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News bites: July 4, 2022


Cha Eun-woo

  • An American debut for Cha Eun-woo (True Beauty) may be in the works, with his agency confirming that he received an offer to play an idol group member for the upcoming film K-pop: Lost in America. The plot follows a fictional Korean idol group on the cusp of their international debut, but disaster hits just days before their debut performance in New York City — they end up stranded in rural Texas and hijinks ensue as they hit the road in attempt to make it to the big city. Reports out of the U.S. have Korean-American actor Charles Melton attached to star, along with Rebel Wilson. This strikes me as an unusual combination, and the choice of director, Yoon Je-kyun (Haeundae, Ode to My Father), upped the strangeness factor for me. It all sounds like pure fluff with a twist of Korean flavor, and I’m intrigued enough to want to see more. The film’s release date hasn’t been set yet, but production will begin this fall. [Herald Pop, Deadline]

  • Jeon Hye-jin, Sooyoung

  • Jeon Hye-jin (Uncle) and Sooyoung (Run On) are being courted to play mother and daughter in a new drama called Strangers. Adapted from a popular webtoon by the same name, the main characters have a very atypical mom-daughter relationship and lead very separate lives despite living together. The character Jeon is considering was once a teen mom and is now a flighty adult, whereas Sooyoung’s potential character has composure to spare and a cool temperament. I’m a fan of both of them and would love to get them in the same drama together, so here’s hoping they both say yes. [SpoTV News]
  • There’s a new maknae in SBS’s variety Master in the House: Doyoung of NCT. In the past year, there have been a few casting changes, with Shin Sung-rok (Doctor Lawyer) and Cha Eun-woo (True Beauty) saying goodbye last June in order to focus on their acting careers. Yoo Soo-bin (Human Disqualification) joined the cast shortly after, but announced his departure in April to also focus on his acting career. As he left, Eun Ji-won (New World) joined Lee Seung-gi (Mouse), comedian Yang Se-hyung, and retired MMA fighter Kim Dong-hyun as a fixed cast member. With Doyoung now rounding out the group, I’m excited to see how their chemistry develops as they get to know each other. [SBS, News1]
  • Moon Geun-young (Catch the Ghost) has been spending time behind the camera for a change. This year, three of her short films have been selected for the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, a.k.a BIFAN (and yes, the “Fantastic” is part of the official name). BIFAN will take place this month, and a trailer has been released for all three films. Moon began work on the films last year with the Bachi Creative Collective and she stars in Abyss, which tells a story of despair, and the struggle to overcome and find hope. The second film, The Stage, depicts the inner life of an actor who wants to step out of the spotlight but struggles to give up the stage. The last film, Be In My Dream, explores themes of love, loss, and longing. [Star News, Donga Ilbo]
  • Gu Kyo-hwan (Monstrous) is set to make a guest appearance on Extraordinary Attorney Woo. Details on who he will playing won’t be released before the episode airs, but he’s such a strong character actor that he’s sure to make an impression. [Star Today]
  • It’s a Gu Kyo-hwan two-fer today! He is currently in talks to potentially star in The Gray (working title). Directed by Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan, Hellbound), The Gray is a continuation of the story Yeon is currently working on for his Netflix film, Jung_E. In the world where Jung_E takes place, it’s the 22nd century and earth has been ravaged by climate change and rendered largely unlivable. Not much is know about The Gray yet, but it’s likely to have a dark, post-apocalyptic mood. If Gu confirm, it will be the third time he and Yeon work together (try Peninsula and Monstrous if you want to watch more of either man’s oeuvre). [SpoTV News, Sports Kyunghyang]

  • Gu Kyo-hwan

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Damn Cha Eun-woo is pretty. But this film sounds like a hot mess and has the potential to be racist.

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I hear Texas and racism is the next word🥺

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Umm, yeah, I have no confidence in anyone on either side of the Pacific to pull this off without being messed up in both cultural directions. I'd love to be proven wrong.

