New Delhi, Oct 15 After “Squid Game” became a global sensation, South Korean star Jung Ho-yeon says she was worried about her next project and whether it will live up to her debut work.
But by boarding the Cannes competition title “Hope” by director Na Hong-jin, Ho-yeon felt secure as she was in the company of some of the biggest names in the South Korean film industry.
“After the ‘Squid Game’ success, I had a little bit of pressure to choose things. I thought I was kind of careful and cautious about every single thing. But I had a lot of good advice from my friends and senior actresses in Korea.
“They told me, ‘Why don’t you choose a project where you are surrounded by many veterans. It’s better than choosing a project where you have to be number one on set so that you have more pressure’. I thought that’s a good idea to release my stress,” Ho-yeon told PTI in an interview.
The actor, who also featured in Oscar-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuaron’s miniseries “Disclaimer”, said both Cuaron and Na are “very experienced and good directors”.
“Hope”, featuring an ensemble cast that also includes Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander and Taylor Kitsch, is set to be released in Indian theatres on October 23.
The story is set in the remote coastal village of Hope Harbour, where a mysterious creature’s appearance plunges the community into chaos. With firefighting teams deployed elsewhere and communication lines cut off, police chief Bum-seok (Hwang Jung-min) and officer Sung-ae (Ho-yeon) struggle to protect the village’s elderly residents.
“Hope” marks director Na’s return to filmmaking after a decade. He last directed the critically acclaimed 2016 film “The Wailing”.
Ho-yeon said she has been a huge fan of director Na’s films, which also includes “The Chaser” and “The Yellow Sea”, and urged film buffs in India to watch them as well.
“I enjoyed filming this. I couldn’t lose the chance to work with Na Hong-jin. I’ve been a huge fan of his work. If the Indian film fans haven’t watched, I highly recommend his previous films,” she added.
The 32-year-old actor first rose to prominence after competing in the fourth season of “Korea’s Next Top Model”, where she ended as a runner-up. She made her international runway debut during New York Fashion Week and went on to establish herself as one of South Korea’s leading models.
In 2021, she made her acting debut with the smash hit first season of the Netflix survival drama “Squid Game”.
In the series, Ho-yeon played Kang Sae-byeok (Player 067), a North Korean defector who enters the deadly survival games in a bid to win the 45.6 billion won prize money.
According to Ho-yeon, “Hope” carries an underlying message of mutual understanding which the film tries to tell through its story of an alien invasion.
“If we don’t understand each other, then it will lead us to a big tragedy. That was the core message of this film. When you watch this film, I don’t want the audience to think that (there is this) kind of a serious message in it. I want them to just feel it.
“It’s about how you’re going to feel or experience while you’re in the cinema. I hope the audience can feel that first. Later, when you go back home, if you think about all the little details about it, you can realise the message of it,” she said.
The actor said the global audience “either like it or don’t like it, but they keep saying that this is a weird experience”.
“They keep thinking about this film for a few days. I hope the Indian audience can relate to that too,” she added.
Ho-yeon is already working on her next project: “The Hole”, an American and South Korean psychological thriller film directed by Kim Jee-woon.
The film features the actor alongside Theo James, Yeom Hye-ran and Christian Slater.
“Right now, I’m in the middle of filming. I think being on set is the place where I can really feel alive. These are the things that I would love to do for the next 10 years of my life,” she added.
(PTI News)
