Actress Park Boyoung boldly shed her "Ppobly" image through her first crime thriller.
On the morning of the 27th at the Conrad Seoul hotel in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, a production press conference was held for the Disney+ original "Goldland." Attending the press conference were actors Park Boyoung, Kim Sung-Cheol, Lee Hyun-wook, Kim Hie-won, Moon Jeong-hee, Lee Kwangsoo, and director Kim Sung-hoon.
Goldland is a golden desire survival thriller in which Hee-joo (played by Park Boyoung), who comes into possession of 150 billion won worth of gold bullion from a smuggling organization, fights desperately to claim the gold amid a chaos of greed and betrayal. Director Kim Sung-hoon explained, "It's a story about Kim Hee-joo, who by chance comes to possess smuggled gold, roughly 150 billion won in market value, and what happens when the desire to keep that gold arises among criminal organizations."
Through Goldland, Park Boyoung challenges the crime genre for the first time. Asked why she chose the project, she said, "I wanted to take on a challenge genre-wise, and when I met with the director he said that many people have an image of me as someone who would return the gold, so he thought it would be interesting if someone with that image made a choice that was the opposite. That part appealed to me the most."
In the work, Park Boyoung plays customs officer Kim Hee-joo, who awakens to desire because of 150 billion won worth of gold bullion. She said, "At first the director said it would be good if I lost weight. He thought Hee-joo's character didn't grow up very happily, so it would be good to reflect that, and since there are many scenes later where she runs away with the gold, he said it would be better if my face looked a bit thinner, so I lost some weight throughout filming. He also said he wanted almost no makeup, so at first I thought I should wear some, but gradually I reduced it a lot." She described the efforts she made to portray the character.
Director Kim Sung-hoon said, "You can really see her bare face. I think it took a lot of courage. In any case, exposing one's desire is not something you can do blatantly. It grows inside, and she conveyed those small changes delicately and with detail. She performed action and other scenes without holding back. What I value most is not only the weight loss but that Hee-joo continually collapses and grows tired in life, and she agreed to do anything to portray that. Although she is the actress Park Boyoung, within the drama she becomes the character Kim Hee-joo, shedding Park Boyoung's image so you can see a new side of her."
Kim Sung-Cheol plays Woo-gi, who proposes a dangerous partnership after learning that Hee-joo has the gold bullion. Kim Sung-Cheol said, "Like the title of a man honest in the face of desire, Woo-gi is a one-dimensional and straightforward guy. I thought the mysteries that arise from this straightforwardness could give the drama tension. I also thought a completely bare face would be good, so it took about five minutes to set up before filming. It was just sunscreen and done. I thought there would be many honest faces shown."
Asked about his chemistry with Park Boyoung, he said, "It was great. In the drama I say 'noona' a lot, and even when practicing lines I called her 'noona'." Park Boyoung responded, "I don't think I've ever been called 'noona' this much in my life. I even sing Jenny's song 'Jenny' as 'noona' all day. If I had a younger sibling, I think it might be someone like that," sharing their chemistry and drawing laughter.
Lee Hyun-wook plays Lee Do-kyung, Hee-joo's boyfriend and the first to cause the gold bullion smuggling incident as the airline's first officer. He said, "The cast of Goldland are all characters honest about their desires. Personally, I thought Do-kyung is the most realistic, so I focused on that and tried to find many realistic reactions that could occur in moments."
Director Kim Sung-hoon said, "If you watch the drama you'll feel there is a major premise. It started with 'a person's heart is never just one thing.' Some feelings grow, and feelings that had grown can be broken. The most powerful among them is desire, and it's a story about how that desire overcomes. Hyun-wook has everything from a very cold feeling to a fragile side that melts well on his face. So as you watch, the character Lee Do-kyung is already in the process of falling into desire. The drama starts from that state, so the trembling anxiety and coldness need to be well represented, and I often talked about what the first emotions to be felt on set should be."
Kim Hie-won, who plays police officer Kim Jin-man living a life mortgaged by desire, said he chose the project because "the script itself was the most interesting among the scripts I read that year." He said, "I read many scripts, but this one was the most enjoyable. I was pleasantly surprised. I also saw the actors and thought it would be great, so I chose it. Kim Jin-man is literally a man trapped as collateral. He falls into a quagmire he can never escape and eventually gives up, later living in a state of despair thinking 'I'll just live like this and die,' a man sunk into the pit of evil."
