Yoon Chan-young is the breakthrough star of All of Us Are Dead.
A Time for Celebration
For Yoon Chan-young, who started acting professionally in 2014, landing the role of Lee Cheong-san in the zombie-drama All of Us Are Dead was a moment to celebrate. “When I got the role, I had a party with my family where we had cake and wine together.” Champagne toasts surely followed when the series premiered in January 2022 and, just a week later, became the second non-English series to take the top spot in the U.S daily top ten titles on Netflix.
When Zombies Attack
When Chan-young first received the script for the apocalyptic series, he found much to love. “It’s grotesque, but it’s also heartwarming, with the emotions of the characters.” As a zombie virus quickly transforms high schoolers from studious to bloodthirsty, Lee Cheong-san and
his classmates must use whatever’s within their still-fleshy arms’ reach to protect themselves.
The first scene Chan-young filmed with the undead was a large cafeteria fight sequence.
“It really was my first time seeing them in person: waves of zombies visually overwhelming the atmosphere. I felt like I had nowhere to escape.”
Lee Cheong-san (Yoon Chan-young)
Friend not Foe
Chan-young’s kind nature helped him in an unexpected way in the case of his relationship with Yoo In-soo, who plays his adversary Yoon Gwi-nam in the series. “Gwi-nam and I are always at each other’s throats in the show. But in reality, In-soo and I would go to cafes,” he says, speaking of their friendship. “That’s how we worked so well together when fighting.” Chan-young and his castmates now delight in seeing All of Us Are Dead enjoyed by audiences around the world. “I can’t believe that our hard work and passion may be watched widely in 190 countries. We all put our bodies and souls into this series.”
