Actor Im Si-wan (37) has transformed into a killer mantis.
The Netflix movie 'Mantis', released on the 26th, depicts the competition for the top spot among A-class killer Mantis Han-wool (played by Im Si-wan), his training rival Jae-i (Park Gyu-young), and retired legend killer Dok-go (Jo Woo-jin), who returns to the assassin industry after a long break.
Im Si-wan plays the role of Han-wool, an A-class killer with innate talent, who is mentioned as a killer on vacation in 'Gyeolboksoon'.
When asked about his participation in 'Mantis', Im Si-wan said, "The mantis was mentioned in 'Gyeolboksoon', and at that time, director Byun Sung-hyun asked me to do a special voice cameo, but it was ultimately not included. The reason was that the director wanted to save it for later, to show it properly if a mantis story came out. I thought it was a good intention and accepted it. Since then, I have been waiting for the day to shoot the mantis. I believe it was destined for me, and I accepted that fate."
He continued, "At first, I thought director Byun Sung-hyun would be directing it, and I didn't know any other information. Initially, I was surprised to hear that another director would be taking over, but director Byun said that his long-time assistant director would lead the worldview well. So I trusted him and was willing to give it a try."
Im Si-wan confessed that it was not easy to portray Han-wool, who has a bright tone different from his own.
He said, "I usually don't have that vibe. The character was set up to be deliberately pretentious and to hide his emotions by pretending to be bright. He was a character who was floating and making a fuss, and it took a lot of energy to portray that. I realized that people who are usually like that have really good energy. After long lines and action scenes, I felt exhausted," he joked.
Regarding the flashy costumes, he said, "Han-wool is set up as an MZ killer who is very interested in fashion, so it was to depict that. The costume director Jo Sang-kyung helped with that, and it was a great honor to work with him. I was very grateful that such a great senior wanted to work with me. Thanks to that, I was able to try on outfits I wouldn't normally wear," he smiled.
He also talked about his chemistry with Park Gyu-young and Jo Woo-jin in 'Mantis'.
Im Si-wan praised Park Gyu-young, who plays Jae-i, saying, "She is the member I went to action school with the most." He added, "We also worked out together at the gym. She really worked the hardest and has a tenacious spirit. If something is physically impossible or lacking, she keeps going until it works. That part was refreshing to see."
Regarding Jo Woo-jin, who plays Dok-go, he said, "I have watched a lot of his works, and the amazing thing is that each actor has specialized strengths, and usually, they reuse those. But I have never seen Woo-jin hyung replicate himself even once. He was always new. To me, he was very close to the ideal. So he was an actor I wanted to work with someday, and this time I observed him closely. He felt like the model student. It felt like he went to 'Seoul National University'. It was really clean and perfect," he expressed his respect.
He briefly reunited with Seol Kyung-gu, with whom he had worked in the movie 'The Outlaws'. Seol Kyung-gu made a special appearance in 'Mantis', continuing the universe.
Im Si-wan expressed his affection, saying, "It was a great pleasure to meet Seol Kyung-gu again after 'The Outlaws'. Every time he came to the set, it was comforting. He felt like a mental support. If I had a lot of responsibility to carry alone, just his presence eased the burden."
However, 'Mantis' has received sharply divided reactions since its release.
In response, Im Si-wan said, "I haven't been able to gauge the reactions yet, but it brings the worldview of 'Gyeolboksoon', and the nature of the genre itself is not a universally appealing genre. I think this work will inevitably have mixed reactions. I had thought about this even before filming."
He cautiously added about the quality of the work, "I think there is room for improvement."
He continued, "'Mantis' is a work focused on action. I went to action school a lot before filming, but it doesn't meet my standards. I have learned boxing and martial arts whenever I had time for a few years, but it wasn't enough to satisfy my own expectations. If I were an actor specialized in action, I could have enriched the emotional lines and narratives to make them more convincing through action," he added, "I have a big dissatisfaction with that aspect."
Im Si-wan, who has been active with the 'Squid Game' series and 'Mantis', is set to return as a singer.
Appearing with bleached hair, he said, "I tried an idol hairstyle for the first time in a while," and added, "I am currently preparing an album and planning to return as a singer after a long time."
He mentioned, "The genre is a bit of medium-tempo pop. It's not a complete dance song, but it's a song that can be easily caught after one listen," and hinted, "The current goal is the end of October or early November. The schedule may change, but the goal is to release it within this year," raising expectations.
[Yang So-young, Star Today Reporter]