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Honestly, racism is everywhere in the world, but this is set in rural Texas, not even a big urban city. I wouldn't put it past them to throw in Texan stereotypes like cowboys and tumbleweeds.

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I have a special bond with tumbleweed as it was part of a game I had on my Commodore 64 back in the day 🤣 to this day I talk about tumbleweed rolling whenever there is nothing happening.

I can picture it now it will have City Slickers style initiation process to earn the respect of the local person who sets out on a mission to help them reach where they need to get to. Due to the minivan breaking down they will need to ride the venue on horseback…The phone reception will be disappear so they are isolated and scared of the one person who can help them. There will be a campfire where either they will teach him a song and dance moves or he will teach them how to barn dance.

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🤣🤣🤣

I would pay hard cash to not have to watch this.

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Yes I think it'll be more Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert and less Deliverance. Though your campfire scenario sounds like it could turn into a K-pop dance version of Duelling Banjos.

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Both of these comments are absolute classics. 🤣🤣

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The movie might end up sucking, but cha eun woo's fans will watch every second of it in HD because darn that pretty face!

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Truly it sounds like a hot mess! He is a cutie, loved him on Master in the House.

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It's director Yoon Je-kyoon who makes me nervous. It's not that his films are that bad, just that they have been very much aimed at Korean viewers, and it's hard to see how the guy who made Sex is Zero and My Boss My Hero is going to transition into a purveyor of global entertainment.

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They end up stranded in rural Texas.

Now what could go wrong here? Rural Texas is one of the last places in the USofA I would want to find myself in as an Asian.

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Good news is that it will probably be filmed in New Mexico. We have such diverse landscapes and a thriving film industry.

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Oh, I meant in terms of the storyline.

I'm sure the cast will be fine if they filmed in rural Texas given they'll have security and what not.

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No worries. I missed Idris Elba filming in Santa Fe so I will be all over the NM film schedule website looking for this shoot.
We often see yellow signs along our roads that direct film crews to locations. Sometimes they get cute with the signage. Like for the recent Oppenheimer film "American Prometheus" the signs read "Gadget".

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Sounds cool to be able to visit a Kdrama-ish film site!

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About first one...emm...No thank you...
I am happy for Moon Geun-young. I will not go hunting for those short films but it's great achievement nevertheless.

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yayyyy female directors. great topic for my Korean culture club at the library.

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In this movie with idols, probably 3 or 4 other famous idols are supposed to play. There is a list on the internet with their names (no, no one from BTS, I am writing just in case anyone is curious), apparently it's a production leak, but maybe it's just a fabricated rumor.

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The entire first news bite point is filled with so many levels of wtfery I'm not even sure how I'm supposed to process it.

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I'm happy for CEW, he works hard and i'm sure it'll be a fun, quirky movie to show a different side of him.

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The movie looks like a future disaster between the story and the actors...

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1. This sounds like such a hot mess on every conceivable level that I’m immediately turned off on it. I wish the best for Cha Eun-woo, but I will not subject myself to this cringe.

2. The complete opposite reaction from the first one. I want this and I want this as quickly as possible. Everything from the casting to the story sounds brilliant.

3. I’m only a casual viewer of Master in the House and tbh, I’ve barely watched any episodes since Shin Sung-rok left. Hopefully I’ll hear good things about this new group and regain some interest.

4. I’m so happy for Moon Geun-young. It was a bit sad to hear her pause her acting career since she was so magnetic onscreen, but it seems she is thriving behind the scenes as well. A festival debut is nothing to scoff at. I hope I can get the opportunity to watch the short films one day.

5. Koo Kyo-hwan and Park Eun-bin?? Sharing my screen??? *faints*

6. That’s…a lot of confidence to put on Jung_E before it even releases. Oh well. As long as it’s better than Monstrous because that was a true mixed bag of utterly wasted potential. Just happy for Koo Kyo-hwan’s continued employment era.

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also, I am sorry but Rebel Wilson is NOT an actress, she can´t act, she is annoying and if they force a love line it will be really unnatural cause she just.... has an unlovable presence. Like I cannot literally see her being a love interest.

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