She actually put a lot of thought and work into it.
10 minutes ago
Lead actress Jin Ki Joo explained the acting choice that divided viewers on Netflix’s Teach You A Lesson.
On June 16, 2026 (KST), Jin Ki Joo sat down for an interview in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, following the release of the webtoon-based Netflix series Teach You A Lesson. The series follows the fictional Teacher’s Rights Protection Bureau, an organization created to restore order to South Korea’s collapsing education system amid out-of-line students, teachers, and parents.
In the K-Drama, Jin Ki Joo plays Im Han Lim, an inspector at the Teacher’s Rights Protection Bureau and a former special forces soldier. While the character’s unique background was reflected in Jin Ki Joo’s performance, her distinct voice tone became a hot topic among viewers, with some criticizing it as awkward or difficult to watch.
Netflix’s “Teach You A Lesson” Female Lead’s Acting Sparks Controversy
Addressing the response, Jin Ki Joo revealed that the basic idea for Han Lim’s tone came from veteran actor Lee Sung Min. “Before the full script reading, the four members and the director gathered for a reading, and the basic tone and idea for this character came from Sung Min sunbaenim,” she explained. To prepare for the role, Jin Ki Joo said she repeatedly watched documentaries, variety programs, and training footage featuring special forces soldiers.
He suggested the idea at first, and everyone thought it would be something different, so that’s when we began creating it. Because I had to express it, I kept watching documentaries, variety shows, and training scenes of special forces soldiers over and over. They have this unique, animal-like roar. At first, the sound itself felt unfamiliar when I heard it.
— Jin Ji Joo
However, the actress said she eventually began to understand the purpose behind the sound. “There was a moment when I felt, ‘This is a sound meant to raise their mental strength to the absolute limit,’” she said.
Jin Ki Joo explained that this interpretation became especially important to Han Lim’s backstory. According to the actress, Han Lim was once a fragile person who had desperately run away from cruel students, making her transformation into someone strong a key part of the character.
Han Lim was also someone who used to desperately run away from bad students. Thinking about how difficult it must have been for someone who was once so weak to endure such strong and almost unbelievable training, I felt that sound was the sound she used to overcome it. When the brain wants to rest, it’s a sound that wakes up the mind. I thought that sound would have become ingrained in Han Lim’s body.
— Jin Ki Joo
Because of that, Jin Ki Joo said she did not see the tone as a simple gimmick or acting device, but as part of portraying a former special forces soldier. “I didn’t use it as a major concept or device,” she said, “but thought of it more as the image of a special forces soldier.”
Still, the actress acknowledged that the choice may not have worked for everyone.
It might have been loud. It wasn’t necessarily to express the sound of special forces soldiers. I just wanted to do something during the preparation process. I thought anything, through any route, might help, so I went to a teacher and asked them to help refine anything that could be refined and tried to learn the basics.
— Jin Ki Joo
Teach You A Lesson was released on Netflix on June 5, and while causing some buzz, it has since soared to the #1 spot across the globe.
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