Hollywood woos South Korean actors

Since “Parasite” took global cinema festivals by storm, South Korean actors have earned growing popularity and attention in Hollywood. As Choi Woo-shik, a son named Gi-woo in “Parasite,” drew global attention, he was casted as a character in U.S. filming producer and distributor A24’s rom-com “Past Lives.” Thanks to his fluent English skills that he improved on while studying in Canada, Choi became the first actor of “Parasite” to make inroads into Hollywood. “Past Lives” describes a couple reuniting years after falling in love with each other at a younger age in South Korea. Known as a producer and distributor of the winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture “Moonlight,” A24 is considered one of the most powerful players in Hollywood.

Other South Korean actors will join the upcoming Hollywood films. Invited to the Cannes Film Festival for Director Lee Chang-dong’s “Burning,” Jeon Jong-seo finished shootings for “Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon” which she stars. Ma Dong-seok will play the role of Gilgamesh, one of Marvel’s heroes in its new release “Eternals” which is scheduled this year.

From a wider perspective, Hollywood seems to have a growing interest in Asian actors. Korean-American actors Daniel Dae Kim and Randall Park double-star an untitled crime film by Amazon Studio. Since big-name Hollywood studios saw a series of successes of films starring Asians such as “Farewell,” “Parasite” and “To All the Boys I've Loved Before,” they have chosen Asians or Asian Americans to play starring roles, according to U.S. Showbiz Newspaper Deadline.


Jae-Hee Kim jetti@donga.com