“JTVM” Variety Department producer Woo Hanseok. With tousled hair, swarthy skin, glasses, and a face that always looked exhausted, he was in his twelfth year in the industry. It wasn’t that he’d been at “JTVM” for over twelve years; he’d been at a terrestrial broadcaster before transferring a few years back.
He was a producer with quite a few hits under his belt, and a good number of those hits were audition-related variety shows.
A survival show for forgotten singers of the past, a rap-themed competition, a bloody battle fought through actors’ performances, and so on. At the terrestrial network, he’d even recorded ratings close to 20%, and the highest rating for the variety show he made after moving to “JTVM” was 8%. At a glance, 8% might look small, but for a general programming or cable channel, 8% was an enormous number.
In other words, producer Woo Hanseok was a pro.
Thanks to that, when writer Kim Sehui made a fuss about some god-tier handsome guy or whatever, producer Woo Hanseok didn’t have high expectations. He was curious to a certain extent, sure, but that was all. The guy was probably handsome. But after rolling around the variety-show scene for over twelve years, Woo Hanseok knew.
That this field was crawling with handsome things.
That was why “individuality” rose to the top and “charm” mattered. These days, good visuals alone weren’t enough to compete. However, there was something even veteran Woo Hanseok didn’t know.
No, something he had never seen before.
“Please appear on our program. I’m begging you.”
An overwhelming invasive species that could lightly crush all the pretty boys. This was how producer Woo Hanseok felt when he first saw Kang Rojun.
‘……Wow—fuck.’
Nothing but curses came out. Because no exclamation could explain Kang Rojun’s insane visuals.
‘There isn’t a single blemish on his skin. How do someone’s eyes, nose, and mouth end up placed that perfectly?’
His sharp jawline accentuated his small face, and his eyebrows and eyes were long and distinct. On top of that, there was a strange decadent beauty in his gaze. His vibe? His aura? If one look from him was enough to send the writers into fits like that, there was nothing more to say. “Handsome” fell far short of describing this.
God-tier visuals that would trample over individuality and charm before they could even put up a fight.
‘Is he even human?? At his level, if he went beyond Korea…… no, if he went out into the world, everyone would be stunned speechless.’
Judging or whatever had no meaning when it came to Kang Rojun. Even if his skills were dogshit, his face alone was enough to pass.
‘In the actual idol industry, there are plenty of talented kids, but there are also tons who crush everything with just their faces even without any skill.’
The mindset was that skills could be developed slowly later. Of course, there were cases where they stayed shit at it forever. But.
‘They still enjoy popularity and work just fine.’
That was the idol world.
Meanwhile, Kang Rojun, whose hand had been grabbed by producer Woo Hanseok, was in the middle of exploding from the pressure. He would have been flustered even if a woman had grabbed his hand, but some middle-aged man? Enough said.
‘Why is this guy suddenly grabbing my hand and making a fuss?? His eyes are scary too.’
Rojun got goosebumps and shook the hand being held.
“How long are you planning to hold my hand?”
Only then did producer Woo Hanseok come to his senses, smile awkwardly, and let go.
“Haha, I’m sorry. I grabbed it without realizing.”
“Yes.”
“……Wow, but your face is seriously absurd. I’m looking right at you and I still can’t believe it.”
“I exist.”
“Pardon??”
Producer Woo Hanseok blinked, then laughed again.
“And your character is oddly unique too. Anyway.”
He turned his head toward writer Kim Sehui, who was smiling triumphantly behind him, and gave her a thumbs-up.
“Okay, I admit it. This guy’s face works on a global level.”
“Right??! I was right, wasn’t I?!”
“Yeah, yeah. I get it, so close the door first.”
Once the meeting room door closed, producer Woo Hanseok gestured for him to sit. Kang Rojun was a little overwhelmed, but he tried his best not to show it. Looking stupid from the very start wouldn’t be good.
Then producer Woo Hanseok spoke first.
“Mm—at this rate, you’d swallow the idol scene…… no, forget idols, you’d eat up the acting scene too. If you already look like this now, then with some makeup, styling, and grooming—you’d be incredible. You know that yourself, right?”
