Netflix, the world’s leading streaming entertainment service, has confirmed the production of Director Yeon Sang-ho’s new sci-fi film Jung-E (Working Title) starring Kang Soo-youn, Kim Hyun-joo, and Ryu Kyung-soo as the main characters.

The setting of this film is in the 22nd century where climate changes have made Earth inhabitable, and humans are living in a man-made shelter. An internal war breaks out, and its outcome hinges on the success of brain cloning technology of the legendary robot mercenary Jung-E. Director Yeon Sang-ho, who has been redefining the future of Korean films with Train to Busan, Peninsula and Hellbound, focuses on central themes of brain cloning and human-like mercenary robots for this story.

His casting choices are also worth noting. Kang Soo-youn returns from an eight-year hiatus to play Seo-hyeon, the team leader of a lab for brain cloning and AI technology who is responsible for testing the cloning of Jung-E’s brain and combat capabilities. Kang is the first Korean actor to receive the Best Actress award at The Venice Film Festival, one of the “Big Three” film festivals, for her role in the 1986 film The Surrogate Womb. Her performances in Blue In You and Ladies of the Palace as well as other numerous works mark her as a legendary actor who paved the way for a renaissance in the Korean film industry.

Kim Hyun-joo plays the titular role of Jung-E, the most elite soldier of the allied forces fighting the shelter troops and a subject of brain-clone testing. With powerful performances in diverse dramas such as Watcher and Undercover, Kim will elicit complex emotions through her portrayal of the “legendary mercenary” fighting in dynamic combat scenes and suffering through repeated brain cloning testing.

Ryu Kyung-soo plays Sang-hun, the research centre director who is determined to succeed in cloning Jung-E’s brain in order to bring the allied forces to victory. His character in this film shows a 180-degree transformation from his previous roles in the film A Resistance as well as in the dramas Itaewon Class and Lovestruck in the City. For Kim Hyun-joo and Ryu Kyung-soo, they will continue to collaborate with director Yeon Sang-ho after working with him on his soon-to-be-released Netflix Series, Hellbound.

Jung-E (WT) has many things going for it: it is director Yeon Sang-ho’s imaginative new sci-fi film; it presents the novel theme of brain cloning a “legendary mercenary” in the 22nd century; it marks the return of the legendary actor Kang Soo-youn and transformative roles for both Kim Hyun-joo and Ryu Kyung-soo; and it delivers plenty of spectacular and realistic action.

The Netflix Film Jung-E (WT) will be released only on Netflix.

Production Information
Title: Jung-E (WT)
Story / Written / Directed by: Yeon Sang-ho
Starring: Kang Soo-youn, Kim Hyun-joo, Ryu Kyung-soo et al.
Produced by: Climax Studio
Distributed by: Netflix