Actress Park Kyung-young (32) has returned as a killer.
The Netflix movie 'Mantis', released on the 26th, depicts the competition for the top spot between A-class killer Mantis Han-wool (played by Im Si-wan), who returns to the collapsing assassination industry after a long vacation, his training rival Jae-i (played by Park Kyung-young), and retired legend killer Dok-go (played by Jo Woo-jin).
Park Kyung-young passionately portrayed the skilled killer Jae-i, who trained with Han-wool at MK.
When asked about her feelings on participating, Park Kyung-young said, "As a fan of 'Gyeongbok-soon', it was an honor to share the same universe and to have my first leading role in a movie," adding, "I never thought I would be co-starring with seniors Im Si-wan and Jo Woo-jin. I felt a sense of responsibility not to be a burden to seniors I couldn't even look at, but I thought I should do my best."
Park Kyung-young worked hard to get in shape for this project because she wanted to perform her own action scenes.
She stated, "My character has strong combat skills, so I challenged myself to do action. I'm not someone who is good at action, but I wanted to do it properly and wanted to handle many parts myself, so I attended action school very diligently. There were doubles, but I worked hard to do it myself. It felt like life was giving me a day at a time, and I did my best because people were taking their time to watch our work."
She continued, "There were physical limits, but there was joy that surpassed that. I had enough time to prepare and train, and although there were physical limits, I had about 3-4 months before filming to practice the basics, and I practiced action frequently before and after filming or during breaks."
Recently, Park Kyung-young gained attention when her height of 169.1cm, weight of 53.5kg, and body fat percentage of 7.9kg were revealed through YouTube content.
She explained, "There was a time when my InBody results were revealed, and my body fat percentage came out below 10kg," adding, "Director Lee Tae-sung wanted me to build a solid body that doesn't look weak, so I exercised. Now my body fat percentage has increased and muscle mass has decreased. The InBody revealed on YouTube was made for 'Mantis'."
She further shared, "It wasn't a last-minute effort. At that time, I was on a diet and exercising to the point where my cheeks were hollow. I worked hard because I wanted to look like the character Jae-i. There’s a scene in the movie where Jae-i practices with a mannequin, and I felt proud when my muscles showed. I can build muscle well, but upper body muscles are not easy. Through this workout, I realized once again how amazing Lee Si-young is."
She also shared her thoughts on the mixed reviews that poured in after the release of 'Mantis'.
She said, "There can be various opinions, and I'm grateful that people watched our work. This is my first movie as a lead, and they watched my face for two hours, so I appreciate the diverse opinions. Since it's an action genre, it would have been nice to have scenes that could fill in the dialogue or narrative, but there wasn't enough time for that. I need to gather feedback to show viewers a satisfying and understandable result. If I have the opportunity, I want to show a better side next time."
However, regarding the relationship between Jae-i and Han-wool, she said, "It wasn't fully explained in the work, but there is no reason to love someone. Rather than finding and specifying a reason for love, I think it would be appreciated if you understand that the two have shared a lot of time and emotions since they were young, and the feelings that arose during that process."
When asked if she has ever felt inferior like Jae-i in the film, she replied, "I actually trained with senior Im Si-wan at an action school. I'm the type to memorize, but it took me time to do each move. Watching Im Si-wan finish in 5 minutes made me imagine what it would be like if Jae-i had completely removed that intimacy towards Han-wool, and if that feeling of being the eternal second place is like this."
Park Kyung-young, who appeared in the global hit series 'Squid Game', also drew attention for her fluent English during interviews with local media during overseas promotions.
When asked about the possibility of advancing to Hollywood, she stated, "There are no plans, but if a 0.001% chance of picking a star from the sky comes, I wouldn't refuse."
Finally, when asked about her next project, she said, "I have been doing genre works recently by chance, but I will try to greet you with a romance next. Fans also ask if Park Kyung-young has a preference for genres. I think a genre-focused appearance might not be fun, so I want to bring a new breath with a romance," she smiled.
[Yang So-young, Star Today Reporter]
