Lee Byung-hun to headline Korean dub cast for 'The King of Kings'
Actor Lee Byung-hun will lend his voice to Charles Dickens in the Korean dubbing of "The King of Kings," joining a star-studded cast for the animated film that has become the highest-grossing Korean production in US box office history.
Thursday's cast announcement by Mofac Studio revealed Jin Sun-kyu as Jesus, Lee Ha-nee as Catherine Dickens alongside Lee and Yang Dong-geun as Peter. Veteran actors Cha In-pyo (Pontius Pilate), Kwon Oh-joong (King Herod), and Jang Gwang (High Priest Caiaphas) round out the ensemble.
The film follows Dickens and his son Walter exploring the life of Christ, based on the author's posthumously published work "The Life of Our Lord." Written and directed by Jang Seong-ho, the production had already turned heads with its A-list Hollywood voice cast featuring Pierce Brosnan, Oscar Isaac and Kenneth Branagh.
The animated feature has emerged as an unexpected box office phenomenon since its April 11 release. It claimed second place in its opening week with $19.4 million, trailing only "A Minecraft Movie" while outpacing several major studio releases.
By early June, "The King of Kings" had earned $60.2 million in the US and Canada, with worldwide gross reaching $67 million. It became the highest-grossing Korean film in North American box office history, surpassing "Parasite," which earned $53.8 million following its Oscar sweep in 2020.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
2 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Reprising role decades later: 'Little Monk' 34 years on
In 'Sammaekyung,' actor revisits role that shaped his life, reimagines it for new generation What does it feel like to return to a role you first played three decades ago? For Ji Chun-seong, it is a mix of responsibility, pressure and deep honor. In 1991, Ji was 25 when he played the career-defining role of the young temple apprentice Do-nyeom in 'A Little Monk,' directed by Park Won-geun. Now, at 59, he returns to the stage as the same character — now aged by both the years and the memory of a life lived in the shadow of that performance. The story picks up right where it left off. 'Back then, after performing in 'A Little Monk,' there was a lot of praise,' Ji recalled during a group interview at the National Theater on Monday. 'It's not an exaggeration to say that the life I've lived since has, in many ways, been shaped by that role. It carried me forward.' Set to premiere at the Myeongdong Theater on July 17, 'Sammaekyung' is a reimagining of the classic 'A Little Monk,' adapted by acclaimed director Lee Cheol-hee. The original play, written in 1939 by Ham Se-deok and first staged by Yu Chi-jin, is a cornerstone of Korea's theatrical history. It tells the story of Do-nyeom, a child monk abandoned by his mother and raised in the seclusion of a mountainside temple. The boy's yearning, the ideological tensions between Buddhist detachment and human desire and the unfolding conflicts between characters ignite the core of the play, posing timeless questions about fate, will and the human condition. In this new version, director Lee places the actor in a play-within-a-play. Standing at the threshold between life and death, the actor resolves to return to the spotlight one final time. This time, he is determined to surrender himself completely to the role. 'Back then, I thought no one could play this role better than me. But now, I realize no actor can ever perfectly become a character,' Ji said. 'There's something universal in that struggle. It's no longer just my story. It's the story of every actor.' Lee said reviving a classic carries a broader mission for him — a responsibility, as a contemporary theater-maker, to preserve, restage and establish Korean stage drama in the zeitgeist. 'I've long wondered why we don't bring back more of the great Korean plays,' Lee said. 'When I read the works of our senior playwrights, I'm struck by the depth with which they delve into the human soul, and the breadth of their perspective on the world. There's something powerful about reintroducing these works to today's audiences — not as mere nostalgia, but as living, breathing art.' 'Sammaekyung' refers to a state of complete immersion, or a meditative trance in which all distractions dissolve and the mind is wholly focused on a single object. It is also a fitting metaphor for the way both the actor and director have approached the production. 'I've been living like a monk for the past three months. It's been the same daily routine of rehearsing and practicing over and over,' Ji said. 'The theater is sacred ground. Unless you give your all, you'll never feel honest facing the audience.' 'I hope each audience member walks away with something different,' the director said. 'But what I considered most important in this production was creating a moment of when the audience might ask themselves, 'When was the last time I burned with such intensity?'' The National Theater Company's 'Sammaekyung' runs from July 17 to Aug. 3. English subtitles will be provided on Thursdays and Sundays, except July 27.
