[Interview②] Lee Byung-hun "Burden of Real-life Figure, Did Not Define as Historical Mystery"

[Lee Isul, Entertainment Reporter]

Actor Lee Byung-hun expressed the pressure of portraying a real-life figure.

On the afternoon of the 16th, Lee Byung-hun spoke about the efforts he made to portray Kim Jae-gyu (Kim Gyu-pyeong) during an interview held at a cafe in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, ahead of the release of the film The Man Standing Next (director Woo Min-ho).

That day, Lee Byung-hun said, “I had many conversations with director Woo Min-ho before the camera test. I asked if it would be good to imitate the voice and mannerisms closely, but he hoped I wouldn’t do that. Since the character’s name is different in the film, I guess he didn’t want me to imitate exactly.”

Lee added, “I only referred to a few important things like the hairstyle.”

He continued, “I wanted to do my best with the script,” and said, “Even after the film ends, the reasons behind his actions can still be debated and discussed.”

He went on, “There are still many people who lived through that era, and I thought The Man Standing Next should not distort facts or define historically mysterious parts. I believe that the mysterious parts in history should remain mysterious in the film as well. Because of that, I was more cautious than in any other shoot.”

The Man Standing Next is a film depicting the 40 days before Kim Gyu-pyeong (played by Lee Byung-hun), the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency and the second most powerful figure at the time, carried out the assassination of the President of South Korea in 1979. The film is directed by Woo Min-ho, who also directed Inside Men.

On October 26, 1979, at 7:40 p.m., the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency assassinated the President at the agency’s residence in Gungjeong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. This event marked the end of an 18-year dictatorship and is recorded as a major event in modern Korean history. The film is based on a nonfiction bestseller written by author Kim Choong-sik, who serialized his investigative report during his two months as a journalist. Director Woo Min-ho focused on the October 26 incident from the extensive original work to create the film. It will be released on January 22.

Reporter Lee Isul

Photo = Showbox

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.