[Herald Interview] Pleasantly surprised

Having recently made her Netflix debut in nine-part romance series “Doona!” singer and actor Suzy shared how she was blown away upon learning that the show ranked No. 6 globally among the streaming service’s TV shows.

Suzy had not anticipated such global interest, feeling the show was largely based on Korean culture and so would be familiar mostly to Koreans.

“I personally thought that Korean viewers would be the only ones who could easily empathize with most of the scenes in ‘Doona!’ like how the public views K-pop idols and how young Korean couples share their feelings for each other. I was surprised that our stories were well-received by overseas viewers as well,” Suzy said in an interview in Jung-gu, central Seoul, on Thursday.

“Though Netflix’s report said our show was ranked sixth in the global top 10 chart, I don’t really feel the global popularity,” she said. “Everything seems unreal.”

Adapted from Min Song-a’s 2019 romance webtoon “The Girl Downstairs,” “Doona!” revolves around the love story of young college student Won-jun (Yang Se-jong), who happens to live upstairs from former K-pop superstar Doona (Suzy).

As a K-pop idol herself who debuted in top girl group Miss A in 2010, having the chance to portray Doona was a special experience for Suzy.

The 29-year-old singer and actor found many overlapping memories between Doona’s career and her own experiences.