No, I don’t really know. Rojun hadn’t even lived with this face for a week yet. But if he said he didn’t know, it would look like he was being disingenuous, wouldn’t it?
“Yes, I know.”
“Haha, right. It wouldn’t make sense if you didn’t. Now—first, let me introduce myself.”
The producer pulled a business card from his wallet and held it out to Kang Rojun.
“I’m Woo Hanseok, a producer in the Variety Department at ‘JTVM.’ You’ve heard of ‘Freestyle Crew’ or ‘Comeback Home Stage,’ right?”
They were the titles of variety shows he’d made into hits. Rojun had seen them too, so he nodded.
“Yes.”
“I’m the producer who directed those, and when I said the moment I saw you that I wanted you to appear on our program, I meant it.”
“……”
“I have a thing for auditions, competitions, survival shows, that kind of stuff, and the variety show I’m preparing this time is along those lines too. To explain it roughly—”
To summarize his briefing, it went like this. A massive boy group survival audition variety show. From Korea, of course, but also Japan, China, the United States, and so on. They would select people around the world who dreamed of becoming a boy group. Since it was global, the scale was huge, and thanks to producer Woo Hanseok’s name value, the investment was considerable.
However, the concept targeted only completely raw contestants.
Anyone who had been active in the entertainment industry even briefly was excluded. Anyone with an agency was excluded. Influencers were excluded. Anyone with experience on another audition variety show was excluded. In short, the target was ordinary people who had never once been consumed by the public. The official teaser, recruitment page, production presentation, and so on would open in about a month.
“Of course, I or the production staff will handle the preliminary screening, and once we’ve filtered out as many as we need, the filming schedule will be set right away. You can go over the details of the proposal with Sehui, and—it’s true that formal recruitment hasn’t even started yet. Ah, I was so frazzled I didn’t even ask your name.”
Rojun, who had been listening intently, answered.
“I’m Kang Rojun.”
“That’s a good name. You could use it as your stage name right away. Come to think of it, your voice is low and a little cool too, which gives it a rare flavor. Judging by your face, I thought you’d sound softer.”
Rojun let out a hollow laugh inside.
‘In the past, people called my voice gloomy, dreary, eerie, stuff like that. But what are you supposed to say at times like this? This is kind of embarrassing.’
Since Rojun had lived on the receiving end of insults, he was completely unused to praise. After thinking for a moment, he arrived at his own conclusion and answered.
“I’m soft on the inside.”
“……Pardon?”
“Not to the point of being squishy, though.”
“Ha, haha. You’re unexpectedly offbeat. You definitely have character, but it feels like all kinds of things are mixed in. I can’t get a read on you, but your visuals are so absurd that all of it looks like a strength. Do you happen to have an agency?”
“No, I don’t. I’m unemployed.”
“So it was true. No, but with that face, you had absolutely no interest in the entertainment industry??”
“I’ve gained a little interest now.”
Producer Woo Hanseok’s face quickly turned serious.
There were a total of three standards by which he selected contestants for this upcoming audition variety show. Visuals, skill, and buzzworthiness (stimulation, issue potential).
‘Since he had no interest in the entertainment industry, it’s obvious his skills won’t be at a level I can expect much from. Since his skills are probably lacking, there’s a high chance he’ll be eliminated early, but with insane visuals like this, just as Sehui said, he’ll hook people properly in the beginning. On top of that, we can roll his face into teasers and previews and use it.’
If his skills were trash but he survived on his face alone, that wouldn’t be bad in its own way either. It would become controversial. If it became controversial, the level of attention would skyrocket, and that would translate directly into viewership ratings. A picture that flowed somewhat like noise marketing.
‘I have to secure him no matter what.’
Producer Woo Hanseok cleared his throat and spoke in a weighty voice.
“That bit of interest you’ve gained in the entertainment industry—how about coming on our program and running wild with it? This is my earnest request.”
Sincerity dripped from every word. At this point, Rojun, who had been silently looking at the producer, was cheering inwardly.
