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Meet Tiffany's beau: Byun Yo-han, Korean cinema's sleek shape-shifter
When Tiffany Young of Girls' Generation — the girl group under SM Entertainment that essentially wrote the K-pop playbook in the late 2000s — announced Saturday that she was dating actor Byun Yo-han with marriage in mind, the international response was telling. Fans of the California-born singer, who stands poised to become the first married member of the legendary eight-member group, had one burning question: Who is this guy? The answer depends on where you've been looking. For starters, the tw
Dec. 17, 2025 -
Park Chan-wook's 'No Other Choice' lands on Oscar international feature shortlist
Park Chan-wook's "No Other Choice" has secured a spot on the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' shortlist for best international feature film, positioning South Korea among 15 nations vying for a coveted Oscar nomination. The Academy announced shortlists across 12 categories on Tuesday, whittling down the international feature race from 86 eligible countries to 15 contenders. "No Other Choice" arrives at the shortlist following a robust festival circuit run. The film premiered in compe
Dec. 17, 2025 -
Seoul goes underwater in Netflix's latest Korean original
Netflix has been steadily muscling its way into the Korean film business, using its deep pockets to bankroll productions that skip theaters altogether. As multiplexes continue to hemorrhage audiences -- ticket sales for domestic films remain at roughly 60 percent of last year's figures -- the streaming giant is only doubling down. Its slate of Korean-language originals this year has spanned supernatural thrillers ("Revelations") to frothy high-school romance ("Love Untangled"), and that eclectic
Dec. 16, 2025 -
Gov't awards state medal to late actress Kim Ji-mi for cultural contributions
Late actress Kim Ji-mi was posthumously awarded the highest class of South Korea's cultural decoration in recognition of her lifelong contributions to the Korean film industry, the culture ministry said Sunday. Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young visited her memorial installed at the Seoul Film Center earlier in the day to confer the Golden Order of Cultural Merit, the ministry said. Kim, who had reportedly suffered from heart problems, died last Sunday at the age of 85 in Los Angeles, where she had
Dec. 14, 2025 -
'Avatar' director James Cameron makes a case for human touch
Which scene gave director James Cameron the most trouble on the upcoming "Avatar: Fire and Ash"? Cameron, speaking to Korean reporters Friday ahead of the film's release, didn't have to think long. "Every shot took a long time and required a lot of energy." He ticked off the numbers: Over 3,000 people. Four years. Some 3,500 VFX (visual effects) shots. "Basically every shot was a VFX shot," he said. That's the sheer scale of the operation behind the third "Avatar" instalment, which arrives in Ko
Dec. 12, 2025 -
Movies in theaters this week
"Five Nights at Freddy's 2" (US) Opened Dec. 3 Horror/Fantasy Directed by Emma Tammi Abby Schmidt's bond with the puppet-like animatronics draws her back into danger as buried secrets about Freddy Fazbear's Pizza come to light, in this sequel to the 2023 video game adaptation. "Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution" (Japan) Opened Dec. 3 Action/Fantasy Directed by Shota Goshozono Special Grade Sorcerer Yuta Okkotsu is ordered to execute Yuji Itadori for crimes committed by the King of Curses. "The People Up
Dec. 12, 2025 -
Korea awards top honor to 'KPop Demon Hunters' co-creator Maggie Kang
South Korea on Wednesday celebrated the achievements of its booming creative industries with the 2025 Korea Content Awards, which honor individuals and works that advance the nation’s content ecosystem and its profile overseas. Hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency, this year’s highest distinction, the Order of Cultural Merit, was given to Maggie Kang, one of the writers and directors behind US animation "KPop Demon Hunters.” The Netflix hit
Dec. 10, 2025 -
Kim Ji-mee, prolific Korean screen star, dies at 85
