Lee Jun-hyuk: On finding purpose, taking risks and The Ordinary Jackpot

Lee Jun-hyuk’s says the series reflects familiar office tensions. The actor adds that he plans to keep acting and creating new content

South Korean actor Lee Jun-hyuk has become the unlikely torchbearer for a kinder workplace. He charmed audiences as the competent secretary to his workaholic boss in Love Scout (2025). This time, he earns his stripes as the sales executive who redraws power equations after his lottery win in “The Ordinary Jackpot.”

Lee Jun-hyuk: On finding purpose, taking risks and The Ordinary Jackpot

Breaking away from the current slew of Korean workplace romances, CJ ENM’s The Ordinary Jackpot explores corporate dynamics, workplace hierarchies and burnout, asking what happens when an unexpected windfall frees you from the need to work.

In an exclusive conversation with HT City, Lee Jun-hyuk shares that his inspiration was Clint Eastwood’s directorial venture Sully, starring Tom Hanks.

“I tend to get bored easily, and I’m always looking to try something new. I’m a fan of the film Sully: Miracle on the Hudson, which asks what kind of miracle can happen when everyone does the right thing. After spending so much time working to clean up society, I began to wonder what kind of role models and vision we should look toward next. Around that time, this project came along and seemed like the answer to my question.”

An adaptation of a popular web novel of the same title, the show features Lee Jun-hyuk as Gong Eun-tae, the youngest team leader at an apparel company. A diligent worker who has turned hopeless situations around, only to earn the contempt of older colleagues and being inadvertently drawn into office politics.

However, an unexpected lottery win makes the burned-out manager richer by US$1 million — a dream nurtured by every office worker at some point in life. The windfall is an opportunity to escape institutional shackles, instead he decides to go back, as if nothing has changed. With a renewed purpose to push back against the very problems suffocating him and his colleagues. The monetary win is his psychological shield, allowing him to take risks he would not have otherwise.

“I think Eun-tae is someone with a strong core when it comes to his work. Money didn’t change him so much as give him the breathing room to find the courage to act. I think there are aspects of workplace culture and his way of thinking I could relate to through my own work. I’ve worked continuously for 20 years and taken part in around 50 projects, and I continue to work hard. One cannot bank on one win, and Eun-tae knows that too.. There were things I could identify with. From an acting perspective, I’ve played many strongly characterized roles, and often had to use exaggerated energy to fill out the character. This time I was able to bring more of myself into the role for the first time. It was fun to play the boss, so to speak, and follow the rhythm of my fellow cast members, who are all excellent actors. It was a process of exchanging subtle differences in movement and emotion.”

While Eun-tae has risen through the ranks, his colleague Yang Joon-ho has been passed over for a promotion and is stuck in a role with little room for growth. Played by Seo Hyun-woo (Behind Every Star), the moody assistant manager shares an on-screen dynamic with Eun-tae that brings another dimension to the show’s workplace politics. The two actors team up seven years after working together on the thriller The Lies Within.

“We didn’t share any scenes in The Lies Within. However, we monitored each other’s scenes and heard updates from the set, which gave me the impression that he was an actor who approached his work with great seriousness and sensitivity. I was looking forward to the relationship our characters would develop. I was surprised by how well our approaches to acting complemented each other. We were able to bring out the finer details in each other’s performances, creating a synergy that made the process fulfilling.”

Talking about their on-screen synergy, Seo Hyun-woo points out: “Rather than focusing on the emotional aspects of frustration, resentment, jealousy, or dissatisfaction, I think I gave more thought to how the relationship between Assistant Managers Yang and Gong could function effectively within the story. He approaches Eun Tad with a sense of detachment and discomfort. Ultimately, I wanted to leave room for viewers to see Assistant Manager Yang as someone who is also a victim of the work politics.”

Popular workplace dramas such as “Misaeng”, “ Law and the City”, and “Typhoon Family", have reflected real-world struggles while exploring personal growth and professional evolution. Lee Jun-hyuk points out that, despite cultural differences, the universal appeal of “The Ordinary Jackpot” lies in its grounded portrayal of workplace realities.

“I think it’s the feeling of being caught between your superiors and your team members. Situations in which someone is young but holds a senior position, or a more experienced colleague has a lower rank, can probably be found in workplaces in any country. We had similar dynamics on our own set, so I think the human emotions that arise in those situations are not so different from what office workers experience. I also think it’s universal for people who work together to recognise, just by looking into each other’s eyes, how hard things have been for one another.”

At 42, Lee Jun-hyuk, who began his acting career in supporting roles in 2007, stepped into the spotlight with leading roles in popular shows such as Strangers, Naked Fireman, A Poem a Day and Vigilante. The actor will be next seen in “Awakening”, an occult exorcism set in the examination halls. How does he define his choices at this stage in his career?

“I tend to choose new genres. My next project, Awakening, is also one for which there are no existing references to draw on. I boldly took on the occult genre, only to realise that it’s no easy task. Even if the final result isn’t a perfect 100 out of 100, I still want to tell stories that haven’t been told before. I enjoy taking on roles that feel completely different from one another. It helps me understand how much effort goes into each kind of work, which is very humbling.”

As K-drama audiences continue to grow in India, with the storylines and characters increasingly resonating beyond the screen, Lee Jun-hyuk describes the prospect of reaching viewers across borders as an incredible feeling.

“My daily life consists almost entirely of working and watching films, so it’s hard to fully grasp that something I’ve made can reach people in a distant country. The feelings of hope we tried to convey with this… where everyone across borders can understand that each of their jobs is meaningful and admirable, is something which delights me.”

His co-star Seo Hyun-woo says he would like to take a shot at Indian films as well.

“I’d like to make a serious noir film that incorporates both singing and dancing. I think it would be fascinating to move between such extreme levels of intensity and sheer enjoyment.”

So, if they were to hit the jackpot, what would be the first thing on the actor’s to do list? Seo Hyun-woo jokingly shares, “I’m not sure what I would buy right away, but I wouldn’t tell my parents,” while Lee Jun-hyuk reveals that he would invest the money in creating content.

“I hardly spend money on myself and rarely even buy clothes. Recently, the things I’ve spent the most money on have been the development of the mobile game Hello Popcorn and the production of the music track Daisy. There are so many things I want to create, so I think I would put the money toward those projects even if I won the lottery. I imagine I would create some kind of content—and, of course, I would continue acting.”

The Ordinary Jackpot is streaming on Viki Rakuten.