SINGAPORE - It is not every day that one has to smear dog food on the lips and pucker up. But that is what South Korean actor Cha Eun-woo did for the new romantic comedy series A Good Day To Be A Dog.

The high school-set K-drama, which is streaming on Viu, stars Cha (True Beauty, 2020 to 2021) as maths teacher Jin Seo-won. He inadvertently kisses his co-worker Han Hae-na (Park Gyu-young), who suffers from an ancient family curse that turns her into a dog every time she kisses someone.

While she transforms back into a human at daylight, the transmogrification will occur at midnight every day until her kisser smooches her in her canine form.

Actor Lee Hyun-woo (Money Heist: Korea – Joint Economic Area, 2022) rounds up the cast as Lee Bo-gyeom, a history teacher and one of Seo-won’s close friends. 

Here are three tasty morsels the leads share with The Straits Times about the show on e-mail.

1) Canine attraction

Given the premise of A Good Day To Be A Dog, the main cast often had to work with dogs, but Cha had to go even further – by kissing one.

While the 26-year-old star may be anointed a “face genius” in South Korea for his ethereal looks, those charms did not work on his canine co-star, which refused to kiss him back.

Leading lady Park, 30, reveals: “He had to apply some dog food to his lips before filming. It was a memorable moment because the staff and I all had to hold back our laughter while shooting.”

Cha had previously said in a radio interview that he put Churu, a brand of creamy dog treats, on his lips to lure the dog in for a peck. The singer from K-pop boy band Astro, who likes dogs in real life, says it was not easy pretending to be afraid of them.

“There was a moment when I had to tremble and look really scared, but the dog I was filming the scene with was just so cute,” he says.

2) Model students

When asked about their high school days, Park (Celebrity, 2023) says: “I liked maths the most. It was also the subject I studied the hardest for when I was in school.”

Lee, 30, says: “My best subject was maths and I enjoyed it. I think I was a good student because I worked hard for my grades.”

3) The secretive “other man”

While the series is billed as a romance between Seo-won and Hae-na, she initially nurses a crush on Bo-gyeom. But the story will not be a trite love triangle as Lee’s character is much more than the second male lead chasing for the woman’s affections.

Beneath his charming and seemingly ordinary demeanour, he hides his true identity – an ancient mountain god with ties to the curse running in Hae-na’s family.

“He may seem bright and cheerful, but there are many things hidden behind that appearance. He’s a character with a deep backstory,” Lee teases.

He adds that fans can look forward to Bo-gyeom’s change in disposition over the episodes.

“I thought it would be great if he exhibited a stark contrast before and after his true identity is revealed, so I tried to show a very friendly and affectionate side in the beginning, and highlight his colder side in the later half of the series.”

A Good Day To Be A Dog is available on Viu, with new episodes every Wednesday.