There are rules in Gwangjang that must be absolutely followed. The moment those rules are broken, Gwangjang becomes a place where blood and desire intertwine. Eleven years ago, Nam Gi-jun left Gwangjang after severing his Achilles' heel, but he returns when the rules are broken by his brother's death. With his return, Gwangjang shakes violently once again. This work, which expands the overwhelming immersion and harsh worldview of the original webtoon, vividly captures the intense emotional lines of hardboiled noir created by characters living with their own desires and guilt, pushing and pulling each other. Thus,
I am curious about the process of creating the series
That's right. Initially, I received a proposal from a production company that was producing a work based on the Naver webtoon Studio N. The story of the original work was already there, and it was decided from the beginning that it would be planned as a series. We worked by discussing with the writer and the production company to expand the story based on the original.
In fact, So Ji-sub was not the first choice... he was the zero choice. (laughs) I really wanted to work with him. Many original fans also picked him as their first choice. Fortunately, he agreed readily, so it went smoothly.
What made you think that So Ji-sub would be suitable for the role of Nam Gi-jun?
I actually thought more about the atmosphere he possesses rather than the sync rate with the drawing style. His dryness fits the image of a brother who wants to talk to his younger sibling but doesn't. I think the real So Ji-sub is also very dry, and rather than saying ten words, he would be the type to give a supportive pat on the shoulder. After experiencing it, I found that some aspects of the real So Ji-sub were very similar to Nam Gi-jun, which was very satisfying.
As a viewer, it might be difficult to understand Nam Gi-jun's actions. If it were simply for family revenge, it would be too extreme. However, I thought it might be hard for the audience to follow due to the lack of character backstory or explanation.
I thought that just the setup of seeking revenge because they are family would not be convincing for the viewers. Rather, I think it was the guilt and atonement they have for each other that led to this act of revenge.
Although the role of Nam Gi-seok is not large, it is very important. Is there a reason you cast Lee Joon-hyuk for the role of Gi-seok?
I didn't suggest Lee Joon-hyuk based on the image he showed in previous works. I just thought that Gi-seok shouldn't look like a typical gangster. Of course, he is the second-in-command of the organization. The visuals we commonly imagine for a second-in-command are similar, right? I wanted him to have a smart image, and I hoped that in the scenes where he is alone, he would show a tired and worn-out look from life.
Also, after watching variety shows where I could catch glimpses of the real Lee Joon-hyuk, I became very curious about him. Because of those points, I met him to talk. He turned out to be a very serious person. For similar reasons to So Ji-sub, Lee Joon-hyuk also has a very serious yet dry charm, so I thought that when these two sit together, they would have a similar vibe even without saying much.
There are mixed opinions among viewers regarding Gong Myung's portrayal of the villain. What is your perspective on this?
I think the reason for the dislike is that it differs from the typical portrayal of villains we have seen. Usually, if someone is a second-generation chaebol or a spoiled son, they would raise one eyebrow or speak like a villain, right? I don't think Gu Jun-mo, played by Gong Myung, would think that what he is doing is bad. He seems to act without knowing anything, just saying, 'I want to do this,' and he is not doing it with bad intentions. I believe that the innocent face Gong Myung showed in his previous works actually helped express this pure evil.
The scene where Gu Jun-mo and Gi-seok confront each other was very tense. It is hard to predict what kind of actions the character Gu Jun-mo will take. I am curious about how you filmed that scene, as it leads to both Gi-seok's death and Gi-jun's revenge.
From Gi-seok's perspective, the moment he slaps Jun-mo, he must have instinctively felt that he would not be able to live the life he had dreamed of, whether it was camping or life after leaving this organization. However, he couldn't hit the brakes when he saw Jun-mo mocking and humiliating him, knowing that his brother had left after severing his Achilles' heel because of the world of Gwangjang.
When filming that scene, the first slap was actually delivered by Joon-hyuk. I thought it would be better to do it honestly rather than awkwardly doing it multiple times. In today's era, one might ask why go that far, but to let the emotions of the characters burst out, I thought it would be better to do it honestly at least once. The only actor who actually got hit twice was Gong Myung. He was actually hit once by his father.
