Nothing special changed in my bank account: Lim Jae-hyuk works multiple part-time jobs despite All of Us Are Dead's success

When Squid Game became a global pop culture phenomenon, it was surprising to hear that Hwang Dong-hyuk didn't reap the benefits of creating an overnight sensation.

He told The Guardian in an interview last year: "I'm not that rich. But I do have enough. I have enough to put food on the table. And it's not like Netflix is paying me a bonus. Netflix paid me according to the original contract."

And, it seems like history might be repeating itself again?

Despite the success of the zombie horror series All of Us Are Dead on Netflix, actor Lim Jae-hyuk revealed that he still works part-time to make ends meet.

In a recent appearance on South Korean variety show You Quiz on the Block, Jae-hyuk, 27, pointed out while All of Us Are Dead is a hit, his financial status remains largely similar.

He said: "Apart from the drama doing well, there's nothing special that changed about my bank account. I spend between 900,000 won (S$1,000) and 1 million won for a month's rent and living expenses, so I'm only working to earn that much.

"The monthly rent is about 400,000 won a month, so I only have to do five part-time courier jobs, and I can work for a week or two to earn 600,000 won a month for living expenses."

On the bright side (if one considers this to be something good), his Instagram followers shot up to 680,000 (well, 787,000 as of writing).

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Jae-hyuk also said that he has tried all sorts of part-time jobs, such as working in a fish store, a butcher's shop, a mart and being a waiter.

"I was even working as a designated driver four days ago," he shared.

Interestingly, he finds being a paid designated driver to be the best and also most difficult part-time job.

Recounting a particularly difficult incident he experienced as a designated driver, Jae-hyuk said: "I had to deal with a drunken person, so there was a time I called to say I was on my way and ran for a kilometre, but the customer didn't answer the phone.

"The subway was about to stop running soon, and I kept calling but he didn't answer the phone. When he did, he cursed at me saying, 'If I don't answer the phone, you should have understood that I don't need your service anymore and you should have cancelled and gone away.'

"At that time, the subway already stopped running, so I remember going to the convenience store to eat cup noodles waiting for the late-night bus."

bryanlim@asiaone.com