'Kingsman' stars befit 'manner maketh man'

Actors Colin Firth, left, Taron Egerton, center, and Mark Strong before the press conference for their action-comedy film “Kingsman: The Golden Circle,” at CGV Yongsan, Seoul, Thursday. / Yonhap

Firth, Egerton, Strong promote sequel in Seoul

By Kim Jae-heun

Colin Firth, Taron Egerton and Mark Strong, the lead actors of the action-comedy film “Kingsman: the Golden Circle,” greeted Korean fans in a manner that befits an English gentleman spy.

On their first day in Seoul, Wednesday, the actors appeared in front of 4,000 fans at Lotte Cinema World Tower in Jamsil.

Like Firth’s famous saying in the first and second episodes of the “Kingsman” series, “Manners maketh the man,” all three actors managed their hectic schedule faithfully and responded to their fans and the Korean media politely.

Firth said he’d received a big welcome and love from his fans from the day he arrived in Korea and he was able to feel their passion.

“I am sure Taron Egerton and Mark Strong, who were both at the event with me, had unforgettable memories yesterday,” Firth said during a press conference at CGV Yongsan, Seoul, Thursday.

“We made it our priority to visit Korea after America and England and I am grateful to come and say hello here. Kingsman is released worldwide but we did not visit many countries for promotion and the reason we visited Korea is because of our special relationship with the country. I’ve always thought that it would have to be Seoul when we premiere our movie. I am happy it happened.”

The first episode, “Kingsman: The Secret Service,” released in 2014, attracted over 6.1 million moviegoers here, recording higher ticket sales than in its homeland England.

Egerton, who is on his second visit to Seoul _ previously for the promotion of his film “Eddie the Eagle” _ remembered he’d received the same greeting and love from Korean fans last year.

“The performance of Kingsman 1 in Korea was also important for me, which achieved notable success here,” Egerton said. “I want to say thank you to the audience. Korea played an important role for me and the film. I hope we keep the same relationship in the future and I have more chances to visit here often.”

Egerton showed sincerity in every response to fans and the press during the events, making eye contact and giving honest and thoughtful answers to questions.

Asked what it means to keep certain manners, Strong said there are various interpretations but it all begins from small concerns.

“For the English, it begins from how to use a knife and fork and keeping manners at the dinner table,” he said. “For children, we teach them not to talk with a mouthful or cut into other people’s conversation. It is important to respect others and their emotions.”

Firth said that, in this context, Koreans and the English are similar and it is why the first movie was such a success here.

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” is about an international criminal organization, Golden Circle, that destroys the Kingsman headquarters. The only survivors, Eggsy and Merlin, find a secret American organization, “Statesman,” following the Doomsday protocol and there they discover that Harry survived the gunshot from Valentine in the previous movie. However, he is suffering from amnesia.

“Kingsman: The Golden Circle” hits local theaters, Sept. 27.