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"Oldboy": Park Chan-wook works on US series adaptation of his revenge thriller

19/4/2024

Translation: machine translated

Park Chan-wook's award-winning masterpiece, the revenge thriller "Oldboy", was released around 20 years ago. Now the South Korean director has announced a series adaptation in collaboration with Lionsgate Television.

"Fargo", "Snowpiercer", "Westworld": Adapting films as series has become a minor trend in the USA in recent years. Now one of the best films of all time is to become a series. And the genius behind it is to help develop this series adaptation and oversee it as executive producer. We are talking about "Oldboy": a film that is probably still unjustly leading a niche existence in German-speaking countries. Yet the film has an 8.3 rating on IMDb with over 630k votes and also has an audience score of 94 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.

Lionsgate Television will work with Park Chan-wook for the English-language series adaptation. Park will develop and produce the new series version together with his production partner Syd Lim. Further details are not yet known.

Lionsgate Television shares my creative vision to bring

Oldboy" to the world of television."Park Chan-wook

South Korean director Park Chan-wook shot and co-wrote the screenplay for the original film, which was released in 2003 as the second part of his revenge trilogy (alongside "Sympathy for Mr Vengeance" and "Lady Vengeance"). The film was also loosely based on a Japanese manga of the same name. The leading roles in the film were played by Choi Min-sik, Yoo Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jung and Oh Dal-su. Park has also made a name for himself in the West with other works. He was involved as a producer in the sci-fi action film "Snowpiercer" and the mini-series "The Little Drummer Girl". He has also just released the miniseries "The Sympathizer" with Robert Downey Jr. on Max as showrunner.

The trailer of the original film by Park Chan-wook.

What is "Oldboy" about?

"Oldboy" tells the story of a man who is kidnapped by strangers on the evening of his daughter's fourth birthday and held captive in a sealed hotel room for years. His only contact with the outside world is the television. This is how he learns that his wife has been murdered in cold blood and that he is supposedly responsible for the murder. He is suddenly released without explanation. Only to learn, however, that he has five days to find out why he was imprisoned. At the same time, he has only one goal: revenge on his tormentors.

"Oldboy" won the Grand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 2004 and is considered one of the most influential films in contemporary South Korean cinema. In my opinion, it is one of the best films of all time. The fight scene in the corridor alone is pure magic for me. Perfect choreography, breathtakingly staged and accompanied by an impressive soundtrack. Wow.

One of my favourite scenes in film history: the impressive corridor fight scene

US film remake

In 2013, a US remake of the film of the same title was made under the direction of Spike Lee. The leading roles in the film were played by Josh Brolin, Elisabeth Olsen and Samuel L. Jackson. However, the film flopped at the time. At IMDb, the US remake only achieved a rating of 5.8 with around 80,000 votes. At Rotten Tomatoes, it even only achieved a viewer score of 37 per cent.

The trailer for the US remake directed by Spike Lee with Josh Brolin

Who is currently streaming the films?

Both the original film and the US remake of "Oldboy" are unfortunately not currently included in any streaming flat rate. However, you can rent and watch both films for a fee from Prime Video, Apple TV and the Sky Store, among others.

Are you excited about the series adaptation of the 2003 South Korean cult film? Which actors and actresses would you like to see in the series? Let me know in the comments.

Header image: themoviedb.org

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