Kim Ji-mee, a leading figure during the rise of Korean cinema in the 1960s and '70s, died Tuesday at the age of 85. Local industry reports said Kim's health had declined in recent weeks following complications related to shingles. According to the Korean Film Council and the Korea Actors Association, they have begun making funeral arrangements in coordination with her family and the film community. Born in 1940 in Daedeok County, South Chungcheong Province, Kim was discovered as a teenager by fi
Dec. 10, 2025 -
'No Other Choice,' 'KPop Demon Hunters' earn Golden Globe nods
Auteur Park Chan-wook’s "No Other Choice" has landed two nominations at this year’s Golden Globe Awards, including a nod for best performance by a male actor in a motion picture for Lee Byung-hun ("Squid Game," "Concrete Utopia") -- placing him in competition with major Hollywood talents including Leonardo DiCaprio and Timothee Chalamet. Park’s latest feature, headlined by Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Lee Sung-min and Yeom Hye-ran, has been shortlisted for best motion picture in the musical or com
Dec. 9, 2025 -
The many faces of Cho Jin-woong: A career built on menace, now undone by the past
On Friday, local entertainment outlet Dispatch published allegations that would bring one of South Korea's most recognizable character actors to his knees. Cho Jin-woong, the hulking 49-year-old who had become a familiar face across Korean film and television, had reportedly served time in a juvenile detention facility during high school for car theft and, more gravely, sexual assault — charges he has partially denied through his agency. Within a day, Cho announced his retirement, stating he wou
Dec. 8, 2025 -
Cho Jin-woong’s retirement over juvenile crimes reignites 'cancel culture’ debate
Actor Cho Jin-woong announced his retirement Saturday, a day after reports emerged of his decades-old juvenile record, sparking renewed debate over whether South Korea’s fast-moving "cancel culture" is veering into punitive excess. While fans and broadcasters quickly moved to distance themselves from the actor, several legal scholars argued that reporting on sealed juvenile cases — long after penalties had been complete — was unnecessarily harsh. The controversy erupted Friday when a local media
Dec. 7, 2025 -
Ha Jung-woo's risky bet on sex and broken hearts
"The People Upstairs" is the kind of movie you'll know within five minutes whether you're staying on board or jumping ship. Ha Jung-woo's fourth and latest directorial effort — a chamber piece set entirely within a single apartment over a dinner party — is an extravaganza of rapid-fire banter, sexual innuendos and escalating absurdity, even as nothing remotely explicit appears on screen across its two-hour runtime. The setup couldn't be simpler. Two married couples sit at a table: on one side, t
Dec. 6, 2025 -
Three indie standouts of the year
For Korean cinema, 2025 has been nothing short of brutal. Not a single film cracked 10 million admissions — traditionally the threshold for mega-hit status here — with the year's top homegrown performer, the horror comedy "My Daughter is a Zombie," topping out at 5.6 million. Even much-anticipated heavyweights fell short of expectations. Bong Joon-ho's $120-million Warner Bros. production "Mickey 17" limped to just over 3 million admissions, a disappointment by any measure for the "Parasite" dir
Dec. 6, 2025 -
Movies in theaters this week
"Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution" (Japan) Opened Dec. 3 Action/Fantasy Directed by Shota Goshozono Special Grade Sorcerer Yuta Okkotsu is ordered to execute Yuji Itadori for crimes committed by the King of Curses. "The People Upstairs" (South Korea) Opened Dec. 3 Comedy/Drama Directed by Ha Jung-woo A couple fed up with their noisy upstairs neighbors invites them down for dinner, only for buried secrets to surface over the course of a single evening, in this remake of Cesc Gay's 2020 comedy. "The Info
Dec. 5, 2025 -
Young survivors navigate a brutal apocalypse in 'Concrete Market'
"It's its own film," Hong Ki-won said. He'd been fielding variations of the same question since sitting down at Lotte Cinema World Tower on Monday afternoon — what does this have to do with the other works within the franchise, especially 2023's "Concrete Utopia"? The director of "Concrete Market" seemed ready for it. "We share the post-earthquake setting. That's it. New characters, new space, new story." The franchise in question did leave a mark. "Concrete Utopia" dropped viewers into the rubb
Dec. 2, 2025