Overwhelmed (13)

 

Inside the theater, an advertisement is being printed. A man in black long padding who just checked the message. No, Kang Woo-jin muttered to himself as he looked at Choi Seong-geon’s chat message on his cell phone screen.

‘The audition and screen test for ‘Clierro’ is on January 25th. But my departure is on the 20th. Only a few weeks left, seems like it’s sooner than you think?’

It is currently the end of December. Considering that December was the end, there were about 3 weeks left until January 20th.

‘If I go a few days early, it’s probably due to jet lag or adaptation.’

It was correct. It took into account not only the time difference between Korea and LA, but also Kang Woo-jin’s condition during the audition and screen test. One way or another, it will take a day to get used to it. Although Woojin often goes to LA, this was the first time he decided to do so. Even since that film company is ‘Columbia Studios’, one of the ‘Big Five’, it was a natural decision for CEO Choi Seong-geon to go a few days early.

Kang Woo-jin also nodded slowly as if he understood.

He then checked the next chat.

-CEO: And I also received an email from Disney. Candidate actors for ‘The Beast and Beauty’ have been confirmed.

Here, Woojin felt somewhat relieved. Following ‘Clierrot’, after a preliminary meeting with ‘World Disney Pictures’, ‘Columbia Studios’ announced the official candidate actors for ‘Clierrot’. Of course, the candidate actors included Kang Woo-jin.

‘If competition increases, Disney may fall, but somehow it seems to have worked out well.’

Choi Seong-geon said that Woo-jin could fall into ‘Beast and Beauty’. The atmosphere wasn’t bad during the preliminary meeting with Disney, but the reason was that Disney may have a different opinion when they see Woojin included in the candidate actors for ‘Clierrot’. If you think about it, it wasn’t wrong. In fact, ‘World Disney Pictures’ even delayed replying after the preliminary meeting.

Thanks to the concept, it didn’t show up, but Kang Woo-jin was a little nervous.

Because I thought ‘The Beast and Beauty’ would be fun too.

It was also a work filled with memories. There’s no need to hold on to it if you can’t, but it’s better to do it if you can, right?

‘The grade is also high.’

Anyway, Kang Woo-jin was confirmed as a candidate actor for ‘The Beast and Beauty’, which was slightly delayed. An official announcement hasn’t been made to the world yet, but it’s only a matter of time. With this, Kang Woo-jin.

‘Two of the Big Five? Geography.’

He was stamped as a candidate actor for large-scale works by ‘Columbia Studios’ and ‘World Disney Pictures’, dinosaur film companies that dominate Hollywood. Although he is still a candidate, Woojin’s mind now feels like he has already gotten the role.

‘Both are mine.’

I was confident. Of course, subspace as well. So when will ‘World Disney Pictures’ announce the candidate actors? Curiosity crossed his mind for a moment, but Woojin quickly erased his thoughts.

Because I dismissed it as a happy wait.

The imagination is gone. ‘Clierot’ alone was such an uproar both domestically and overseas, but it would be even more crazy if ‘The Beast and the Beauty’, which is full of fans of the original work not only in Korea and Japan, but also around the world. Kang Woo-jin feels a tingling sensation even after thinking about it for a moment.

Well, there may be controversy or negative comments.

‘To me, no boss.’

There wouldn’t be any real damage to Woojin.

It was then.

-♬♪

Subtle yet slightly depressing music rang throughout the theater. The lights also dim. Looking at the front screen, I saw that ‘Unfamiliar Parasite’ was starting in earnest after the commercial ended. Woojin turned his cell phone on silent mode and stuffed it into his long padded pocket.

‘It’s been a while.’

This refers to watching a movie as an audience member in a theater. The last time I saw it was probably ‘Healing Investigation Office’? For a moment, Kang Woo-jin thought of his friends with shock and fear on their faces and laughed. Then.

-Sigh.

Woojin crossed his legs and focused on the screen. Although there are empty seats in the audience around him, they are more than half full. It was a considerable number for Cao Cao. All of them, like Kang Woo-jin, focused on the ‘familiar parasite’.

‘Kiyoshi Iyota’ on the screen. In other words, Kang Woo-jin made his first appearance.

An emotionless face, a sad expression, soulless gestures, a worn-out feeling. Woojin felt a little embarrassed seeing his face filled with the large screen.

‘As expected – it’s still a bit embarrassing to see myself in my work.’

