Will South Korean star Lee Byung-hun’s Netflix drama ‘Mr. Sunshine’ be a global hit?
Actor – known abroad for Hollywood films such as ‘The Magnificent Seven’ – is confident that Korean wartime drama will appeal to international viewers
What can possibly go wrong with the new blockbuster drama penned by a writer whose long track record includes pan-Asian smash hits Descendants of the Sun and Guardian: The Lonely and Great God?
The two dramas had viewership ratings of 38.8 and 20.5 per cent, respectively, with Guardian: The Lonely and Great God seen by a record cable-drama audience.
Writer Kim Eun-sook and producer Lee Eung-bok’s much-anticipated third project Mr. Sunshine, which follows their 2016 hit Descendants and 2017’s Guardian – which starts on the US television subscription channel, Netflix in July – was unveiled in Seoul this week.
The overriding focus at the first press event for the drama on Tuesday was not over the question of if, but how it can become a certain hit for audiences around the world.
The 24-part drama, starring veteran South Korean actor Lee Byung-hun and rising star Kim Tae-ri, is set in Korea in the late 1800s and early 1900s before the nation was colonised by Japan.
It tells the story of the wartime romance between a Korean-born American marine, Eugene Choi and Ko Ae-shin, the daughter of a family that fights against Japan’s invasion of Joseon (1392-1910).
Mr. Sunshine was inspired by historical events concerning a US expedition to Korea in 1871, the first American military action on and around Ganghwa Island, which led to more than 200 Korean troops being killed.