A drama version of the 2015 romance-melo film The Beauty Inside has been announced, and while that alone is enough to perk up my ears in interest, there’s also the added detail that the fantasy premise will swap genders for the drama. That is to say, while in the movie Han Hyo-joo was the woman who fell in love with the man who woke up in a new body every day, in the drama the heroine will be the body-swapper.
I’m both intrigued by this switch and a little wary, because I thought the film worked so well with the way it presented the problem. I went into the film expecting a light, fluffy romance but was pleasantly surprised to get something moving and introspective, and loved how the heroine fell for all the many different faces of the hero (which included Park Seo-joon, Chun Woo-hee, Lee Dong-wook, Lee Beom-soo, Ueno Juri, Go Ah-sung, Lee Jin-wook, and Yoo Yeon-seok). Moreover, I thought it was very realistic and thought-provoking the way that Han Hyo-joo also struggled and suffered with a lover who never looked the same, particularly when society essentially slut-shamed her for being with a different guy each time. I don’t think that kind of social commentary works quite as well with the gender reversal, though I’m willing to see what the drama does with it.
I do think the premise, whether featuring a man or a woman at the center, is something that could translate really well to drama form, and I’m particularly curious to see how they’ll handle the revolving door of actresses to play one person. And, of course, casting of the hero will be crucial to anchoring the whole thing. (Start up your fantasy-casting prayers now!)
Writing will be Im Meari, who has worked with writer Kim Eun-sook (The Lonely Shining Goblin) in the past; her credits include Descended From the Sun. The drama is currently in the casting process and is aiming for an early 2018 broadcast.
