Lee Gyu-lee is a business writer at The Korea Times, focusing primarily on IT & telecommunications, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and KOTRA. Prior to this, she has covered a wide range of cultural news, from film, television and K-pop to lifestyle and fashion.
Netflix original series 'Somebody' to unfold twisted melodrama
From left, director Jung Ji-woo and actors Kang Hae-lim, Kim Yong-ji, Kim Su-yeon and Kim Young-kwang pose during a press conference for Netflix's original series “Somebody,” held in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Netflix
By Lee Gyu-lee
By Lee Gyu-lee
Netflix's upcoming Korean original series “Somebody” will tell the tale of a bizarre melodrama, topped with a thriller mystery, in this era of social media and dating apps.
“This is a thriller, but if you go deep, deep down, I created a bizarre melodrama. It all comes down to wanting to communicate and connect (with others) and to the story of a person trying to find someone who will understand him,” the series' director Jung Ji-woo said during a press conference for the series, held in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, Tuesday.
The eight-part suspense series, set for release on Friday, revolves around software developer Sum (Kang Hae-lim), who creates a social media dating app called “Somebody.” She gets involved in a murder investigation when a serial killer uses the app to find his victims. Amid the crimes, Sum comes across a mysterious but irresistibly attractive architectural designer, Yoon-oh (Kim Young-kwang).
It is co-written by Jung and Han Ji-wan, who previously scripted the comedy-crime series “The Killer's Shopping List.”
Jung, who helmed the 2017 crime thriller film “Heart Blackened,” said that the series will show the changes in how people date nowadays, which introduces new issues in relationships.
“How people meet each other is always changing, so the melodrama story since the invention of smartphones has dramatically changed,” he said. “Nowadays, as people interact and form relationships through social media and applications, it sets off a whole new approach in creating those stories (of relationships).”
A scene from the series “Somebody” / Courtesy of Netflix
Actor Kim, who is known for playing romantic and sweet roles, is taking on a mysterious, antagonistic character in this series.
The actor called playing this character a unique challenge in his career. “I'm happy to take this challenge, and I've been really enjoying it as I was filming it,” he said.
“When creating this character of Yoon-oh, I wanted people to think he gives off a leery feeling, like 'who is this person?' I wanted him to have an unfamiliar, strange vibe rather than just being scary.”
He added that he tried to let himself loose instead of purposely trying to make the character intense and mysterious.
“At first, I thought about putting in different concepts for this character, but later on I came to think that I should try to empty my mind to play this character,” he said. “Instead of trying to make choices in gestures and actions, I just tried to go with the flow and let myself loose on the set.”
Kang, whose character gets romantically involved with Kim, shared that she was surprised to see such a different side to her costar.
“There were so many times I was surprised because it was so different than how I've seen him to be on TV. There were moments that he gave me chills like a really insane person,” she said.