Kim Hye-soo jokes she needs help with her love life — here's why

Actor Kim Hye-soo, 55, has opened up about her thoughts on romance — confessing that finding so much joy in conversations with fellow actors has left her surprisingly unbothered about not being in a relationship, and that this itself is her problem.

Kim shared her candid thoughts Thursday alongside cast members of the Coupang Play drama series "The Affair Was Just the Beginning" in a video titled "What's the real problem for those who say an affair isn't even a problem?!" published on the YouTube channel PDC by PDC.

Playing on the show's title, the cast took turns completing the phrase "My problem is ___." Kim was the first to speak up, and her answer was romance.

"The affair isn't the problem. My problem is my own love life," she said, drawing laughter. Fellow actor Jo Yeo-jeong responded, "That's very relatable," prompting Kim to ask, "Yeo-jeong, are you OK?" Jo shot back, "No, I'm not — that's why I said it's relatable," setting off a round of witty banter.

Kim explained that she had gradually become so absorbed in chatting with colleagues and friends that romance no longer felt like something she was missing. "At some point I got really into the fun of just talking with colleagues and female friends," she said. "So the problem is that I don't really feel like I'm missing out on romance."

She added that while people might be surprised to hear someone her age talk about dating, she believed romance was possible at any age. "When I talk with actors — men or women, older or younger, sunbae or not — I feel like that person is me and I am them, like we're moving in and out of each other's hearts, and I love that," she said. The connection she finds with colleagues now brings her more fulfillment than a romantic relationship would.

When the host joked that the entire country was rooting for Kim to find love, she laughed and replied, "Please don't root for it. Instead, help me — there are all sorts of ways, aren't there?"

Actor Kim Ji-hoon chimed in, saying he would "take applications," while actor Kim Jae-cheol encouraged anyone interested to "go ahead and shoot their shot, even if the answer might be no."

Meanwhile, when Kim Jae-cheol brought up an anecdote about receiving her help on a project six years ago, Kim offered a candid take on the acting profession. "To put it bluntly, an actor is a freelancer who gets paid to do a job," she said. "We are people who have to deliver in proportion to what we're paid. Being seen as a good person matters less than properly fulfilling the role you've been given."