‘When I looked it up, they said it was insanely, insanely hard to pass even the preliminaries, but I’m passing this easily??’
He felt it all over again. Being handsome is the best. It’s thrilling. The world is too convenient. However, he couldn’t get cocky over something this minor. Kang Rojun deliberately pretended to think it over.
“Hmm.”
Producer Woo Hanseok hurriedly cut in and rattled off persuasion.
“Rojun, if you just get on TV, you’ll become popular immediately. I guarantee it. It’s obvious not only the viewers, but even the judges we invite will be knocked flat. Naturally, those judges will be top-tier people in this field too.”
“Then—I’m unemployed anyway, so I’ll give it a shot.”
“You thought well!! Rojun, letting that face rot is a sin, a sin. But can you sing or dance at all?”
It was a strange question to answer. He was tone-deaf and had two left feet, but he had the “AI Simulation,” so that wasn’t entirely true either. Well, it would be better to lower expectations as much as possible.
“No. I can’t.”
“That’s fine! If you had that face and were good at singing and choreography too, that would really be a cheat! Your visuals are already god-tier, so you can practice the rest. There are plenty of visual centers in girl groups and boy groups who blow up in popularity even without skills.”
Here, Rojun answered inwardly.
‘What if both my face and skills are overwhelming?’
A short while later.
Producer Woo Hanseok passed the baton to the writers waiting outside. Kim Sehui, who had discovered Rojun first, took charge of handling him.
“Rojun! Over here, over here! Please sit here!”
Whoa, that energy was a lot. When Kang Rojun sat down, several female writers surrounded him. At the same time, writer Kim Sehui threw out a question.
“We know your name, and how old are you??”
“I’m twenty-four.”
“Where do you live?”
“Near Giheung Station.”
“Your family—”
“I live alone.”
“Ahh, so you’re independent! I can tell without even seeing them that your parents must be wonderful and beautiful people.”
The writers around her agreed fervently. However, Rojun poured cold water on them.
“They passed away.”
“……Ah. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. It was quite a while ago already.”
Kang Rojun answered calmly. That was how he truly felt. In any case, after fumbling a bit, writer Kim Sehui changed the atmosphere.
“F-first, this is the proposal for our program. It’s still a draft, but you shouldn’t have any trouble looking through it!”
The first thing visible on the proposal was the program’s title.
—“Produce the 100!”
Writer Kim Sehui immediately added an explanation.
“Just like the title, the concept is that viewers produce the 100 officially selected contestants! It has a survival-show feel, and there are judge scores too, but the viewers’ scores are the biggest, so you have to be chosen by the viewers.”
A hundred? Thinking that was quite a lot, Kang Rojun grew curious.
“If you survive among the hundred?”
“The final four will debut as an official boy group. You’ll find out more about that gradually.”
Debut. For Rojun, it was a terribly unfamiliar word. Then writer Kim Sehui continued.
“Starting tomorrow, promotion and marketing will begin in earnest! Official contestant recruitment will also start soon, but Rojun, you’re number one!”
After briefing him for several dozen minutes, she took out a contract containing confidentiality clauses. There was nothing complicated about the contents of the contract. Rojun, who had already decided to appear, signed it immediately, and writer Kim Sehui offered him a handshake.
“Really! Thank you so, so much! Let’s do our best!”
“Yes, I’ll do my best.”
“Your face is already doing its best! A lot!”
Following Kim Sehui, the other female writers also went out of their way to hold out their hands to Rojun.
“M-me too.”
“Me too, after she’s done.”
“But the day viewers get to see Rojun…… I’m looking forward to it. Is it just me??”
“Agreed. Totally agreed.”
“I’ll bet my wrist that a nuclear bomb is going to go off.”
“Sehui, stop betting your wrist.”
It was around then that Kang Rojun asked the writers a question.
“Is there anything I need to do before then?”
“No. Until the filming date is confirmed—you can live just as you are now.”
Kang Rojun thought that worked out well.
‘I can just keep collecting coins like crazy.’
