With the help of their translators, they both denied the relationship.

That was certainly expected. But it was the way in which they did it that came as a surprise.

Both Kang Ji Hwan (Be Strong Geum Soon) and Kim Ha Neul (On Air), who spoke in Korean, looked uncomfortable when asked about their supposed romance.

But not in the guilty way that you might think. They were in town last Thursday to promote their latest film, My Girlfriend Is An Agent.

Said 30-year-old Ji Hwan uneasily: “If we were really dating, that would be okay. But if we weren’t, that’s not good as it would just make things awkward between us.”

Was he referring to a possible strained working relationship with Ha Neul?

After all, the 31-year-old actress is known to be protective of her reputation.

She said: “In the past, when I encountered a scandal (with my co-star), it would feel awkward on the (film) set. “Once the cameras stop rolling, I would not talk to that person and try to avoid him. But now I think it’s fun.”

Really? So why worry about travelling together with Ji Hwan?

Just last month, the grapevine had it that they didn’t want to fly to Singapore together for the film’s promotional activities.

It was to avoid fuelling rumours, apparently.

But it was much ado about nothing in the end.

During the interview, leggy Ha Neul insisted that they had “nothing to hide” and revealed that she had, in fact, sat beside Ji Hwan during their flight here.

So what exactly did they talk about on the plane? “We don’t click. But we work together fine. He’s always animated and friendly,” she said.

This is not the first time that the leggy beauty has been linked to a co-star.

Three years ago, rumours were rife that Ha Neul was dating Korean actor Kwon Sang Woo after she starred with him in the movie Almost Love.

In My Girlfriend Is An Agent, Ji Hwan and Ha Neul play secret agents who get together but lie to each other about what they do.

After they break up, they meet again when their spy agency departments send them on the same mission.

This time, the clumsy rookie agent (Ji Hwan) gets pitted against his highly-skilled ex-girlfriend (Ha Neul).

Ji Hwan said that it was fun collaborating with her on the movie as the “trust” that they had in each other enabled them to complete their comedy scenes “more easily”.

He added that he had a hard time acting the part of a bumbling amateur secret agent because in real life, “I am very smart and athletic”.

But he admitted that even though they each had their good traits, he and Ha Neul were not each other’s “ideal types”.

Both stars claimed to be single.

Not only that, they gave the same reason for their single status: No opportunities.

She said: “I would really like to have a boyfriend but it’s about timing. I also have very few opportunities to meet men as I spend whatever little free time I have resting and exercising.”

He said: “Seven years ago when I started out in showbiz, I told myself that work comes first so I avoided going out with a lot of ‘potential girlfriends’.

“Now that my career has stabilised, I can’t find a girlfriend as there are few opportunities for me to meet women.”

Good to be talked about

Ha Neul said that she wanted a man who was passionate, honest and humorous and would “love me only”.

Her most important condition? He can’t be thin. Ji Hwan said that he had a penchant for extremely fair-skinned women who were polite to their elders.

But Ha Neul has rather fair skin, we pointed out. “Oh,” Ji Hwan replied, he “never noticed” her complexion.

Surprisingly, the two celebrities conceded that the reported rumours could only help their careers. For example, Ha Neul said she observed that rumours of co-stars getting together become rampant only when a movie is successful.

“I don’t know why they (the rumour mongers) do it, I don’t see a reason to do such things.

“But it’s common in Korea to create rumours as a publicity stunt. Of course it’s not us actors who are behind it,” she added.

Ji Hwan said that he also observed a trend where rumours get circulated only when they concern “hot actresses”.

He also added that this was his first “scandal” and he’s happy about it.

“I’ve heard the saying in the entertainment industry that you know you’ve made it when people create rumours about you.

“A director I’ve worked with also once told me that when a young actor’s name isn’t associated with a single scandal, it’s because he doesn’t have appeal as an actor.”

What’s up with these two hotties? We definitely don’t feel any love between them.

–  There’s passionate and there’s careless. While filming a kissing scene in the movie, her lip tore and her blood ended up on his lips.
–  The trip to Singapore almost didn’t happen as they refused to fly together in case it further fuelled the rumours of them being a couple.
–  They spent all their free time here apart and didn’t eat their packed lunches together before the interviews started.
–  When she visited the hospital here to check on her swollen eye that she suffered after a stressful promotional trip to Hong Kong, he was out partying.
–  They only spoke to each other briefly once during the press conference and during our photoshoot, they seemed uncomfortable with each other.

This article was first published in The New Paper.