INTERVIEW Lee Jong-won excited to find different sides of himself through acting Actor Lee Jong-won played the role of Tae-yong in MBC's fantasy drama series “The Golden Spoon.” Courtesy of Echo Global Group Model-turned actor takes first lead role with 'The Golden Spoon'By Lee Gyu-leeActor Lee Jong-won has been building a promising portfolio since making his way into acting from modeling in 2018, starring in well-made series like “My Unfamiliar Family” and “Hospital Playlist 2.” Actor Lee Jong-won / Courtesy of Echo Global Group About four years into his career, the actor took his first lead role in MBC's fantasy drama series “The Golden Spoon.”“It still feels surreal that people are recognizing me and responding (to the series),” Lee told The Korea Times during an interview at the office of his agency Echo Global Group in Gangnam District in southern Seoul, Tuesday. “This is the first time that I've gotten this much popularity Nov 16, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
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-leeNetflix'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 involvNov 16, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
TV producer Lee Wook-jung explores intersection of food, culture Documentary producer Lee Wook-jung / Courtesy of TvingNew documentary 'Food Chronicle' searches for spiritual significance, forms of foodBy Kwak Yeon-sooLee Wook-jung is a rare mainstream documentary producer who explores everything related to food ― from the fine dining world to local street food. A trailblazer of food documentary, he explores the intersection of food and culture from an anthropological point of view. He always looks to tell a personal story and studies the origins and cooking styles of each cuisine.“The foods that captivated the world are plain and simple. I call them 'capsule food' because they can be eaten in one bite. Sandwiches, pizza, dumplings, tacos and sushi are all like that. They are easy to make and easy to eat, and you can enjoy a variety of flavors at once,” he said during a recent interview with The Korea Times.His new documentary, “Food Chronicle,” currently available on local streaming platform Tving, is an eye-opening food documentary that follows his journey exploring different forms of popular cuisine. The series features Nov 16, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo
Kakao's new music show to make virtual K-pop groupBy Lee Gyu-lee A poster for the new music survival show “GIRL'S RE:VERSE” / Courtesy of Kakao Entertainment Virtual reality under the bigger concept of the metaverse has been the latest trend across industries, making its way into entertainment as well. Kakao Entertainment's upcoming music survival show “GIRL'S RE:VERSE” is intended to bring together the concept of immersive, virtual reality with K-pop artists.The new show, set to premiere on Nov. 28, will invite 30 singers from different K-pop girl groups to compete with each other to make it to the top five and debut as a group through virtual reality. The participants will hide their real-life identities throughout the competition and show off their performance skills and talents through virtual avatars. Singer Bada, choreographer Aiki and TV personalities Boom and Pengsoo will host the show. The show is co-produced by Cho Wook-hyung, whose previous work includes “Infinite Challenge,” and Park Jin-kyung, who led “DNov 14, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
INTERVIEW Park Se-young feels emotional bond with character in 'Mental Coach Jegal' Actress Park Se-young plays the role of a counselor in the tvN series, “Mental Coach Jegal.” Courtesy of tvN Actress returns to small screen after 3-year recharging periodBy Lee Gyu-leeActress Park Se-young has made a small screen comeback with “Mental Coach Jegal,” picking up her acting career again following a three-year hiatus after the 2019 action series, “Special Labor Inspector.” Actress Park Se-young / Courtesy of CLN Company The actress, who has taken part in a series every year since her debut in 2011, said that returning after taking some time off has changed her approach to acting.“I usually get really nervous (when I'm acting). I'm a perfectionist so I have so many thoughts going on in my head and (now,) I consciously try to tell myself to let loose,” Park said during an interview with The Korea Times, held at the office of her agency, CLNov 14, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
Kim So-hyun to lead new mystery romance series By Lee Gyu-leeActress Kim So-hyun / Courtesy of IEUM#Actress Kim So-hyun has confirmed the lead role in the upcoming mystery romance series, “Useless Lies” (direct translation), according to her agency, IEUM#. The new series will revolve around a murder suspect and a woman who has a special ability to detect lies coming together to uncover the truth to exonerate the suspect. Kim will play the role of the woman, named Mok Sol-hee, who has the ability to tell whether people are lying or not. Although she takes this special ability as a curse, she tries to make it useful by taking a job as a “liar hunter.”The series, which is expected to go on air next year, will be led by director Nam Seong-woo, whose previous work includes the 2018 period series, “100 Days My Prince,” and the 2021 romantic comedy series, “My Roommate is a Gumiho.”Kim, who debuted as a child actor at the age of eight, has played the lead roles in various series, including Netflix's romance series, “Love Alarm,” and the KBS' period series, “The Tale of NoNov 13, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