Director Kim Sung-hoon said, "Kim Jin-man was a very important character for a certain ending in the latter part of the drama. As the story of a man mortgaged by desire, he is a character who, having been consumed by his desire, can show what remains at the end of a life that has survived. For that, the inner strength he holds was important. It was necessary to show that life itself. I was so relieved that senior actor Hie-won did it. At first I thought it was fortunate, but honestly while filming I thought it would have been a big problem if he hadn't been here. That's because he is a senior who has done so many works, and even with so much shown before, you can still see a new face in Goldland. Watching that on the monitor, there were several moments on set when I was moved to tears."
Moon Jeong-hee plays Yeo Sun-ok, a woman worn down by desire, portraying a mother-daughter relationship of love and hate with Park Boyoung. She said, "I was going through a very difficult time personally and had lost a lot of weight. A dog that lived like family passed away, and when I received the Goldland script it felt very much like Yeo Sun-ok. There was a part where I empathized with her." She added, "The phrase 'worn down by desire' is appropriate. Perhaps she is the woman who constantly hopes Hee-joo will 'not live like me.'"
Lee Kwangsoo plays executive Park, who relentlessly pursues the organization to recover the missing gold bullion, and he added character through a distinctive tooth gem. He said, "I suggested to the director the idea of expressing Park executive's difficult life with scars or an obsession with gold, accessories, and so on, and later as time passed people became interested in gold teeth, the director said, 'That was actually my idea. Don't you remember I mentioned it first?' But I clearly remember that I thought of it first," claiming ownership and drawing laughter. Director Kim Sung-hoon said, "To be precise, I suggested gold teeth, but ordinary gold teeth are obvious, so I suggested framing them like a window frame, but he didn't understand," asserting that the tooth gem was his idea. Lee Kwangsoo replied, "I'll reveal the message history. This can't just pass," rebutting and adding more laughter.
He added, "This is the first time I've played a character who fights well. I worked hard on the action scenes this time, and there are many kinds of desires, but I think this level of heavy desire is the first I've done. I hope people can see me differently from previous performances."
Asked about viewing points for the work, Moon Jeong-hee said, "It's a genre piece but the drama is strong. I think it's a drama with a freshly shocking and speedy feel that we haven't seen on Disney+ in a long time. It has noir elements and drama, and it's a drama where you can feel warmth within me. It's a drama rich with many branches of things to watch, so you can look forward to it."
Director Kim Sung-hoon said, "We filmed for more than six months. We became quite close, but meeting in this kind of setting feels awkward. It feels like different people. I think you can see new sides of these actors, whom you have become familiar with up to now, within the drama. The reason the new appearances were important is that the suspense created by desire in the heart is central to the drama. Actors and staff worked hard to create a somewhat different narrative, so just by watching that I think choosing Goldland will be worthwhile."
Finally, Moon Jeong-hee said, "I think a long-awaited anticipated work has come out. I'm sure viewers will feel the same. Please look forward to it, watch a lot, and I hope it becomes widely discussed." Kim Hie-won said, "You'll be able to see a truly new side of Park Boyoung. I had a really fun time filming, and I think audiences will be happy when they watch it." Kim Sung-Cheol said, "I think you'll see many new faces of the actors, and there were many fun moments during filming. If those moments were captured on camera, wouldn't it make for an exciting series? Please look forward to it and watch a lot," he said confidently.
Park Boyoung said, "Personally, I don't think there are strictly good or bad people. Watching it, I think you'll easily immerse yourself by wondering what you would have done. Please show a lot of interest and anticipation." Lee Hyun-wook emphasized, "It's a tense and thrilling work. You can look forward to it a lot." Lee Kwangsoo said, "There isn't much time left until the release, and I feel more anticipation than worry. Please look forward to it, and I hope many people feel the intense energy we poured into the production on set."
Director Kim Sung-hoon also said, "Personally, this is the work with the most of my taste in it among the works I've done so far. When Boyoung was worrying about the project at first, I once told her, 'I want to make a work that will be a turning point in my life; please help me.' I did my best to make sure that wouldn't be a lie. During the making, the actors and staff did an excellent job. I think it's well captured, so just seeing that you'll have an enjoyable time."
Meanwhile, Goldland will be first released on Disney+ on the 29th.
[Photo] OSEN reporter Jo Eun-jung
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