‘Divorce Insurance’ lead stars share relationship advice

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MANILA, Philippines — What if love and marriage came with a safety net in the form of insurance? That’s the premise of “The Divorce Insurance,” the latest K-drama on Prime Video starring Lee Dong-wook, Lee Da-hee, Lee Kwang-soo and Lee Joo-been.

In this romantic comedy, Noh Ki-jun (Dong-wook) may have built for himself a successful career in insurance, but his love life is a liability, having gone through three divorces. Virtually penniless after his failed marriages, Ki-jun decides to come up with a divorce insurance product to “protect” people like him.

Kang Han-deul (Joo-been) is finally fed up and walking away from a problematic five-year marriage. Ready for a fresh start, she wants to leave quiet and timid self behind while taking a new job at Ki-jun’s company.

An Jeon-man (Kwang-soo), Ki-jun’s childhood friend and coworker, is also dealing with his own divorce. Though he won’t admit it, he gets more and more sold to Ki-jun’s idea of a divorce insurance.

Jeon Na-rae (Da-hee) has closed the door on marriage after her own divorce. But somehow, she becomes intrigued by Ki-jun’s past marriages and his plans for a one-of-a-kind insurance product.

“Divorce Insurance” is directed by Lee Won-seok (“Killing Romance” and “The Royal Tailor”) and written by Lee Tae-yoon (“Secret Royal Inspector”).

While the idea of a product that cushions the blows of a failed marriage may seem outrageous, it also prompted the stars to share their views on relationships and marriage during a virtual roundtable interview ahead of the show’s March 31 premiere. The series airs new episodes Monday and Tuesday nights.

When asked if they would purchase a real-life version of divorce insurance, the cast members offered mixed responses.

“For me, I answered yes because it would only make sense for me to answer yes since we are working on this show that revolves around the concept of divorce insurance,” quipped Dong-wook. “I don’t really know about the technicalities because I’ve never been married, but for now, I’d like to answer yes.”

Joo-been echoed his sentiment: “I answered yes because, as I was working on this show, I realized that if such a product really existed, rather than worrying about the risks of marriage, I would consider this product to be something that would protect me and my family and friends.”

However, Da-hee took a different stance. “I answered no, because I’m currently single. I think if I were married, I would have answered yes.”

Kwang-soo initially said no but had a change of heart. “As I was working on the show, I came to realize that whatever choice you make, marriage or divorce, it all has to lead up to your happiness.”

Considering how their characters deal with the complexities of love, commitment and separation, what advice would they give in real life?

Da-hee told The STAR: “Don’t go all-in on your marriage. I don’t think it’s right to give up everything, because there are other very important parts of your life other than marriage.”

Joo-been, on the other hand, took a more romantic take: “I think Han-deul, the character that I played, would say, don’t be wary of others. Just follow your heart.”

Kwang-soo advised, “I think if Jeon-man were to give a piece of advice, he would say, don’t overdo it with the interior in your house.”

Dong-wook had a practical approach: “If Ki-jun were to give any piece of advice regarding relationships, he would say, think of the amount of alimony that you would have to pay.”

If given the chance, which characters would they like to play instead of their own?

Dong-wook said he was drawn to Da-hee’s role: “I would like to play the character Jeon Na-rae played by Da-hee, because she doesn’t really hold things inside. She’s really outspoken and straightforward and direct, and she says all the right things every time.”

Kwang-soo shared the same thought. “I would like to play Na-rae as well because she is the highest up amongst us in the office, and I’ve never played a higher-up like an executive vice president, so I would like to play Na-rae.”

Joo-been had a different pick. “I would like to play Ki-jun because the fact that he has been married three times is very interesting and fascinating to me.”

Da-hee, on the other hand, wanted to play Kwang-soo’s role. “I would like to play Jeon-man played by Kwang-soo because he just said that he would like to play my role, but Jeon-man doesn’t really do what he’s told. He just runs his race and really doesn’t care. That was why I, as Na-rae, was more annoyed by him, so I would like to switch roles and annoy him.”

Noticeably though, one of the best parts of “Divorce Insurance” is the camaraderie among its stars. This was only a virtual chat but their chemistry was evident on screen and from their answers, even more so off-camera.

“Yeah, so all of my castmates, they’re so much more seasoned and experienced than me,” admitted Joo-been. “I’m the youngest of the group, and it’s my first time playing a lead character like this, so I was a little worried at first. But they helped me along so well.”

Dong-wook agreed, saying, “I think everybody who was part of the production, not just us, but every single member of the cast and the crew… they were such good-hearted, kind-hearted people who were very considerate and supportive of others.”

But it seemed that the secret to their strong bond on set had a lot to do with food. “I think one of the secrets to this great chemistry is the fact that Dong-wook buys us dinner all the time and treats us to a lot of great food with his own money,” revealed Da-hee.

“If we go filming in other regions, he would try and look up the best restaurants there to buy us dinner,” added Kwang-soo.

Joo-been also shared: “This one time, I lost a bet and had to treat everybody to dinner, but when I went to pay, I realized that Dong-wook had gone ahead and paid before I could.”

Meanwhile, “Divorce Insurance” was a long-awaited reunion for Kwang-soo and Da-hee after working together in the hit Korean variety show “Running Man.”

“While we were filming on set, it felt just as if we were filming ‘Running Man,’” Lee Da-hee shared.

“We hadn’t seen each other in a while, but then again, it didn’t seem awkward at all to be around him, and the chemistry was just as great.”