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.
Lee Ji-ah to show hardcore action in 'Pandora: Beneath the Paradise'
Actors Lee Sang-Yoon, left, and Lee Ji-ah pose during an online press conference for tvN's new thriller series, “Pandora: Beneath the Paradise," Tuesday. Courtesy of tvN
By Lee Gyu-lee
By Lee Gyu-lee
Actress Lee Ji-ah will be playing the character of an assassin, showcasing hardcore action in tvN's new thriller series, “Pandora: Beneath the Paradise.”
Created by star writer Kim Soon-ok, who scripted the hit series, "The Penthouse: War in Life" (2021), the upcoming series follows the revenge plot of a woman named Hong Tae-ra (Lee Ji-ah). Despite having no memories of her past, she has settled into a perfect life with a successful husband, Pyo Jae-hyun (Lee Sang-Yoon), who runs an IT company, and their lovely daughter.
But her life turns upside down when her memories start to come back, leading her to protect her family by fighting those who are behind her tragedy.
The series, set to premiere on Saturday, is directed by Choi Hyeong-hun, who previously led the 2021 comedy series, "One the Woman,” and is scripted by writer Hyun Ji-min.
“(The story) is about this character avenging those who manipulated her own fate. She was raised as a mercenary and lived as a killer before losing her memory. And now she is living, what others would think as, a happy life with a perfect family,” Lee said during the online conference for the series, Tuesday.
The actress shared that she lost about 6 kilograms to play the character.
“Because Hong Tae-ra was raised as a killer, I worked out to have a toned body and for the action,” she said. “I lost about 5 to 6 kilograms than when I filmed 'Penthouse.' I wanted to have a slim and slick figure for the action sequences. So I'm curious how it would have turned out.”
A scene from the series “Pandora: Beneath the Paradise" / Courtesy of tvN
The director noted that the series will be filled with twists, as in creator Kim's previous series.
“There are only a few writers whose name itself becomes a genre, like Kim Soon-ok … I tried to keep the suspense throughout the series. The series has a fast-paced plot and a lot of twists and turns, so it wasn't easy to depict each character's emotion delicately,” he said.
“I used different angles and bold color tones to capture the characters' desires and emotions without slowing down the storyline.”
He added that the series will be a mix of several genres.
“Our series goes beyond genre-bending to a complex genre. It's a total entertainment package. You might wonder what kind of drama this is. But that's how many elements it will have for the viewers to enjoy,” he said.