There are a lot of storylines to unfold in A Shop For Killers as Ji-an discovers her uncle’s true profession now puts her in danger, but actor Kim Hye-jun talks about her character’s biggest betrayal that isn’t her uncle.
Ji-an’s life has been shadowed by tragedy from the death of her parents to living with her uncle. It was also the reason for the biggest betrayal on the show.
Jung-min, who knew Ji-an in elementary school, re-enters her life. He begins to work at Jin-man’s store but his actions speak a hidden agenda, especially when coming to her aid after her uncle’s death. It’s soon revealed that the seemingly sweet character is anything but.
In Episodes 4 into 5, Ji-an is stabbed in the back when she learns he works for Babylon and is responsible for her uncle’s death. Actor Kim, who plays the leading role of Ji-an, broke down her character’s heartbreak.
Ji-an is betrayed by her closest friend
Speaking to ScreenRant, Kim explains, “When I was reading the script, I was completely shocked, and I thought it was very intriguing because while it’s in the middle of the journey, it’s the beginning of something totally new. As a reader of the script, I was very intrigued.”
“But as Ji-an, I felt very betrayed and felt like I was holding onto nothing. My only friend, as you said, that I trusted, is not there anymore for me. He betrayed me, and I thought about the choices that I made and how they were the wrong choices, so I thought of my uncle once again.”
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
The betrayal of Jung-min poses a big heartbreak for Ji-an in a time of crisis. By all accounts, Jung-min posed as the only person who appeared genuine as Ji-an had no one to trust growing up. His good-guy image was only a facade.
But fans contradict actor Kim’s sentiment having seen Jung-min as a red flag from the start of A Shop For Killers.
“I get that she trusted him, but come on, she’s asking the guy to talk, he finally starts talking and then Jeong min stuffs his mouth so he can’t speak? Wth that’s mega suspicious. And then he goes from being incredibly timid almost catatonic, to being vicious and unnecessarily violent? Riiight. Alarm bells should be ringing,” said a fan on Reddit.
While one fan pointed out Jung-min’s suspicious behavior, she also commented how the “childhood friend” aspect hazed over Ji-an’s logical thinking. As someone who grew up with no friends and was bullied, the familiarity of a childhood friend overshadowed the warning bells.
