‘Newtopia’ Jisoo “My first zombie movie… I was drawn to the independent characters”
Jisoo poses for the camera at the production presentation for Coupang Play series ‘Newtopia’ held at the Conrad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul on the 7th. Reporter Kim Min-seong marineboy@donga.com
‘Newtopia’, which will be released on February 7th, tells the story of soldier Jae-yoon (Park Jung-min) and his girlfriend Young-joo (Jisoo) running towards each other through downtown Seoul that has been attacked by zombies.
Jisoo said at a production conference held at the Grand Ballroom on the 3rd floor of the Conrad Seoul Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul on the 7th, “When I read the script, I thought it was my first zombie film because there were many colorful incidents as well as zombie situations. The character of Young-joo that I play was also very appealing. I wanted to play a character who makes her own choices and grows. He explained why he chose this project, saying, “I made the decision without hesitation because of Director Yoon Sung-hyun and Actor Park Jung-min.”
Director Yoon Sung-hyun said, “While reading the script, I felt that the character of Yeong-ju was so, so charming. The role itself doesn’t feel that special at first, but as the story unfolds, it’s a character that goes to a point that you can’t even imagine. The foundation had to be humor, quirkiness, and wit. When I thought about who could embody those things, I naturally thought of actress Ji-soo.”
Director Yoon then praised Ji-soo’s outstanding sense of humor. “It’s not easy to laugh out loud while watching YouTube videos, but I laugh out loud when I watch Ji-soo’s videos. She was so humorous while working together. I couldn’t help but be impressed.” He added, “While filming together, I don’t think there’s an actor who can express the character of Yeong-ju better than Ji-soo.”
Reporter Seungmi Lee smlee@donga.com