Korea Herald
20 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Award-winning Korean short films set to screen at Paris cinematheque
Busan International Short Film Festival winners bring contemporary Korean cinema to Paris landmark Four award-winning Korean short films from the 41st Busan International Short Film Festival will screen at the prestigious Cinematheque Francaise in Paris, festival officials announced Monday. Scheduled for Monday at 7 p.m., local time, the special program marks the third consecutive year the festival has been invited to present its selections at the renowned Paris venue. The screening will take place in the Cinematheque's Jean Epstein room, named after the French avant-garde cinema pioneer. Leading the lineup is "My Mother's Story," the Grand Prix winner by directors Kim So-young and Jang Min-hee. The 15-minute animated short follows an elderly woman who fled her village during the Japanese occupation and the Korean War, with her daughter bringing her memories to life through animation. The jury lauded the film for turning a potentially tragic tale into one of resilience and hope. Kim Min-seong's "Summer Vacation" earned the Excellence Award for its exploration of family tensions on the 10th anniversary of a mother's death. The 27-minute drama centers on the fraught relationship between a young woman and her stepmother, and has drawn praise for its emotional depth. "Slaughter," directed by Yun Do-yeong, received the Jury Award for its take on ethical compromise and economic hardship. The 26-minute film follows Sangwoo, a young man working at a slaughterhouse, as he grapples with the moral costs of survival. The jury highlighted its naturalistic dialogue and sharply drawn characters. Rounding out the program is Lee Ha-no's "No Hair," which earned a Special Jury Mention for its comedic spin on body image insecurities. The 29-minute film explores fears about hair loss through what the jury called a 'simple and jovial narrative' that struck a chord with audiences. Founded in 1936 by film preservationist Henri Langlois, Cinematheque Francaise was instrumental in shaping the French New Wave. It remains a landmark of global cinephilia, hosting retrospectives and international programs year-round. Following the screening, BISFF artistic director Lee Sang-hoon will introduce the featured works and speak to the audience about the state of Korean short filmmaking today. Founded in 1980 as the Korean Short Film Festival, BISFF has since grown into one of Asia's premier showcases for short-form cinema. Backed by the city of Busan and operating independently from the Busan International Film Festival held each fall, the festival exclusively presents films under 30 minutes. BISFF is also a significant gateway to major awards. Winners may qualify for consideration in Academy Awards categories, as well as BAFTA and Canadian Screen Awards. 'BISFF remains the only short film festival in the world to hold regular screenings at the Cinematheque,' Lee said. 'It's a rare and meaningful platform, and we'll continue working to expand the reach of Korean cinema to audiences around the world.'
