gong yoo were?!)

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

I only started watching the program this past summer and it has filled a black hole in my heart that I didn't know existed. Park Ji Sung is just adorable...and don't get me started on Gong Yoo. The depths of my love (which were already vast) plunged to new levels after that episode. I have seen it so many times...and I just cannot get over how funny and adorable he was the entire time. Marry me please, Gong Yoo.

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

I LOVE when actors who don't usually go to variety appear. jo in sung at 2d1n, so ji sub at infinity challenge...

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Jo In Sung is adorable (I need to use another word...ummm.....but nothing comes to mind...oops). I need for him to appear on Running Man. I was SOOOO disappointed that the cast of "It's Okay, That's Love" didn't do an appearance. Such a missed opportunity!

[mlmello.livejournal.com]

it'd be funny for him and jihyo lol

[shabirah.livejournal.com]

maybe she will just silently avoid interacting with him, like the episode with Joo Jihoon :P

[illustratedd.livejournal.com]

Lol angelababy. The guys in my class used to love her

[charlieu.livejournal.com]

Is Run Brother the Chinese spin off of Running Man? I'm kind of sad to hear that Angelababy is annoying, cause I always found her super hot.

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Yes, it is. It may be just to me that she's annoying since the cutesy/girly routine makes me roll my eyes...? Try watching it because it sincerely may be me. LOL.

[charlieu.livejournal.com]

I can't find captions for it. I can understand Korean though. Is that enough to follow?

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

I don't understand Korean or Chinese and I was able to follow most of it. Actually the common language in some parts was English...but it's running man and there are people who caption gifs of the episode on Tumblr that helped fill things in too so you should be in pretty good shape!

[charlieu.livejournal.com]

lol Angelababy definitely used being a female to her advantage. While it didn't annoy me personally, I prefer Song Jihyo's personality as it doesn't really put a weird stop to the game so the guys can unnecessarily cater to her. They definitely go easier on Jihyo too, but not to the extent where it just ends up dragging on so long for no reason.

[darlinglili.livejournal.com]

Angelababy is just that way, haha.

I am kind of disappointed the China team even lasted that long against them. I thought it would be a short game.

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Personally, I could tell that RM team were taking it easy on RB team. For most of the time I wondered where Gary and Haha were (since especially Gary didn't come out until the last half) and then towards the end they were both teamed up against. (Which had me side eying things a bit...) But whatever, I'm just glad that they won.

[darlinglili.livejournal.com]

Now that you mention it, I was slightly suspicious too... Guess if it was really planned they were just trying to save the RB team some face.

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Also, the other thing that stuck me as odd is that for 'Run, Brother' having such a big budget, the t-shirts are HORRIBLE. They rip/tear so easily in the name tag races. I rarely see Running Man clothing tear, let alone to poor shreds like KJK's shirt at the end of the episode. (And it was even worse in his solo appearance in 'Run, Brother''s first episode.)

[darlinglili.livejournal.com]

Right?? Maybe they were spending more on other things, not sure what. Or they wanted it to tear easily lol. Gives it an intense animalistic feeling, maybe.

[mikachanyo.livejournal.com]

i seems like on RM they have like bulk brand clothes given to them or something.. like I've seen them wearing FUBU ..while on run, brother the shirts seem to be made for the show.

[charlieu.livejournal.com]

It looks like they played before too. Did they meet on the Korean version or Chinese version before? And this isn't the first episode of RB, right?

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

Yes, this was their 5th (?) episode of Run, Brother...and Jong Kook came on the first (or second) episode for the name tag tearing race. Other than that, this was their first meeting of the entire cast.

[agentgoodnight.livejournal.com]

It makes a bit angry that (if the reports were true) the Chinese cast were so disrespectful/rude to the Korean cast. Especially since, as far as I can tell, Running Man is an assemblage of some of the genuinely nicest people in showbiz (YJS above all). I hope it wasn't true, or just a misunderstanding.

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

In above comments mimello and I briefly discuss this. It seems to be true from the comments Haha and YJS made in a hidden camera segment of Infinity Challenge. Their comments were "tame" (at least in translation) but you could tell that there were deeper implications...especially if YJS was negative you knew it had to be bad.

[prlsb4swiine.livejournal.com]

Yep... I definitely got a negative vibe too but then they covered it up with the "oh they had a hard working attitude"
but seriously that hidden camera was the best... also cemented yoo-nim as the nicest person in the world

[modernelegance.livejournal.com]

He seriously is the absolute nicest/sweetest person I have ever seen anywhere...let alone the entertainment industry.

[love-allure.livejournal.com]

i saw that episode! i thought both were complimenting the cast honestly. saying the members told the director they'll work hard and saying the scale is something they can't compete with.

[prlsb4swiine.livejournal.com]

As a RM fan since day 1... this interview broke my heart. Throughout four years I've been watching them get hurt and injured and scared and keep doing what they have to do to make the show entertaining and this is the first time one of them has spoken about it. Wish there was a way to tell them how much we love and support them. :'(
(I also have problems with the adrenaline-junkie type extreme turn the show has taken that drains my precious rm babies... but that's a rant for another time)

[love-allure.livejournal.com]

lol @ kwangsoo's video message & demeanor to angelababy.
lol @ ysk's regular camera guy going to angelababy's team.
lol @ rm cast wanting a glimpse of angelababy.

dangit i wish there were subs for this. i can only understand the few korean snippets. and someone tell me who the guy is at 35:33 in the video please.

[shocko-o.livejournal.com]

Actor Lin Geng Xin.

I don't know more about him, as I don't follow Chinese ent. and have only heard his name here and there.

[love-allure.livejournal.com]

thank you~♥

[ginnystar.livejournal.com]

He played 14th Prince Yinti in Bu Bu Jing Xin (a fantasy period romance) and broke my wee heart. It's the only thing I've seen him in but I loved him in it.

[love-allure.livejournal.com]

scarlet heart right? i came across that drama and the sequel when i googled him. i want to check out the first one but nah @ the second one. i read the plot summary and i was on board with it until the doppelganger part. lol now i just need saturday to come so i can start watching!@@@!!

[ginnystar.livejournal.com]

yessss, basically one of the most amazing cdramas I have ever watched in my entire life. ❤❤❤ Please bring tissues, it fucks up your tear ducts. I haven't watched the sequel either - it sounds awful plot wise and too blatant a cash grab. Who wants to watch a sequel if half the cast that charmed the heck out of you aren't even in it anymore?

[shocko-o.livejournal.com]

nooo kwon ryul left running man? and lol @ the ripped shirts. and the English. "Angela! Can you photo with me?" Sukjin hyung's Chinese is pretty good.

I'm not surprised at the result, but the Chinese team held off pretty long.
And I don't find Angelababy annoying, just that she acted a bit overly cute.

[buttrflykis31.livejournal.com]

im glad they got to battle the china team. i havent seen them take a name tag battle this seriously in a while, since their guests are usually weaker actors anyway... but to have them up against another team that trains for the same thing, is awesome!

agree with the angela girl being super annoying though! i did expect them to either pit jihyo against her or let her whine until the end though... since the guys usually dont take the girls out until last anyway.

the best part was the SJ battle though~ im so proud of him, haha ^_^ and Haha was pretty funny with his little gag routine too~