"Humint" star Zo In-sung showed close ties with director Ryu Seung-wan, webtoonist Kang Full and director Na Hong-jin.
On the morning of the 11th, at a cafe in Sogyeok-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, an interview was held with Zo In-sung, the lead actor of the film "Humint."
The film "Humint" (director Ryu Seung-wan, distributed by NEW, produced by Oeyunaegang Co., Ltd.) depicts a story in Vladivostok, where secrets and truths are submerged in a cold sea of ice, and people with different aims clash with each other. It partially shares a universe with Ryu Seung-wan's 2013 box-office hit "The Berlin File," which surpassed 7 million admissions.
Zo In-sung delivered a passionate performance as Jo, a director-level agent of the National Intelligence Service (NIS) of Korea. He showcased riveting acting from bare-handed action to high-difficulty firearms sequences. In addition, Park Jeongmin plays North Korea's State Security Department director Park Geon, Park Hae-jun plays the North Korean consul in Vladivostok Hwang Chi-seong, and Shin Sae-kyeong plays North Korean restaurant worker and Humint turned Cha Seon-hwa, respectively.
Following "Mogadishu" (2021) and "Smuggling" (2023), Zo In-sung met director Ryu Seung-wan for the third time with "Humint," marking another career-defining role. He is also set to present this year the Netflix film "Possible Love" and director Na Hong-jin's highly anticipated global project "Hope." Releasing three projects in one year, his busy streak is drawing attention.
Ahead of its release, about high advance ticket sales and audience expectations, he said, "Strong films including ours will be released during the Lunar New Year holiday, three in total. In the end, how much the box-office pie expands is important, and how much each break-even point increases seems important. I wish luck to our movie as well."
Earlier, director Ryu Seung-wan said of actor Zo In-sung that "he is also a good person personally," and Zo In-sung responded, "The biggest reason might be that I'm from Gangdong District. 'Moving' webtoonist Kang Full, director Na Hong-jin of 'Hope,' and director Ryu Seung-wan are all from Gangdong District. Those people rotate my schedule. Because there's a lot of skinship, they see me often, so they say those things about me," offering a modest remark.
He continued, "Half joking, half serious, we see each other often, and our relationship went beyond director and actor to comrades. We even discuss the future of Korean cinema together," adding, "In that senior position, we talk about those things a lot. And because our neighborhoods are close, we often call director Kang Full out when drinking, then call out director Ryu Seung-wan, and we also call out director Na Hong-jin. Our homes are close, so that happened occasionally," he said with a smile.
Meanwhile, "Humint" opens on the 11th.
[Photo] Provided by NEW
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