Director Nam Dong-hyub, who captivated both the public and critics with the film Handsome Guys, has confirmed that actors Song Kang-ho, Koo Kyo-hwan, Song Seungheon, Lee Kwangsoo, Shin Hyun-been and Lee Jaein will appear in his new film The Gardeners (working title).
Korea's representative actor Song Kang-ho, rising Chungmuro star Koo Kyo-hwan, and Song Seungheon, Lee Kwangsoo, Shin Hyun-been and Lee Jaein will meet in the film The Gardeners (working title). The Gardeners (director Nam Dong-hyub, produced by HYBE MediaCorp Co., Ltd.) tells the story of a government clerk who is a plant caretaker with the sole hobby of growing flowers, who joins hands with the neighborhood troublemaker and jumps into a special horticultural business, plunging the quiet village into an unimaginable great turmoil.
Koo Kyo-hwan was cast as Kim Mun-ho, the role that will partner with Song Kang-ho, who was the first to announce the casting news. Kim Mun-ho is the neighborhood troublemaker who brings various incidents and accidents wherever he goes. Koo Kyo-hwan, who has built a distinctive style through various works such as the films If We and Escape, the film Mogadishu, and the Netflix series D.P., is expected to unleash unpredictable chemistry with Song Kang-ho based on his unique energy and charm.
Song Seungheon plays Han Cheong-yong, a star who once dominated the music scene but fell into ruin after an incident. Song Seungheon, who has continued active work in projects such as the film Hidden Face and the drama My Troublesome Star, is expected to attempt a radical acting transformation through the character Han Cheong-yong, whose reversal charm hidden behind his charisma stands out.
Lee Kwangsoo, who has won the public's love with multi-layered charm across both variety shows and works such as The Manipulated, Bad Relationship and GBRB, was cast as Song, the owner. Song runs a lottery shop and acts as a partner handling distribution for Choi Young-il's horticultural business, and is expected to add vitality to the flow of the story.
Shin Hyun-been was cast as Kang Mi-ae, a restaurant owner with a dangerous secret. Shin Hyun-been, who has demonstrated a limitless acting spectrum by moving between good and evil in works such as the films Face, Revelations and Beasts Clawing at Straws and the dramas Tell Me That You Love Me, Reborn Rich and Hospital Playlist, will bring a different tension to the work by portraying the elegant yet cold-blooded businesswoman Kang Mi-ae. In addition, Lee Jaein, who breathes life into characters with irreplaceable presence across diverse genres and roles in works such as Concrete Market, Hi-Fi Five, Our Unwritten Seoul and Spring Fever, will make a special appearance as Young-il's daughter Choi Eun-su, enriching the drama further.
The Gardeners (working title), which promises explosive acting synergy from the fresh combination of Song Kang-ho, Koo Kyo-hwan, Song Seungheon, Lee Kwangsoo, Shin Hyun-been and Lee Jaein, is directed by Nam Dong-hyub, who captured both the public and critics with his distinctive direction of the occult-comedy hybrid Handsome Guys. Nam Dong-hyub, who was recognized at major domestic and international film festivals for Handsome Guys with awards including the Best New Director at the 23rd Directors Cut Awards, inclusion in the Korean Film Critics Association's top 10 of 44, the Panorama Fantastic Audience Award at the 57th Sitges Film Festival and the jury prize at the 23rd Florence Korean Film Festival, is expected to once again sensibly depict sprightly humor and thrilling tension and show the essence of a well-made comedy in this work.
HYBE MediaCorp, which has presented a variety of genre works that combine both artistic merit and box office success, including Handsome Guys, 12.12: The Day, Harbin, YADANG: The Snitch, Deliver Us from Evil, The Man Standing Next, Inside Men and Made In Korea, will produce the film, adding credibility. Having teamed up once again with director Nam Dong-hyub following Handsome Guys, the best synergy is expected. Cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, who won the Baeksang Arts Awards grand prize in film for Harbin, also joins The Gardeners (working title). Hong, who has built a solid filmography including Deliver Us from Evil, Parasite and Snowpiercer, is expected to raise the work's completeness with his outstanding mise-en-scène.
Meanwhile, The Gardeners (working title), which raises expectations as a meeting between Korea's representative actors and a leading next-generation Korean director, is in pre-production aiming to start principal photography in 2026.
[Photo] each agency
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