Stars Park Seo-jun and Han So-hee visit a version of Seoul from the past in the Korean thriller series.
South Korea’s creature features have long reigned as some of the genre’s best, from recent horror classics like Bong Joon-ho’s The Host and Yeon Sang-ho’s zombie flick Train to Busan all the way back to the 1967 kaiju (“giant monster”) film Yongary, Monster from the Deep, the nation’s answer to Godzilla. This year, Korean blockbuster series Gyeongseong Creature enters the canon, bringing the heightened drama, uneasy suspense, and thrills that audiences have long loved.
Written by Kang Eun-kyung (Dr. Romantic) and directed by Chung Dong-yoon (Hot Stove League), the series unfolds in the spring of 1945, when Seoul was known as Gyeongseong and in its final days under Japanese colonial rule. Gyeongseong Creature uses the contrasts of the time — rich splendor and dark shadows — and historical tensions to imagine the birth of a vicious creature and the heroes who rise to save the day.
Played by Itaewon Class’s Park Seo-jun, Jang Tae-sang owns the Golden Treasure pawn shop and is the city’s wealthiest man. Yoon Chae-ok, Nevertheless’s Han So-hee, is a sleuth tremendously skilled at finding the missing. Together, the unlikely duo works to uncover the truth and survive, as the creature takes more and more lives in Gyeongseong.
Gyeongseong Creature’s stars offered Queue a glimpse into how they approached their roles in the series and what it was like to film scenes with the fearsome creature.
An edited version of the conversation follows.
Jang Tae-sang (Park Seo-joon)
Yoon Chae-ok (Han So-hee)
Nawol-daek (Kim Hae-sook)
Queue: Tell us a bit about your characters.
Park Seo-jun: In terms of his occupation and the wealth he accumulated, Jang Tae-sang is a self-made man, which was pretty rare in the time period. It is a testament to how hardworking he is, paving his own ways to survive in an era of poverty. Given his life experiences, he has developed unwavering resolve and a clear set of ideas of his own. But he often finds himself in situations where he has to tone down his opinions, which I found very intriguing. He drives the overall story forward in the series, but I also put a lot of effort into showcasing how witty he is. I focused quite heavily on making sure that the character does not come across as flat. I think you will find many aspects of this character enjoyable, from the development of his character arc to how he’s visually presented, captured against the backdrop of a beautiful set that will help bring this character to life.
Han So-hee: Chae-ok is someone who sacrifices her life to pursue a goal, which suggests that, even though she looks strong on the outside, she has a complex set of emotions repressed inside her. I think that complexity makes her stand out. Because Chae-ok has a clear goal and purpose in life, I focused on maintaining her drive in pursuing that goal. At the same time, I tried to avoid [becoming] overly obsessed with depicting her pursuit of the goal and focused hard on keeping this character more balanced.
What made you interested in this project?
PSJ: I’d been fascinated by the historical backdrop of the story, which is when Seoul was known as Gyeongseong. I’d always wanted to do a project set in that time period, and when I read the script for Gyeongseong Creature, it instantly grabbed my attention. Because of my personal interest in the historical period, I was able to immerse myself in the script. On top of the historical context, the story itself was incredibly engaging. It captured the collective suffering of the period that is familiar to us as Korean people, and the creature added a fantastical element to the story.
HSH: I was drawn, first and foremost, to my character’s strong sense of independence. Plus, playing a character from the Gyeongseong period is an opportunity that rarely comes by, so I was intrigued by the historical backdrop as well. But most importantly, I enjoyed Seo-jun’s performances and had loved director Chung Dong-yoon’s previous project, Hot Stove League.
An ominous scene
Yoon Chae-ok (Han So-hee) and Jang Tae-sang (Park Seo-joon)
What was it like for you both to work together?
HSH: I feel grateful to Seo-jun because he helped me view him solely as Tae-sang from Chae-ok’s point of view. There is palpable tension between them, and breaking away from that dynamic could have jeopardized the portrayal of their relationship onscreen. But Seo-jun stayed in character on set, so it helped me stay in character as well and see him as Tae-sang when we were working.
How did you prepare to work with the creature at the center of the story?
PSJ: We had to rely on our imagination for most of those scenes. We are, of course, shown the pre-vis[ualization art], but it only gives us a rough idea of how a scene would turn out. So, we had to do our best to stay focused in each moment within a given scene.
What makes Gyeongseong Creature such a special series?
HSH: First of all, I think the combination of period drama and supernatural creature will offer a rich visual experience for viewers, so I’m very excited about that. Personally, my hope is that the viewers will pay close attention to how this creature that doesn’t exist in real life can change the trajectory of the characters in the story. I would also recommend that you watch closely the dynamic between Chae-ok and Tae-sang, as well as the lives of the other characters.
PSJ: As this series will be streamed globally, I think this will be an interesting opportunity to show the world what Korea was like during this historical period, albeit partially and indirectly. On top of that, you have the creature adding great tension to the story. I think it will be interesting for the global audience to witness the sentiments that pervaded Korea during this era. I’m sure these are elements that are familiar to most Korean people, but I think audiences outside Korea will find many of these elements intriguing.
