Daniel Dae Kim brings Korean heart to Amazon Prime spy series 'Butterfly'

Daniel Dae Kim, second from left, executive producer and lead actor, poses with other cast members of the Amazon Prime Video series "Butterfly," ahead of its Korean premiere at Yongsan IPark Mall in Seoul, Wednesday. From left are actors Kim Tae-hee, Kim, Reina Hardesty, Kim Ji-hoon and Sean Richard Dulake. Yonhap

By Park Jin-hai

• Published Aug 21, 2025 4:58 PM KST

American drama "Butterfly," from Amazon MGM Studios, was filmed entirely in Korea with a Korean production team, and stars Kim Tae-hee, Kim Ji-hoon and other veteran Korean actors alongside Hollywood talents.

The series, poised for its Korean television premiere Friday after a successful Amazon Prime Video debut on Aug. 13, aims to showcase cultural harmony between the two countries.

Executive producer and lead actor Daniel Dae Kim, who built his career and life in the U.S., said he always wanted to return to Korea to "put his own life experience into the show."

"I wanted to talk about a lot of different things about what it felt like to be Asian American and, in Reina [Hardesty]'s case, half-Asian. I felt like the way to do that was to talk about an American character coming back to a place where he looks the same but isn't quite the same as everybody else," he said during a press conference for the show at Yongsan IPark Mall in Seoul Thursday.

The narrative follows David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), once a U.S. intelligence officer, who disappeared from the world by faking his death. Now, years later, he embarks on a journey to reconnect with his estranged daughter, Rebecca (Hardesty), who has grown into the life of an assassin.

"I like the idea that that parallels my own life because I was born in Busan but went to America when I was very young. But it never meant that Korea left my heart. It was always a big part of who I am," he said.

Kim said the series distinguishes itself from typical overseas productions filmed in Korea by prioritizing the participation of Korean creators at every level.

“Usually when American productions come here, they bring all their heads of staff from America and the only Korean people are the lower-level crew members," he said. "But here, for us, we did all of our heads of departments as Koreans because I felt that if we're going to tell a story in Korea with Koreans, then we need a Korean staff."

Though packed with action, Kim described the series as a family drama rooted in “jeong,” the Korean concept of deep bonds.

"I chose the last name of my character to be Jung of the Korean concept of 'jeong,' because that's what this show is really about between families and relationships," he said.

"It's a relationship show so even if you're not an action fan you'll have something that you can understand here. There are certain things that are specific to Korea but what's universal is what the relationships are between a father and a daughter, and a mother and a son, and partners in a business."

With "Butterfly," Korean actor Kim Tae-hee is stepping into Hollywood for the first time in her 24-year career. Playing David’s wife, she said the role felt refreshingly natural.

“This project felt fresh because it was a collaboration between Korea and the U.S. My role is that of an ordinary Korean woman married to a man with an extraordinary identity, and I was able to approach the camera in a way closest to my real self — which, surprisingly, was very comfortable,” she shared.

“When I filmed Korean dramas, I always felt the need to look as pretty as possible, but this time I honestly don’t know how viewers will take it."

Actor Kim Ji-hoon, meanwhile, transformed into the ruthless assassin Gun, David's nemesis.

“Gun is a brutal yet stylish and edgy assassin,” Kim Ji-hoon explained. “It was the most action-heavy role I’ve ever had and I spent a lot of time rehearsing fight sequences with Daniel to get them just right.”

“Butterfly” airs on Korea’s tvN on Friday at 10:40 p.m. and is also available on Amazon Prime Video.