Getting hurt on set can have long-lasting effects on actors, as Ma Dong-seok can attest.
The Korean-American actor, aka Don Lee, attended a press conference for his upcoming film The Roundup: No Way Out yesterday (May 24), reportedly his first in-person interview in four years.
He admitted to South Korean media that this was because he had “very bad luck with injuries”.
“I had an accident while working as an actor in South Korea,” he explained. “While I was filming overseas, a building collapsed and I fell six meters, breaking two vertebrae, my sternum, my ankle and half of my Achilles tendon.”
Admitting the situation could have been far worse, the 52-year-old credited his “strong bones” for surviving the incident.
Although Dong-seok did not specify which drama or movie he was filming when he was injured, it was previously reported that he had an accident on the set of the 2014 K-drama Bad Boys.
The Roundup: No Way Out is the third film in the film series in which Detective Ma Seok-do (Dong-seok) teams up with the Metropolitan Investigation team led by Jang Tae-soo (Lee Bum-soo).
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Their goal is to take down Joo Seong-cheol (Lee Joon-hyuk), the son of a wealthy businessman who has formed an alliance with Japanese gang members to commit heinous crimes throughout South Korea.
Dong-seok also told South Korean media that he has not been able to receive proper rehabilitation for his injuries over the past decade due to his busy schedule, and thus continues to suffer from the lasting effects of the accident.
“I also have panic disorder, so it’s not easy to fly,” he added. “In my case, it’s not panic disorder caused by depression, but the effects of autonomic nerve problems caused by a broken spine, so I couldn’t even breathe [properly] See you soon.”
He explained that his symptoms sometimes come on while he’s filming and he has to stop, another reason why he hasn’t given any personal interviews in four years.
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When asked why he didn’t reveal his ailments earlier, Dong-seok quipped, “Wouldn’t it be weird that as soon as I say ‘Hello,’ I’ll say, ‘I have no cartilage, no Achilles tendon, and I have panic disorder due to the effects of frequent injuries?”
Despite his injuries, Dong-seok added to South Korean media that it had always been his dream to be an action actor, having learned boxing as a child after watching the movie Rocky.
He explained, “I started boxing in middle school and coached athletes in middle school and high school. At the time I was working as a motorcycle deliveryman as a part-time job, but I had an accident one winter and broke my left shoulder and had to have two operations.”
Because of these injuries, Dong-seok added that he has trouble throwing balls or moving his arm backward. However, he cannot give up action roles.
“People have fun watching my movies, so I guess I’m glad that’s the case,” he laughed.
The Roundup: No Way Out will open in Singapore cinemas on June 22.
ALSO READ: ‘He wants to kill his brother but can’t stand others killing him’: Kim Bum on his roles and Lee Dong-wook in The Tale of the Nine Tails 1938
drimac@asiaone.com