Meanwhile, hundreds of audience members around him stared at the screen with bated breath. The harsh atmosphere became more intense as the play progressed. In the beginning, Woojin’s multiple personality acting and emotionless piano playing were the first ‘homework’ undertaken. And the first ‘design’.

[“It’s okay to have one person, but having all 9 people is impossible. I don’t have enough strength. Head too. Experience too.”]

The eyes of hundreds of viewers were widened by the unexpected content. But the ‘unfamiliar parasite’ did not give him any time to rest. Someone’s suicide to confuse it with the second ‘homework’ on the ship. Next, a detective chasing ‘Kiyoshi Iyota’ appears. The running time of ‘Familiar Gisaeng’ was not short at all, but the hundreds of viewers at the theater were.

“······”

“······”

I fell into it and forgot to go to the bathroom. Soon, Kang Woo-jin’s sobs after finishing his last ‘homework’ were displayed on the screen. The scene where he, who had been dry the whole time, showed his emotions for the first time. Here, most of the audience let out exclamations.

Then the ending.

As a stranger, Kang Woo-jin, who was among many citizens, looked at the audience. It was dull and quiet, but unlike the beginning, there was liveliness in his eyes. Closer and closer, soon enough, when Woojin’s face was filled, the screen turned black and magnificent music played.

‘Familiar Gisaeng’ ends and the ending credits are displayed.

at the same time.

“Wow, I’m seriously crazy.”

“Daejonjam.”

“No, really, what is Kang Woo-jin? “The smoke… was crazy.”

Even though the movie ended, the audience who could not leave their seats expressed their sincere admiration.

“creeps! “This is completely Kang Woo-jin’s one-man show movie!”

“Admit it, there aren’t any boring sections of walking alone, right??”

Almost all of them were like that.

“Kang Woo-jin’s acting is crazy! “I got bored halfway through.”

“I was confused because he was better at Japanese than I thought, Kang Woo-jin learned Korean.”

“It’s a shame that it reached 23 million in Japan.”

The audience sat in their seats and excitedly commented on their thoughts. A man wearing long padding passed leisurely in front of them. No one knew that he was Kang Woo-jin.

“I think I’ll hit 10 million on this one too.”

Although covered by a mask, Woojin was smiling.

Meanwhile, L.A.

Unlike Korea, where it is morning, LA is afternoon. Among the huge film companies, World Disney Pictures’ ‘Beast and Beauty’ division was busy.

“All the actresses who played ‘Beautiful Bella’ have received confirmation.”

“It was a close call for Miley Cara, but fortunately she made it.”

“I thought you were rejecting it because there was no answer, but you suddenly changed your mind?”

“Well, it’s a good thing for us anyway.”

Several foreigners come together to speed up work progress.

“The male actors for ‘The Beast’ and the female actors for ‘Beautiful Bella’ have all been confirmed, so now we have to set a date.”

“Would you like to proceed together? Or separately?”

“There’s no need to rush, so I think it would be better to split the week.”

“Hmm, we need to check their duet. There is also a duet song, and the scene where ‘Beautiful Bella’ dances to the piano of ‘The Beast’ is important.”

“I’ll have to match the actors’ voices later.”

While various agenda items were being discussed rapidly, one executive muttered.

“More than that, we need to first make an official announcement about the live-action adaptation of ‘Beast and Beauty,’ because as everyone knows, rumors are making a lot of noise.”

“Um, right. “If you procrastinate too much, you may lose your strength.”

Then the first decision was made.

“Let’s take care of that within a few days.”

backwards.

In addition to Kang Woo-jin’s sweep of the ‘Best Actor’ award, Korea is full of many issues.

『[Movie Talk] ‘The Strange Sacrifice of a Stranger’ starring Kang Woo-jin is about to be released in Korea!』

News about the first Korean release of ‘Familiar Gisaeng’ has been added. It was quite noisy the day before, but on the morning of the 21st, the opening day, it was several times more noisy.

『’Unfamiliar Parasite’, which attracted 23 million views in Japan, is off to an unusual start in Korea as well! 1st place in overall reservation rate』

Anyone can see the Kang Woo-jin effect. Of course, it is a blockbuster movie that attracted 23 million viewers in Japan, but what is more important is that it is Woojin’s first leading role in Japan, which is currently causing a stir in Korea. Because Kang Woo-jin achieved a lot of history this year, the public’s expectations were very high.

