Newly minted Emmy winner Lee Jung-Jae steps behind the camera for his directorial debut, “Hunt.”
The “Squid Game” actor stars as Park Pyong-ho, KCIA Foreign Unit chief who is tasked with uncovering a North Korean spy known as Donglim, with the help of Domestic Unit chief Kim Jung-do (Jung Woo-Sung) after a high-ranking North Korean official requests asylum. When the spy begins leaking top secret intel that could jeopardize national security, the two units are each assigned to investigate each other. In this tense situation where if they cannot find the mole, they may be accused themselves, Pyong-ho and Jung-do slowly start to uncover the truth. In the end, they must deal with an unthinkable plot to assassinate the South Korean president.
Jo Seung-Hee writes 1980s-set “Hunt,” with Lee directing and producing. Jeon Hye Jin, Heo Sung Tae, Go Youn Jung, Kim Jong Soo, and Jung Man Sik also star in the film.
Lee made history earlier this year by becoming the first Asian actor to win the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Lee, already a major star in South Korea, told IndieWire that after “Squid Game” premiered, “literally everybody [abroad] would come up to me asking for a picture or an autograph and they’re asking me if Season 2 is coming out soon.”
“It’s very crazy to see so many people noticing me,” Lee said at the time. “I feel very happy to be able to share this great moment with so many.”
“Hunt” premiered at 2022 Cannes and was acquired by Magnolia Pictures. IndieWire critic David Ehlrich called the film “Tarantino-esque” by presenting an alternate political history in his review. “Train to Busan” stunt coordinator Heo Myeong-Haeng is credited with directing the action sequences, which Ehrlich deemed “visceral and propulsive in a way that American crime sagas almost never are this side of ‘Heat.'”
Up next, writer/director/producer/star Lee is set to appear in “Star Wars” Disney+ series “The Acolyte” opposite Amandla Stenberg, Jodie Turner-Smith, Manny Jacinto, and Charlie Barnett. “The Acolyte” will take place in the final days of the High Republic era of the “Star Wars” timeline, centering on a Sith who begins training under an experienced Sith Lord.
“Hunt” is coming soon in December.
Check out the trailer below.
