In one of the bigger twists in Genie, Make a Wish, Ki Ka-young (Suzy) and Iblis (Kim Woo-bin) realize that they’ve fallen in love before. But this fairy tale mimics real life, too, as this isn’t the first time that Suzy and Kim have played romantic leads. Nearly a decade ago, the two collaborated in the swoony melodrama Uncontrollably Fond (2016), playing a former high school couple who reunite later in life. Their relationship, however, could not be more different. Instead of playing singer-actor Shin Joon-young (the role he became known for in that film), Kim transforms into Iblis, a genie with 1,000 years of baggage and a twisted sense of humor. Playing such a dynamic, larger-than-life character who’s lived through centuries meant leaning into every facet of his acting toolkit: “Genie is charismatic one moment, clumsy and messy the next, and then fatally alluring,” said Kim Eun-sook (The Glory), who wrote the series. “He’s a versatile character that requires the actor to draw on every emotion and facial expression he has … But as I watched Kim Woo-bin perform, I fully understood why people say actors have ‘a thousand faces.’” In this series, Kim Woo-bin provides both the comic relief to Ka-young’s deadpan responses and is a formidable romantic lead who carries a thousand-year love in his heart — and it’s that range that proves to be Kim Woo-bin’s own power.

Kim Woo-bin’s breakout performances were in The Heirs (2013) and School 2013 (2012), in both films playing a bad boy with a secretly soft heart who doesn’t know how to express his true feelings. With scene-stealing eyebrows that can instantly go from amused to threatening, and his signature “deep cave” baritone voice, the actor has since become a leading man of both film and TV, continuing to play a diverse set of layered characters who are more than what they seem. Over the years, he’s flexed his versatility, taking on everything from romantic dramas like Uncontrollably Fond to action-packed blockbusters including Master (2016) and Officer Black Belt (2024).

Suzy, née Bae Su-ji, rose to fame as a teen as member of K-pop powerhouse Miss A and has become one of the most famous triple threats of Korean entertainment. She first charmed audiences in Dream High (2011) and has since taken on everything from romantic fantasy in While You Were Sleeping (2017) to the noir thriller Anna (2022). She most recently starred in Wonderland (2024) and Doona! (2023), in which she balances her trademark easy likability with her sensitive portrayal of modern young women.

In Genie, Make a Wish, Suzy takes on the role of Ka-young, a sharp-tongued mechanic born without the ability to feel the full range and depth of human emotion. On paper, she’s heartless and remorseless, pushing everyone away — but Suzy’s performance turns her into a heroine viewers somehow can’t help but root for, believing in her inherent goodness. Kim Eun-sook calls Suzy’s Ka-young “a rare gem — a character who, ironically, has the outward appearance of a psychopath but the inner core of human goodwill.” She added that Suzy’s portrayal of Ka-young was “the strange yet beautiful girl [I] had envisioned. I thought it would be a tough role to play, but Suzy was more excited than nervous … When I watched the very first cut, the first thing I said was, ‘Wow, Suzy is incredible.’ ”