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
'We're seeing AI-enhanced workflows, not replacement': Storytek CEO Sten-Kristian Saluveer
AI takes center stage as Bucheon Film Festival explores cinema's future BUCHEON, Gyeonggi Province -- The 29th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival opened Thursday with a bold statement on cinema's future, selecting as its opening film "About a Hero" -- a hybrid documentary by Piotr Winiewicz featuring an AI-generated screenplay trained on Werner Herzog's complete filmography. The festival's commitment to exploring artificial intelligence runs deep, with 11 AI films among its 217-title program and a three-day conference dedicated to examining how the technology is reshaping creative processes in cinema. Sunday marked the first day of the festival's AI conference at Bucheon Art Center, bringing together industry pioneers, technologists and policymakers to examine practical applications and future implications of AI-driven production. The sessions revealed both the technology's rapid development and the film industry's varied responses to its integration. Sunday's conference began with presentations from leading Korean producers working with AI technology. Roy Oh, who runs the YouTube channel Oddy Studio, premiered his short film "Color My Garden," a biographical piece about Frida Kahlo told from the artist's perspective. The film, created using tools like Midjourney and Runway, showcased the creator's signature style of blending classical art with contemporary settings. While the film at times exhibits the uncanny sleekness and occasional awkwardness of AI-generated content -- repetitive compositions, abrupt cuts between scenes -- moments of genuine visual innovation were palpable, particularly in sequences showing flowers blooming from Kahlo's body. "It's not just what AI makes, it's how we make AI tell your story," Oh said, describing his week-long production process that treats AI collaboration like "writing a book in real time." Lee Sang-wook of MBC C&I Content Lab followed with a demonstration of AI's integration into traditional television production, showing how his team enhanced space scenes in a TV show by combining AI-generated visuals with live actors. Viewers who watched the show responded positively to the hybrid approach. "Starting from prompts, we can now visualize concepts that would have cost millions," Lee said. His lab, launched in 2024, runs training workshops for aspiring creators and has produced several award-winning AI films, including "Mateo," which won the grand prize at Korea's first AI International Film Festival. The afternoon panel discussion, originally intended to focus on AI, quickly pivoted to broader industry concerns about Korea's declining theater attendance and competition from streaming platforms. Featuring festival director Shin Chul, French National Cinema Center President Gaetan Bruel and producer Lee Dong-ha, the conversation centered on Korea's struggling film industry and potential lessons from France's protective measures. Bruel outlined the French government's comprehensive support system, including mandatory "holdback" periods that reserve theatrical releases for four months before they are available for streaming. In Korea, films often appear on platforms within weeks of theatrical release. "In France, we had 181 million tickets sold last year — only a 10 percent decrease from pre-pandemic levels," Bruel noted, comparing it to Korea's nearly 50 percent drop. He emphasized that, in France, people with the most streaming subscriptions are often the most avid moviegoers. The French model mandates streaming platforms reinvest part of their revenue into local content -- a system that generated €900 million for 180 projects by 140 independent production companies. When asked about AI's impact on cinema's future, Bruel expressed measured skepticism. "Cinema is about emotions, about the infinite complexity of dialogue," he said. "While AI brings new possibilities, I have more reasons to be concerned than enthusiastic. The risk is reducing the extent of creativity." The day's most practical analysis came from Sten-Kristian Saluveer, CEO of Storytek and Strategic Advisor for Cannes NEXT, who delivered a recorded lecture mapping AI's integration across global film production. His presentation showcased how major festivals beyond BIFAN have adapted, with Rotterdam and Tribeca now accepting AI films in their official competitions. Saluveer highlighted the evolution from "AI artists" to "AI studio directors" -- creatives who combine traditional filmmaking knowledge with technical expertise. Major studios now use AI for pre-visualization, with one TV series generating 24 VFX shots in a single day versus weeks it would take using conventional methods. "We're seeing AI-enhanced workflows where the technology supports rather than replaces traditional filmmaking," Saluveer explained. The applications extend beyond visual effects into budgeting, script development and regulatory compliance -- what he termed a comprehensive "optimization paradigm." Genre filmmaking would particularly benefit from this trend, with tools like Veo helping independent horror directors create proof-of-concept materials previously requiring studio backing. Looking ahead, Saluveer predicted the rise of AI-transparent filmmaking within a few years, in which the technology becomes as ubiquitous and routine as digital cameras. "Instead of thinking narrowly about AI producing visual content, it's becoming a huge optimizer," he said, emphasizing that success requires investing in talent development over the acquisition of tools. "Great filmmakers powered with AI will make great AI films. Underskilled filmmakers will ultimately make bad films."
