‘City of Evil’, the directorial debut of actor Hyun Woo-sung and the return to the screen for Han Chae-young, is coming to theaters.
On the afternoon of the 12th, a screening and press conference for the film ‘City of Evil’ was held at CGV Yongsan I-Park Mall in Seoul. Director Hyun Woo-sung and actors Han Chae-young, Jang Yi-soo, Kim Hye-eun, and Kim Won-woo attended.
‘City of Evil’ is a sociopathic thriller that delves into the depths of human nature through the entangled relationships of Yoo-jung (Han Chae-young), who believes in goodwill, Kang-soo (Jang Yi-soo), who rejects faith, and Sun-hee (Hyun Woo-sung), who uses people, in a catastrophic relationship that can only end in killing or being killed.
Hyun Woo-sung, who has appeared in ‘Yellow Revenge’, ‘Elegant Lies’, and ‘Again My Life’, takes on the role of Sun-hee, the villain, marking both his directorial debut and his first leading role on screen.
Director Hyun Woo-sung stated, “I was always concerned about the bad people who could be around us. I saw that actors often get deceived and hurt. People might think that actors lead a chaotic life, but they actually attend church diligently and volunteer a lot. So, I wanted to raise awareness among those who live honestly,” he revealed.
He further explained the reason for taking on the directing role, saying, “When I first entered university, a professor told me that part-time jobs could become careers. I started as a model, then became an actor, and while writing a project for class, the script was completed, and as I was gathering the staff, the production company asked if I would direct, and I agreed. I didn’t have a desire to direct, but I have a passion for writing, producing, and acting.”
He also expressed gratitude, saying, “Han Chae-young shot 28 scenes on the first day. This is almost impossible. But she focused and followed along well, so I was very thankful. Han Chae-young had a lot of conflicts after reading the script. I think she transformed her acting through this work. She really put in a lot of effort, and I told our actors that if there’s a next project, I would cast her as the lead.”
After an 8-year hiatus from the screen since ‘Neighbor Star’, Han Chae-young plays Yoo-jung, an internet star instructor. Jang Yi-soo, who has appeared in dramas like ‘Queen of Masks’ and ‘Bad Memory Eraser’, plays Kang-soo, Yoo-jung’s brother and supporter. Kim Hye-eun makes a strong impression as the intense villain Grace, despite having only one scene.
Han Chae-young described her character Yoo-jung, saying, “She lives a happy daily life, has a job, a daughter, and a husband, but her life completely changes when she meets Sun-hee. This character is about how she tries to turn her life around by meeting this person.”
She continued, “It’s been 8 years since I was on screen. The last film I shot was ‘Neighbor Star’, which was a comedic story. I haven’t done a dark genre since ‘Wild Card’ 20 years ago. When I received this script after a long time, I wanted to do it. I was curious about what kind of movie would come out if we shot it in 2024. The director is someone who exudes confidence, so I also felt confident participating.”
Jang Yi-soo also expressed his trust in Hyun Woo-sung, emphasizing, “The reason our movie can be released is thanks to the director. If it weren’t for him, I wonder if everyone would have helped like this. I also trusted the director and participated.”
Kim Hye-eun shared, “Since it was just one scene, I really thought about it. While acting, since it was just one scene, I was even more nervous. Until the screening, I was worried about what kind of reaction it would evoke while watching the movie.” She explained, “The reason I chose this was that I’ve known director Hyun Woo-sung for about 14-15 years. So, we’ve had a friendship until now, and he showed me the script he wrote himself. He always tells me and the actors to be careful of people, and I thought it was a consistent script that reflected ‘you’.”
Kim Hye-eun added, “The character's name is Grace, which is also my English name. So, I guess this is fate. It’s a historic work for a close colleague actor making their debut, and we helped each other to create a good piece.”
Kim Won-woo remarked, “Director Hyun Woo-sung was moving around the set very busily on his own. He would give comments before we started acting, talk about comfortable directions, and praise us. This is a very precious work for me, and I hope it goes well,” expressing his affection.
‘City of Evil’ will be released on the 20th.
