'Gyeongseong Creature' season 2 delves into unchanging nature of evil

Cast members of the Netflix series "Gyeongseong Creature 2" pose during a press conference for the upcoming monster thriller at Seoul Dragon City in Yongsan District, in Seoul, Wednesday. From left are actors Bae Hyeon-seong, Han So-hee, Park Seo-jun and Lee Mu-saeng. Yonhap

Netflix series "Gyeongseong Creature" will return with a stronger narrative and powerful suspense. The monster thriller, starring Park Seo-jun and Han So-hee, shifts to modern-day Seoul and continues the story of Jang Ho-jae (Park), the spitting image of Jang Tae-sang from the first season, and Yoon Chae-ok (Han).

"The story began with a creature appearing in the heart of Gyeongseong during the colonial period. Through the creature, I wanted to tell a story that connects the past and the present. I found it fascinating to wonder what we would think about the remnants that still remain," said director Chung Dong-yoon, sharing his original thoughts when he launched this project, during a press conference on Wednesday at Seoul Dragon City, a hotel in Yongsan District, Seoul.

"When we were planning, we talked about transcending time. Many things have improved over the past 79 years. But I wanted to say that there are still people who commit terrible acts for their personal gain. I wanted to deal with the irony of the times."

In the first season set in 1945, when a wealthy pawn shop owner Tae-sang in Gyeongseong (the Japanese-era name for Seoul), teams up with Chae-ok, who tracks down missing people with her father, to uncover mysterious events at Ongseong Hospital, which secretly has been doing human experiments on Koreans to create a monster as a human weapon.

In the new season, nightmares of the past seemed to have manifested again in modern-day Seoul, as bizarre serial killings occur throughout the city. Chae-ok, who survived the spring of Gyeongseong runs into Jang Ho-jae, and the two unravel the unfinished ties and fate.

Najin — a parasite found by the Japanese military that infects the mind and transforms survivors into monsters — is at the heart of both seasons. Chung said he wanted to delve into the personal significance of Najin for each character.

"It can be a catalyst for desperation, a means of control or a terrible curse. While the setting has evolved, the core idea remains — Najin is a transformative force that shapes individuals based on their intentions," he said.

In order to portray the time gap of 79 years, the new season has adopted a faster pace of storytelling, compared with the rather static way of the production depicting old-time Seoul.

Park said portraying Tae-sang and Ho-jae, jumping between times, has been both challenging and refreshing.

"Shifting to a modern setting in season 2, as opposed to the studio-based rural setting of season 1, it felt very fresh even though it's the same work. I found it exciting to explore new ways of portraying my character, from styling and occupation to emotional expression," he said.

"The action sequences in season 2 have become more visually dynamic. Set in a different background, it's much more spectacular and there is a lot to see."

Co-star Han said she focused more on how to act out the passage of time.

"As a character who lives alone in this era, I focused a lot on how she endured this time. The styling also had to be dark because she had to live a life like a shadow," she said.

Han added that since her character is a half-human, half-monster with extraordinary power, after swallowing the parasite, she tried wire work for the first time. After so many practices to feature her character's agile movement in the drama, she said she happened to overcome acrophobia, upping the anticipation for her action scenes.

"Gyeongseong Creature" has also served as an opportunity to introduce a specific period and the painful history of Korea to global audiences. Yet, the director said the story would resonate with people from other countries.

"I don't think the message embedded in 'Gyeongseong Creature' is a story that only we suffer from. I think we should think about the people who made us suffer. I think it's important to point out those people and not compromise or bow our heads. That was the original intention of the project."

"Gyeongseong Creature 2" will be released Friday on Netflix.