With the reality TV show “I Live Alone” enjoying a purple patch, the program’s real-life couple, Jun Hyun-moo and Han Hye-jin, opened up about their relationship at a press conference held Monday to mark the show’s fifth anniversary.

TV personality Jun Hyun-moo and fashion model Han Hye-jin admitted to the relationship at the end of last month, after news reports regarding the two surfaced. The two have been dating since Christmas.
 

“The best thing (about openly dating) is that we don’t have to hide. We have been hiding like we’ve done something wrong,” Jun said. “Also, the public’s attitude toward me has changed since then. It was the first time in my life that I heard someone was moved because of me.”

“Not much has changed. We act the same. But it’s the people who see us differently. Jun has mentioned our love story at various shows and told him to stop. People might be tired of listening to it,” Han said.

Starring in the show together for almost a year, the two stars got together while preparing a dance performance for the network’s year-end awards ceremony. Sharing the most memorable episode while shooting, Han chose hiking at Gwanaksan with Jun.

“I was in a situation where I earned money with Jun. He was nothing more, nothing less than a colleague who shoots a show with me,” she recalled. “After all this, I watched the episode again. I couldn’t fool myself. There was a sense of romantic emotion between Jun and me. Now I realize it.”

One of the most popular MBC shows, “I Live Alone” depicts the life of singles living alone. The weekly show’s realistic portrayals of celebrities have resonated with the young public, reaching an average viewership rating of 10 percent, a high rate for a local entertainment show.

“The show is said to be at its heyday,” producer Hwang Ji-young said. “Various cast members can feature through the program’s format. Showing how each cast member lives alone, we also feature how they become close like families.”

The show’s cast has changed in the past five years. Today, it consists of Jun, Han, actor Lee Si-eon, cartoonist Gian84, singer Henry and comedian Park Na-rae. Along with cast changes, the producer thinks that the show’s theme has changed as well over the years, responding to the changing norms of society. 

 
"When the show started five years ago, the overall sentiment was that living alone was somewhat pitiful. People asked, ‘Why don’t you marry?’ or ‘Why do you live alone?’ But the situation is different now,” she said. “Living alone is very natural. People live alone happily nowadays.”

The producer stressed that the show is all about the reality. Jun, who takes the role of “the leader” of the cast agreed with her.

“Appearing on many TV shows, I realized that viewers don’t respond to planned or calculated comedy. People seek aspects of documentary and reality on TV shows.”

“It is the process of persuading realness,” Hwang added.

“I Live Alone” airs every at 11:10 p.m. on Fridays on MBC.

Im Eun-byel (silverstar@heraldcorp.com)