With such high expectations, disappointment is bound to follow, but ‘The Stranger’ received a series of reviews that exceeded those expectations.

[「The Strange Sacrifice of a Stranger」/ Released on December 21, 2021]

[Rating 9.6]

[Visitor and netizen comments/289 people participated]

-There is no need to say anything else. Kang Woo-jin did Kang Woo-jin/ g****

-The movie itself is fun, especially the ending. It’s a well-made movie/ 2****

-Wow…I saw a Japanese movie for the first time when Kang Woo-jin was there and it was so funny hahahaha/ d****

-Well, just like that/ q****

-There are no emotions at the beginning, but at the end the hidden emotions explode… The way he expressed them through acting is really… Kang Woo-jin’s acting is amazing…/ 2****

-Koreans in Japan are killing Japanese people. 23 million people in Japan saw it. Is there any reason not to see it??/ r****

-I completely understand why Kang Woo-jin won the Best Actor Award at Cannes…/ s****

-When I look at Japanese works, I think, ‘I’m acting!’ It’s not a big deal because the same feeling is strong, but there’s nothing like that in this movie and I don’t notice the passage of time/ v****

-I was a bit bored~~I guess I’m worse than a leech/ 9****

-I was surprised by Kang Woo-jin’s Japanese and sign language skills… You can really see the peak of Kang Woo-jin’s acting in this movie ㄷㄷㄷ/ o****

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As soon as the first screening ended, the audience who had seen ‘Familiar Gisaeng’ rushed in like crazy. What can I say, it feels like the ‘unfamiliar parasite’ has taken over the baton even before the ‘leech”s mighty power has cooled down. That meant that Kang Woo-jin’s prestige in the theater world continued to grow even greater.

One day passed, the 22nd.

After resting for a day, Kang Woo-jin, equipped with a stronger concept, got into the waiting van. The team members welcomed him, and Choi Seong-geon, the passenger seat, immediately showed the tablet screen. He was laughing.

“Woojin, ‘The Stranger’ is in great shape!”

On the tablet screen, the results for the first day of Korean release for ‘Familiar Gisaeng’ were being displayed.

[Audience count on December 21, 2021]

[Daily domestic box office]

1. Strange Sacrifice / Release date: December 21 / Number of audiences: 608,893 / Number of screens: 1123 / Cumulative number of viewers: 608,893

At first glance, it may seem weak because it is lower than the ‘Leech’, but that was not the case at all.

“’Leech’ was so crazy, and even though you were the lead, it was a Japanese movie so you weren’t familiar with it.”

Kang Woo-jin answered silently.

“Yes, I know.”

“Okay, okay. But there are a lot of special events coming soon, on Christmas Eve, on Christmas Day, and at the end of the year, so it’s worth looking forward to it!”

Another day passed, and on the 23rd, the second results of ‘Strange Gisaeng’ were announced.

『On the second day of the release of ‘Familiar Gisaeng’, the number of viewers exceeded 1.2 million!』

With over 1 million viewers in two days, theaters at the end of the year are once again filled with Kang Woo-jin. But it wasn’t just a story about Korean theaters.

『[Issue Talk] Khan and ‘Leech’, which shook Korea, opens in Japan today, the 23rd! What is the reservation rate?

Today, the 23rd, ‘Leech’ was released in Japan.

A few days later, New York.

A foreign woman appeared in the parking lot after finishing recording a famous talk show. She was Miley Kara, wearing a navy coat and flowing blonde hair. Wearing full makeup thanks to the recording, she moved around with about a dozen staff members and then got into the first of several large vans waiting in the parking lot.

-Sigh.

As soon as she got on, a female team member handed her a water bottle as she brushed her blonde hair back. Kara expressed her gratitude and took a few sips of her bottled water before crossing her legs and taking out her cell phone. Several communications have been received. Among them, a message from a talkative Hollywood actor whom she had recently met at a fashion show event caught her eye and she moved her thumb.

His message included a simple comment and a link.

Kara lightly ignored the comment and touched the link. Her cell phone screen suddenly changed. What was printed was an article from a large media company. Soon, Miley Cara read the headline.

『BBX/’World Disney Pictures’ official announcement “We are producing a live-action version of The Beast and Beauty”』

I smiled slightly.

“The live-action film has been officially announced.”