“I had to convey all the emotions solely with my voice, so that aspect was really challenging. (On the other hand) It was very tricky.”
The Netflix animated film 'K-Pop Demon Hunters' (hereafter 'K-Demon') is sweeping the globe. It claimed the number one spot in the film category just one day after its release and has maintained that throne, creating a syndrome. The homegrown animation 'King of Kings' has also hit domestic theaters, surpassing even 'Parasite' (directed by Bong Joon-ho) and shaking up North America.
At the heart of these two films is the 'faceless' Lee Byung-hun. He is not just a simple voice actor; he is communicating with the world through a new language of 'voice' while designing emotions.
Lee Byung-hun himself was taken aback by the growing interest in the two increasingly popular animations. Although he has already received global love through the 'Squid Game' series, this experience was unexpected, unfamiliar, yet delightful and fulfilling.
On the 18th, he told Maeil Business Star Today, “Initially, I was only supposed to record the English version of 'K-Demon.' Since I am not someone who was born and raised in the U.S., it was important to accurately match even the slightest emotional changes or the tone of the lines.”
He continued, “Director Chris Appelhans knows all the characters' situations and emotions, so I received a lot of help from him. Since he understands the intent of the work, I received a lot of guidance in that regard. Since it is a film produced in the U.S. and released worldwide through Netflix, even if it has Korean elements, the nuances conveyed in English are very important. I made sure it didn’t sound like a foreigner speaking English as much as possible.”
“On the other hand, there were very tricky parts. A few months after finishing the English recording, I was offered to do the voice acting for the Korean version, and I felt much more confident about that, so I gladly participated.”
'K-Demon' depicts the popular girl group Huntress competing with the boy group Lion Boys, born from the demon world, to protect the human world from evil spirits and uncover their identities. While the outer shell is American, the essence vividly captures K-culture content, including the streets, food, and emotions of Seoul.
The character he plays, 'Gwi-ma,' is the worst evil opposing the protagonists, the K-Pop Hunters, possessing terrifying charisma while also having a somewhat tragic side as a unique dark lord.
He actually liked that aspect, saying, “I liked the feeling of being awkward and approachable,” and added, “Everyone has thousands of personalities. If even a tiny part of that exists within me, expanding that piece is acting,” incorporating his own acting philosophy into 'Gwi-ma.'
In this way, he filled the empty spaces on the screen with imagination and empathy, adjusting the amplitude of emotions to deliver a vivid performance. He expressed, “It’s amazing that a Korean story and project receive such great love. As someone who participated, I felt fulfilled and happy,” feeling proud once again.
And the hidden, yet powerful motivation for this challenge is his son. He mentioned, “There were almost no movies I could watch with my son,” but after seeing his son's disappointed expression while watching 'K-Demon,' he confessed, “I wanted to take on a good role, not just as the Frontman or Demon.”
This led him to 'King of Kings' (hereafter 'King of Kings').
He said, “It was a work that our kids could also watch, and I liked being able to say, ‘Dad participated in this,’” adding, “I felt this movie is more about introducing great historical figures rather than being a film based on religion.”
Thanks to that aspect, he was able to participate without pressure and enjoyably. Lee Byung-hun explained, “Since the background of the story is Western, even though it was made by Koreans, the appearance of the characters and the story itself is Western. However, when I acted in Korean, I tried to ensure it didn’t sound like a translated play, and I was careful about those aspects while acting.”
He continued, “I liked the overall story structure, and 'King of Kings' is ultimately a format where a father tells an interesting story to his son. It wasn’t a story too far removed from me; it overlapped a lot with the actions and words I usually share with my child, so I think I was able to immerse myself more naturally.”
As he mentioned, the work centers around a religious message but delicately conveys universal values of faith, love, and growth through the fantasy device of time travel. Unlike 'K-Demon,' it is a deeply rooted K-content. Directed and co-produced by Jang Seong-ho of MoPak Studio.
Lee Byung-hun plays the role of the novelist Charles Dickens. He is a father who tells his son 'Walter,' who admires King Arthur, the story of the 'real king,' Jesus, and is a true storyteller. Once again, he infused the authenticity of a storyteller and the sincerity of a father through the voice of 'Dickens.'
Finally, when asked about the difficulties or new aspects of voice acting, he candidly replied, “In visual media like movies or dramas, elements like lines, eye contact, expressions, gestures, and the director's direction complement emotions, but voice acting really requires expressing all the emotional details with just the voice, which is not easy.”
He added, “Of course, it helps to record while watching the animation, but that’s a work that the writer has already drawn and completed. I had to convey all those emotions solely with my voice, so that aspect was really challenging.”
He explained, “When recording, if there’s a scene where the characters are running, I would actually jump in place in the studio, and for action scenes, I would move around and mimic expressions. I thought that to truly convey those emotions in my voice, I had to act as if I were in front of a camera. I felt that moving my body and making expressions brought out the real emotions that were infused into the work.”
Through this, he embraced the challenge of how to translate 'Korean elements' onto the global stage, his affection and responsibility for K-content without limits, and his sincerity as a father in both works. Gwi-ma and Dickens. Although they are polar opposite characters, they ultimately flowed together within the voice of one person, Lee Byung-hun.
The audience, surrendering to that wave, deeply feels that sincerity not through their eyes but through their ears, and then through all their senses. In mega hit works, he is always the 'secret weapon,' the unique reason for being a 'world-class' talent.
