On June 25, the official social media account of tvN's variety show You Quiz on the Block released a preview clip along with the caption, “Kim Mu-yeol ♥ Heo Nam-joon, Na Hwa-jin ♥ Cha Se-gye, you've passed!”

In the video, Kim Mu-yeol sat down with host Yoo Jae-suk and talked about Heo Nam-joon, who has recently been gaining significant attention through his drama projects.

Yoo Jae-suk commented, “Heo Nam-joon has been receiving a lot of love lately through his dramas. I heard he named you as his role model. I also heard you two keep in touch and are quite close.”

Kim Mu-yeol replied, “He’s very popular these days. We first met while working on Sweet Home. I attended Sungkyunkwan University, and I later found out he was my junior there. We didn’t attend school at the same time, but meeting a university junior outside of school created a sense of closeness.” He continued, “His character in Sweet Home was someone who looked up to my character. When both of us found success and our projects did well, I contacted him and said, ‘Congratulations. I’m really happy for both of us.’ He replied, ‘Hyung, a day like this has finally come for me too.’”

Yoo Jae-suk then mentioned that Heo Nam-joon had reportedly been known as someone who exercised intensely during his school days. Kim Mu-yeol agreed, saying, “ That’s right. We both enjoy working out, and that became something we bonded over. During Sweet Home, there were scenes where we had to appear shirtless.”

Curious, Yoo Jae-suk jokingly asked whether they had been hanging from pull-up bars everywhere. Kim Mu-yeol laughed and responded, “ If there was something to hang from, we hung from it. A bit of a competitive atmosphere developed between us. We’d bring lunchboxes, and some people would blend chicken breast with all kinds of healthy ingredients to make a porridge-like meal.”

He added, “Even if filming ended late and we had another shoot the next day, we’d find a nearby gym. We were filming in a small town, and there was only one gym open late. Without even making plans, we’d show up after filming and find the other person already working out. We’d stay until the owner told us, ‘We’re closed for the day.’”

The story has drawn attention from fans who appreciate the genuine friendship between Kim Mu-yeol and Heo Nam-joon.

Sources: Daum | 뉴스엔