News bites: April 11, 2015

by awcoconuts

• While the articles were supposed to be about his cameo in the upcoming film Lucid Dream, I was more struck by the realization that Yoochun (Girl Who Sees Smells) will be heading to the military soon — waaah! He’ll have a bit part in the movie as a character who helps Go Soo, a father whose child’s been kidnapped. Go will use his dreams to find clues to bring his child home safely, and Sol Kyung-gu and Kang Hye-jung also round out the cast. Lucid Dream began filming at the end of March and will be released in the latter half of this year, so at least the big-screen release will help tide us over until Yoochun returns. [Dong A, TV Report]
• Lee Jia (Thrice Married Woman) and Kim Min-joon (Seonam Girls’ High Investigation Unit) are reviewing proposals to star in the upcoming military thriller Musudan. (More recent news reports indicate the actors have signed up and are finalizing contract details, but as we know, casting changes happen often in the industry.) Lee’s been busy; she’s also contracted to write three screenplays for U.S. production company Maybach Film Productions, and she’s just polished off her first, a script titled Conscious Perception. [Osen, Hankook Economy]


Lee Jia, Kim Min-joon

• Yoon Je-moon (Three Days) will collaborate with movie vet Oh Dal-soo in The Great Actor, a film previously titled Emperor of Acting. The plot sounds like an interesting meta look at the lives of actors, and Yoon will play a man who starts out as a stage actor and becomes a famous movie star (Yoon started out in theater in real life). Oh will play a stage actor who continues to struggle (all right, that’s more of a stretch), and The Great Actor will be directed by Seok Min-ho, an assistant director on Oldboy. Cameras will start rolling in early May. [Star News]
• A slight disappointment, but with a silver lining: Shin Mina has turned down the part opposite Lee Seon-kyun in Love Is a Virus. That would’ve been a fun pairing, but on the bright side, she may be returning to dramaland soon. In her place, Kim Ok-bin (Yoo-na’s Street) is favorably considering the female lead in the film, which will be about a disease that causes symptoms similar to the sensations of being head over heels in love. The first afflicted will be Kim, and we’ll find out whether the sparks that fly between her and the primary researcher (Lee) can be attributed to the bug, or something more. Love Is a Virus begins filming in the latter half of the year. [Osen]


Kim Ok-bin, Lee Soo-kyung

• The soon-to-begin daily drama High and Mighty Family has cast its female lead: Lee Soo-kyung (Let’s Eat) will play the daughter of a wealthy family. As the middle sister of three, she’s described as a competitive and competent alpha-female. She’s always thrown herself into her work, but when she falls for a younger (and subordinate on the corporate ladder) “macho man,” her mother highly disapproves. The show will follow along as Lee moves into her in-laws’ patriarchal household, and her character will alternate between bouts of filial obedience and hypocrisy. High and Mighty Family begins airing on MBC next month. [Star News]
• Han Eun-jung (Iron Man) and Jo Dong-hyuk (Bad Guys) have been cast as the headlining duo in Love At the End Of the World, a comeback film from director Kim In-shik (Hypnotized, Road Movie). There isn’t much info available on the plot, and given the director’s diverse style it’s hard to tell what kind of tone he’ll take, but Han will play a university lecturer, and Jo her counterpart. Unlike Jo’s previous tough guy personas, he’ll play a thoughtful, considerate gentleman. Filming begins April 20 and the movie will hit theaters late this year. [SBS funE]


Jo Dong-hyuk, Han Eun-jung

• Signal was supposed to be SBS’s late summer Wed-Thurs drama, but the project scripted by writer Kim Eun-hee (Three Days), a small-screen remake of the hit film Memories of Murder, failed to get picked up. The show was up for the timeslot against Will You Have Dinner With Me, the webtoon-based drama courting Shin Mina to lead, and the latter won out. A source indicated that the material, a gritty thriller about a string of unsolved murders, was too problematic for primetime TV. The script hasn’t been shelved yet and the project could receive a different time slot, but things aren’t looking good. [Star News]
• The younger counterparts of the main couple in JTBC’s upcoming Friday-Saturday drama Beloved Eun-dong have been cast: Yoon So-hee (Secret Door) will play Kim Sa-rang in her 20s, while Baek Sung-hyun will play Joo Jin-mo’s younger self. One point of confusion is that Joo/Baek’s first love is named Eun-dong (hence the title), while Kim/Yoon’s character is named Jung-eun. The reports all make it sound as though Yoon and Baek will be re-enacting the pair’s puppy love days though, so perhaps Eun-dong’s a nickname? Beloved Eun-dong airs after Falling For Innocence in June. [TV Report, Xports News]


Baek Sung-hyun, Yoon So-hee

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