'You Quiz' Eum Moon-seok recalls the last moment with his father and sheds tears

Actor Um Moon-seok appeared on tvN’s ’You Quiz on the Block’ and shed tears while recalling his last moments with his father. Um Moon-seok revealed the process of establishing himself as an actor after 19 years of being unknown. He originally dreamed of becoming a dancer and moved to Seoul at the age of 16, living in practice rooms, subway stations, and friends’ houses. At that time, his income was almost nothing; even after broadcasting all day, he earned only 5,000 won, and he lived on ramen for 330 days. He mentioned an episode when his father came to Seoul and handed him bills mixed with 1,000 and 5,000 won as emergency money, saying that moment made him resolve to become tougher. He was active under the dance team name SIC, but his unknown life continued. At 30, he challenged ’Dancing 9’ and won second place, but he gradually faded from memory afterward. Dissatisfied with his appearance on stage, he began learning acting and made a mark on the public by winning the Best New Actor award for the SBS drama ’The Fiery Priest.’ His father was diagnosed with obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer while Um Moon-seok was filming ’The Fiery Priest’ and passed away in 2022. Um Moon-seok said that after his father was diagnosed, they took a family trip every year. Recalling his father’s final moments, he said, ″I was by my father’s side when he passed away. He was in the terminal stage of cancer and was on narcotic painkillers, so he was not fully conscious. When I briefly went to the bathroom, my father looked at me clearly. I said, ’Dad, it’s okay now, right?’ After I said that, he took three breaths and passed away.″ He continued, ″I told my father, ’Mom and sister will take care of things, so don’t worry and rest peacefully.’ When I came outside and shed tears, I stopped crying when I saw my mother and sister crying.″ He also said, ″Just my father’s presence was reassuring. Now that I am the head of the family, I promised myself, ’You are an adult now. Focus. You have to keep the promise you made to your father.’″ He also broke down while mentioning a recent dream about his father. Um Moon-seok shared an anecdote about his casting in the movie ’Hope,’ saying that an article came out immediately after the offer, which surprised the production team. He said Jo In-sung took care of him during the ’Hope’ stage greeting. About his acting, he humbly said, ″It is overrated. I’m not that good.″ Um Moon-seok talked about his experience of buying a mattress as a gift after moving into his first one-room apartment, saying, ″When I came home and lay down, I thought, ’Is it okay for me to be this comfortable?’ From now on, I will live without worrying about others’ opinions.″