INTERVIEW 'Bargain' director expands short film into disaster series Tving's original series, "Bargain,” is based on the 2015 short film of the same name. Courtesy of TvingNew series helps boost Tving's subscription By Lee Gyu-leeTving's new series, "Bargain," which is adapted from a 2015 award-winning short film of the same name, extends the original plot into a crime, disaster dystopian series. Director Jeon Woo-sung of the series, "Bargain" / Courtesy of TvingFilmmaker Lee Chung-hyeon's short film follows a schoolgirl and a man bargaining for her services as a prostitute.But it turns out the girl lured him to the motel to steal and sell his organs. The plot was picked up for a six-part series, which was released on the streaming platform on Oct. 28. The new series developed the story into what happened after the original short film's ending. Amid the bargaining, the man, Noh Hyung-soo (Jin Seon-kyu), and the young woman, Park Joo-young (Jun Jong-seo), encounter an earthquake and get trapped in the building.Along with a few other survivors, including Ko Keuk-ryul (Chang Ryul), a customer who was desperate to buy an organ for his father, the twNov 10, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
'Squid Game' star Lee Jung-jae cast for Disney+ original Star Wars series Leslye Headland, right, director of the upcoming original Star Wars series "The Acolyte," as well as series leads Lee Jung-jae, center, and Amandla Stenberg, left, are seen in this behind-the-scenes photo taken from the official Star Wars website. YonhapSmash-hit Netflix series "Squid Game" actor Lee Jung-jae will star in "The Acolyte," an upcoming Star Wars series to be streamed on Disney +, according to production company Lucasfilm."The Acolyte" is a mystery thriller written and directed by Leslye Headland for Disney+ and has begun production in Britain, Lucasfilm said in a release posted on its website Monday (local time).Among other main cast members are Amandla Stenberg of "The Hate U Give," Manny Jacinto of "Nine Perfect Strangers," and Dafne Keen of "His Dark Materials". The show will focus on the emergence of dark side powers in the final days of the High Republic Era, it said, without releasing its release schedule. (Yonhap)Nov 8, 2022
OTTs seek to diversify portfolio in streaming war The streaming service, Watcha, started a webtoon service in October. Courtesy of WatchaBy. Lee Gyu-leeThe over-the-top (OTT) service has been a booming industry in recent years, especially with the COVID-19 outbreak pushing people to stay inside.However, as the pandemic restrictions ease and competition intensifies in the OTT industry, platforms are seeking alternatives to diversify their business portfolios to secure their footing in the heated streaming war. Local streaming service, Watcha, has made its way into the webtoon business, servicing a series of original webcomics on its platform. The platform debuted eight original webcomics on Oct. 13, including the webtoon adaptation of its original reality series, “Join My Table.” It will update new episodes of the digital comics each week for subscribers to enjoy along with other video content on the platform at no additional cost.“Watcha has expanded its service to include webtoons and has initiated the process to develop into a multi-content platform beyond video streaming,” the company said in a statement. Nov 4, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
From Song Joong-ki to Kim Rae-won, series with big stars set for November From left, posters for the series “Reborn Rich,” “The First Responders,” and “Behind Every Star” / Courtesy of JTBC, SBS, tvNBy Lee Gyu-leeA string of series, starring big named stars like Song Joong-ki and Kim Rae-won as the leads, will go to air this month. JTBC's new fantasy series “Reborn Rich,” starring Song and Lee Sung-min, is finally slated to kick off on Nov. 18 after eager anticipation.Based on the webcomics of the same name, the upcoming series revolves around a loyal employee Yoon Hyun-woo (Song) who has dedicated his life to working for a wealthy conglomerate chairman Jin Yang-chul (Lee), and the chairman's family. Despite his loyalty, he gets framed for embezzlement and is murdered. He wakes up in the body of the family's youngest son and seeks to take revenge on the family while trying to discover who is behind his death.The series is led by director Jung Dae-yoon, who helmed hit series “W” and “She Was Pretty,” and is scripted by screenwriter Kim Tae-hee, whose previous work includes “SungkyNov 3, 2022By Lee Gyu-lee
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