Netflix series 'The Whirlwind' to present stormy political thriller

From left, actor Kim Hee-ae, writer Park Kyung-su, director Kim Yong-wan and actor Sul Kyung-gu pose during a press conference for the Netflix original series “The Whirlwind” in Dongdaemun District, Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of Netflix

Netflix's latest Korean original series, "The Whirlwind," will offer a captivating political thriller with its intense plot and powerful performance by veteran actors Sul Kyung-gu and Kim Hee-ae.

The new series, which will drop Friday, revolves around Prime Minister Park Dong-ho (Sul), who is on the brink of losing everything he accomplished after asking the corrupt president to step down. When he decides to transform the political landscape by assassinating the president, he faces off against ambitious Deputy Prime Minister Jeong Su-jin (Kim) who tries to stop him for her own reasons.

"As the title hints, the series will offer viewers the experience of a relentless and fierce whirlwind of a story and a spectacle of characters. It captures the journey of a person who is consumed by his convictions and turned into a monster, taking responsibility for his past choices," the series' director Kim Yong-wan said during a press conference for the series in Dongdaemun District, Seoul, Tuesday.

Director Kim Yong-wan, whose previous work is the 2020 occult thriller series "The Cursed," teamed up with scriptwriter Park Kyung-su, who wrote the political series "The Chaser" (2012), for this drama.

The writer explained he came up with the story as an outlet to resolve the frustrations he felt with the current reality of society.

"I felt the reality we're living in right now is very stifling. The present is dominated by the worn-out past, blurring a vision for the future," he said. "No matter how frustrating and bleak it is, I believe we should live to fix things among ourselves. But hoping for a superhuman on a white horse is just impossible in real life. That's why I wanted to create it as a series."

Sul Kyung-gu, left, as Prime Minister Park Dong-ho and Kim Hee-ae as Deputy Prime Minister Jeong Su-jin in a scene from the series “The Whirlwind” / Courtesy of Netflix

Park noted that the series will follow the portrayal of a self-destructive character steeped in his own conviction.

"I wanted to depict a collapse of a person rather than about authority. The reason a person falls is that he dreams an impossible dream," he said. "I am interested in those who decline the hand to help them until the end and choose to fall, and all characters I write are like that … Park Dong-ho in this series is such a person as well."

Sul, who is taking on his first series in about 30 years, shared he put his own fantasy into his character.

"Park Dong-ho is recklessly bold and an excellent strategist at the same time. He is determined to act on his beliefs to the very end," he said.

"He is an innovative reformer, a fictional character that one might wish for in the politics scene. So I portrayed him with hope and imagination, thinking 'it would be nice if such a person existed.'"