Meet Sang Heon Lee, the breakout star of K-Drama ‘XO, Kitty’

Sang Heon Lee
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

From the moment he made his entry in Netflix’s XO, Kitty, to the beats of popular K-pop band Seventeen’s chart-topper ‘Hot’ last month, Sang Heon Lee aka Min Ho,paved his way to the popularity charts.

The undeniable breakout star from the ensemble cast of the spin-off from Jenny Han’sTo All the Boys film series has emerged as showbiz’s latest poster boy who amassed more than two million Instagram followers just days after the show’s premiere.

The series follows Kitty Song Covey, who, in an effort to reunite with her first love Dae (Choi Min Young), moves to South Korea from the USA on an exchange-student programme, at the same boarding school attended by her mother. Little does she realise there are several misadventures in love and life which await her.

In an exclusive interview over a Zoom call from Los Angeles, where he is currently based, Sang Heon, 27, confesses being surprised by the overwhelming response to his acting debut in XO, Kitty. “As a person, I am very skeptical. People told us there is a fan base already based on past movies, so when the show came out I was like ‘let’s hope for the best’. Thankfully, people loved it.”

Character shuffle

Sang Heon is overtly nice, a stark departure from the covert character MinHo, the quintessential arrogantly haughty, self-assured ‘cool guy’ who keeps his soft side guarded. Playing the skincare obsessed Min Ho, who dislikes Kitty (Anna Cathcart), the actor confesses he shared an affinity with his screen character.

“Min Ho was the character I chose to audition for. He sounded fun, and it’s always nice to play someone who might be different from you. I sensed Min Ho, beneath his flashy and overconfident exterior, was just reaching out for love. I wanted to show his vulnerability, and the many layers he has to himself,” says the actor whose sister Gia Kim (who also stars in the show as Yuri Han) urged him to audition for XO Kitty. “I got cast before the others, and was hoping Gia makes it too. We didn’t have too many scenes together, and if there were clashes, we would handle it professionally and just hug it out at home.”

The cast of ‘XO, Kitty’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

The culture debate

Having said that, the actor shares a different point of view when it comes to the mixed reactions XO, Kitty has garnered from a certain section of the Korean audience on the unrealistic portrayal of Korea and its culture.

“It is ironic the way people reacted, especially Koreans living in Korea. Some thought the show was too corny, but we took some of those references from existing K-dramas. If you say it is cliched, it is from your source. So where is the double standard coming from?,” he says, adding, “People thought this show was made for Koreaboo’s (non-Koreans obsessed with Korean culture), but I think we showed enough Korean culture, background, and sights and sounds of Seoul. People should lighten up instead of being such critics.”

Sang Heon Lee in a still from the show

Future plans

Though Sang Heon has no plans to do another K-drama right now, he is open to the opportunity. For now, he is looking forward to his next release, Gran Tourismo — a true-life action-adventure racing car drama starring Orlando Bloom, Djimon Hounsou, and Gerri Halliwell. “The storyline is amazing. You wonder if players from the video game console actually take their skills on a real race track,” says the rock climbing enthusiast, who hopes to be part of a documentary or a film that revolves around the sport.

Though XO, Kitty, ended on a major cliffhanger with Min Ho confessing his feelings to Kitty, who in turn is conflicted about her feelings for Yuri, Sang Heon reveals he is as curious as everybody else on how Season 2 will pan out.

XO, Kitty is now streaming on Netflix