Following her breakthrough performance in the record-breaking and award-winning Squid Game, model-turned-actress Hoyeon makes her big-screen debut in director Na Hong-jin’s (The Wailing) ambitious new thriller, HOPE.
Set in a remote harbor town in South Korea, the film follows residents who find themselves in a desperate fight for survival against a dangerous and mysterious threat. Hoyeon plays rookie police officer Sung-ae, who works alongside the police chief to uncover the danger before it’s too late.
The actress shared details regarding her time on set with RUE MORGUE.
What drew you to HOPE?
First of all, I have always been a huge fan of director Na Hong-jin and all of his work. As for my co-stars, Hwang Jung-min and Jo In-sung, I have long admired them. They’re such incredible veteran masters of their crafts. I was also really excited to work with the cinematographer, Alex Hong. All of those things led me to this project.
What was it like to work with Na Hong-jin and what makes him such a unique director?
Honestly, before our first meeting, I was thinking that he was going to be such a scary man. When you look at his previous works, there’s a lot of gore and violence. I thought, if a man is capable of that kind of imagination, then how scary is he going to be in real life?
But when I actually met him, he was just such a pleasure to be with. He was really funny, which was a pleasant surprise. He turned out to be someone who is always very fun. He jokes around a lot.
Did anything take you by surprise?
What struck me was that I thought he would be someone who would never get scared. I had heard these tales within the Korean industry that when he was shooting The Wailing, he was so meticulous to the point that he would redo a take for the continuity of the way the smog moved. I was scared to hear things like that.
But when I met him, I realized that it was because he is someone who gets scared easily as well. That’s why he is so meticulous in his preparation. He’s scared that somebody might get hurt, so he doesn’t want that to happen—especially with a film like HOPE, where there’s a lot of action.
I realized that he prepares that much because he is someone who harbors anxiety. He was incredible in the pre-production process, and he put so much effort and passion into everything he did.
Was this your most physically demanding role to date?
Because this was my first full-on, real action project, I had so much fun with it. The minute I found out that I was going to be in something so intense in terms of action, I went straight into hardcore personal and physical training.
That process was challenging. I hadn’t lived in a very muscular body before because I was a model and I wasn’t really the muscular type. But working on my physical training for HOPE, I got to meet a new body that was capable (of meeting the demands of an action role) and that gave me great happiness.
I was so satisfied being able to live in this new physique of mine. I almost felt like I had powered up to a new body!
What were the scenes that you found most challenging?
Having to hold the five-kilogram gun all the time. The scene where you first meet my character, we shot that for the whole entire day. I had to have this huge, heavy gun in my hands the whole day.
Of course, the scenes in the forest were very challenging, too—not just for me or the actors, but for the crew as well, because there were so many physical risks there. Having to run on unpolished and uneven ground with that five-kilogram gun in my hands was definitely physically challenging.
But I have to say, I almost feel like I was born for action. I love having this muscular body. It makes me so happy to have that. Unfortunately, I had to say goodbye to a lot of my muscles because of my next project, so I’m trying to shed some weight. But once I’m done with that—I almost feel like I’m addicted to physical training now—I’m going to get my muscular body back right away.
Did Na Hong-jin give you any particular reference points from horror movies to help you get into the character?
It’s actually not a horror movie, but there were definitely a couple of movies that director Na recommended whilst we were in pre-production. The first is Dr. Akagi. It’s directed by Shōhei Imamura, one of the legendary Japanese directors. There is a character called Sonoko who was helping Dr. Akagi. The movie didn’t reveal anything about her background or her story; she just showed up and did her job with her whole heart. It was fascinating watching her do that, and my character was inspired by Sonoko a lot.
Then, just to imagine the car chase scene, director Na recommended that I watch Bullitt. Those two movies inspired me a lot and helped me prepare for this movie.
HOPE is currently playing in theaters.