Afterward.
Kang Rojun returned home and looked back on the events of the day. A strange feeling exploded within him. Until just a few days ago, he had been a hideous monster, but now he had passed first for a massive variety show.
If he had changed this much in a single day, what would the future be like?
Half a year later? A year later? Five years later?
With his imagination exploding for some reason, Kang Rojun spent his days as usual for the time being, just as writer Kim Sehui had said. Collecting coins was basic, so he carried out missions and focused on exercise. At the same time, he searched for “Produce the 100!”
Articles about “Produce the 100!” were pouring out.
《“JTVM” Says, “The Title of the Audition Variety Show Producer Woo Hanseok Is Preparing Is ‘Produce the 100!’”》
《Producer Woo Hanseok Has Decided on His Next Variety Show—Will He Be Chosen by the Public Again This Time?》
《Public Interest Focuses on Announcement of “Produce the 100!” Title / Photo》
Not only that, news of Produce That 100! spread like wildfire through ads on various search portals, social media, communities, Neotube, and more. The public’s anticipation shot through the roof. It was because PD Woo Hanseok had achieved numerous successes in the past.
And just like that, two weeks vanished.
In the meantime, Kang Rojun happened to discover a video on Neotube.
“Huh??? That’s me??”
The thumbnail was Rojun’s face.
-The finishing touch to fashion is the face... An insanely, insanely, insanely, insanely handsome guy we met in Gangnam｜Fashion Hipster
-Views: 1,221,008
It was the interview he had done in Gangnam on the day his face changed for the first time. That had been uploaded as a video. In the video, Rojun answered calmly.
-[“What’s the concept for today’s outfit? You look really hip.”]
-[“...I just wore whatever I had at home.”]
It hadn’t even been a full day since it was uploaded, but the views had already surpassed one million. Out of curiosity, Rojun skimmed through the comments. The response was explosive.
-Wow... who the hell is this insanely freaking gorgeous guy??????
-How are we supposed to handle this face
-Wtf? With that face he’d wipe the floor with current idols, seriously
-Lolololololol wow lolololololol he’s seriously freaking handsome lololololololololol
-Being handsome is the best... if you’re handsome, that’s all that matters....
-His face is too much??? Seriously too much! Why don’t I ever see heavenly-tier hotties like this when I go to Gangnam!!!
-I’m telling you, don’t ever work out. I said it clearly.
-I found myself smiling fondly.... Humor? Don’t need it. If your face is handsome, even breathing is funny
-Shit, today I’m just gonna eat jokbal that looks like me with some soju
-Info on this guy plsㅠㅠㅠㅜㅜㅜㅜㅠㅜㅠㅜ
-I’m a non-smoker, but after watching this video I’m going to buy cigarettes
-Seriously lolololol if you were that insanely handsome, how easy would life be??
About another week passed after that, and he got a call from writer Kim Sehui.
“We’ve started the preliminary screening for the contestants!! If things go fast, we’re aiming for the first shoot in about two weeks!”
It meant they had begun selecting the one hundred people who would compete against Kang Rojun. She also gave him another piece of information.
“And we’ve set the date for your insert shoot, Rojun. It’s in three days! It’s just for intro shots, greetings, and stuff like that, so don’t feel pressured!!”
At that moment, Kang Rojun’s phone let out a short vibration.
-Bzzzt.
It was from the AI Simulation app.
-[You have completed the hidden mission “Throw Down the Gauntlet”! You have been awarded 15 coins as a gift.]
Kang Rojun smiled at the gift coins. Hidden missions were sweet. Before he knew it, Rojun, who had completed his missions every single day without fail, had collected over a hundred coins.
-[Coins: 164]
Then, out of nowhere—
-Bzzzt.
The AI Simulation app sent another notification.
-[Sudden Title Mission activated!]
-[Title acquired: “Side Hustle Rich” / Gift coins upon completion: 30 / Completion condition: Choose your first side hustle and carry out related activities]
Kang Rojun was slightly surprised by the sudden notification.
“A side hustle?”