Were there not many NGs?
Yes, it went well. (laughs)
Nam Gi-jun has a handicap of having one Achilles' heel severed. Therefore, the action that minimizes movement stands out. I am curious about how this handicap influenced the action design.
It is indeed a significant handicap. Having a leg injury means starting with a fundamental handicap in action design. First of all, the speed of advancing is slow, and he cannot use actions like kicking much. Therefore, we aimed for the goal of 'moving forward slowly but not retreating, continuing to advance little by little.' The action will probably appear to have a slightly slower rhythm than typical actions. It may not be familiar to viewers who are used to fast-paced content these days. So we changed angles a lot, and while many modern actions increase speed, we minimized such speed changes. We aimed to make the existing movements and expressions feel powerful by closely focusing on each one, allowing the audience to accurately perceive the situation.
Which action scene was the most challenging to film?
The scene in episode 4 where Gi-jun goes to deal with Gu Jun-mo was the hardest. This is because the space was narrow. The camera and several people had to fit into the space centered around Gi-jun. We referred to that space on set as the 'ant hole.' It was a bit like an ant hole, expanding and contracting. I wanted the ant hole action to be a more experiential action compared to other action scenes. I hoped the audience would feel like they were inside with Gi-jun, who is among the people. I didn't think just filming it in first-person would create that feeling; I wanted to create a sense of suffocation by making it feel tightly packed no matter where you looked.
While they do uphold loyalty among themselves, I hoped that it would serve as a source of strength for Gi-jun. So, it’s not just that he keeps moving forward because his brother died; when Chun-seok and Byeong-ho die, Gi-jun's anger towards Jun-mo rises sharply. I thought their deaths would serve as a trigger to explode Gi-jun's emotions, which is why I included that device.
After filming
I feel hesitant to give advice since I am not very experienced myself. Choo Young-woo was just a complete package. He is a very flexible actor. Geum-soon is a character with great ambition and desire. Emotionally, I think Lee Joo-woon (Heo Joon-ho) and Geum-soon are the two characters in the story who are in the biggest emotional whirlpool. In that sense, I think he did very well without appearing consistently bad. The most I told the actors was not "Please act like this," but rather, "What is this character feeling at this moment?" I think we asked each other that question a lot.
What specific aspects of Choo Young-woo made you describe him as a complete package?
Choo Young-woo's first scene was the funeral scene of Gi-seok. When I saw it, I thought, 'This actor can definitely deliver what I envision until the end.' The original wording of the line he says to Seong-cheol (Jo Han-cheol) at the funeral was, "Where is Nam Jeon-moo's funeral?" I thought that how he asked that would show whether the character is pure or has tremendous ambition. However, when I saw the line Choo Young-woo delivered, I felt I couldn't quite grasp the character's inner self. We also discussed the wording of the line and changed it to, "Where is it? Nam Jeon-moo's funeral?"
I think those subtle details helped reveal his inner desire to want to get inside the organization, which continuously excludes him. And even when working with much older senior actors, he was able to express his interpretation through his acting, which was a great help in that regard.
There are many actors in
They were all a bit different, but I think Lee Joon-hyuk was quite different. He is very down-to-earth and delicate, if I may say so. He has a masculine and strong face, but he is very delicate. And Heo Joon-ho seems scary, but he speaks very cutely. He is very cute. Ahn Gil-kang is also cute. So I think they were quite different from the preconceived notions or images I had of them.
There have been many reactions among viewers of
First of all, it is an honour to be compared, but I did not work with the intention of making those comparisons.
Speaking of
I think I need to study that! He kills too many. (laughs) But since we are not doing headshots, it is a bit different from kill counts. I think we should count the takedowns. If we were to count the kills, I think I could quickly count them now. There’s Shimane (Lee Jae-yoon), Cha Yeong-do (Cha Seung-won), Geum-soon, two foreign killers, and when he chopped the bodybuilder's neck with an axe in the ant hole, Gu Jun-mo too. It’s not even ten people. The kill count is seven. The rest are either incapacitated or fallen.
