AO Exclusive: Ahn Hyo Seop talks about his love for fans, and career overview, during his BENCH press conference

It was a splendid Saturday as Ahn Hyo Seop spent the afternoon for a quick BENCH press conference ahead of his upcoming Manila fan meeting. 

Thanks to BENCH, the country’s leading fashion and lifestyle brand, they brought in South Korea’s well-loved actor, Ahn Hyo Seop. The actor entered the hall sporting a white tee from Bench Better Made, an eco-friendly collection from the brand. After posing for a photo call with the press, the conference began, headed by the lovely host, Sam Oh.

His very first fan meeting

Ahn Hyo Seop’s first visit to Manila will definitely be a memorable one for him. This stop is included for his very first fan meeting across Asia. Titled as <THE PRESENT SHOW> here and now. The actor shared that he participated in conceptualizing the title. He explained that including the tagline “here and now” would allude to his fans’ belief that their happiness is right here and now with Ahn Hyo Seop.

Having visited Taipei, Bangkok, Jakarta, and Hong Kong, Hyo Seop looks forward to finally meeting his Filipino fans for the very first time. As an actor, he shared that there are times that he is still in denial that he has some fans supporting him across the globe. Thankfully, this fan meeting will prove that his fans are indeed real and existing!

Collaborating with BENCH

For Hyo Seop, joining BENCH’s amazing lineup of Global BENCH Setters is a huge honor for him. Given the brand’s amazing history in the fashion industry, it gave him an opportunity to wear various outfits that suit his preferences. 

He’s happy to share that the clothes from Bench are comfortable enough that he can wear them at home or sometimes when he goes out too!

“I want people to know that I’m comfortable with my clothes, and the clothes from BENCH are comfortable; that’s why I love wearing BENCH.” 

Ahn Hyo Seop

From his collection, Hyo Seop picked the men’s bomber jacket as one of the comfortable pieces he wore during the shoot. With various shirts he’s tried on, he really can’t pick one because they are all easy to style! It is safe to assume that Hyo Seop loves all the pieces in his collection!

Onto his acting career

Moving on to the press conference, Hyo Seop delightedly answered some questions from the media present. Luckily, Team Annyeong Oppa was able to ask him a question! 

We asked Ahn Hyo Seop what made him say yes to his role as Kang Tae-mu in his widely acclaimed series, Business Proposal, and what challenges he encountered while doing it. He answered that it was difficult to act as the proud and arrogant Kang Tae-mu. Since his character portrayed a cold CEO, it took him some time to adjust. Though we can all agree that his role as Kang Tae-mu successfully stole our hearts, right? 

On top of it, Hyo Seop mentioned that he is open to trying on various roles that look his age. He’s very adamant about portraying high school roles, as he thinks those roles don’t suit him anymore. He’s also open to trying various genres, but of all the genres he’s worked on, he wanted to work on another romantic-comedy drama again.

Hyo Seop particularly mentioned that he enjoyed working on Business Proposal. If there’s an offer for him to work on another romantic-comedy drama, no doubt he’ll positively consider it!

Deep appreciation for his fans

If there’s one thing that Hyo Seop’s particularly appreciated during this press conference, it would be his deep appreciation and consideration for his fans. As mentioned earlier, he was actually not confident that his fans existed. Thankfully, through his fan meeting, he’s slowly realizing that his fans are real!

One asked Hyo Seop, what keeps him grounded. Everyone was surprised by his answer and simply put, it was thanks to his fans. Whenever he receives and reads the fan letters from his fans, he’s deeply moved by their words. Hyo Seop couldn’t believe that through his works, he could influence someone! Hyo Seop gathers all the support from his fans as motivation for him to keep going in the industry and to repay the love he’s received through his work.

Through his fan meeting, he’s looking forward to spreading some love and receiving love from his Filipino Paul-jjaks.

Don’t worry, Paul Ahn; you’re very welcome to visit our country any time you’d like.

Special thanks to Bench for inviting us!

Meanwhile, you can shop Ahn Hyo Seop’s collection online here.

All photos courtesy of BENCH.