In previous columns and articles, we had kept mentioning the increasing numbers of Koreans (from South Korea or Korean-American) breaking into Hollywood and it looks like Newsweek has taken notice of this trend as well. In an article titled “Korea Takes Hollywood,” Newsweek magazine (issue dated November 16) writes about the increasing importance of Korea as a new or emerging market for Hollywood because at the end of the day, it’s always about the money. However, it does go beyond money and they’ve also noticed the talent pool of actors and directors. Most recently, Koreans have penetrated Hollywood with significant roles like John Cho in Star Trek and FlashForward and Lee Byung Hun in G.I. Joe. How about leading roles? Kpop star RAIN will be the first Korean to be in the lead role of a major Hollywood studio film in the upcoming “Ninja Assassin,” and the cast includes other Koreans: Sung Kang and Rick Yune. On a side note, we’ll be at a private screening for Ninja Assassin and meeting up with RAIN later this week.
So what’s the challenge? It goes both ways as the article illustrates. To many Asian actors are typecast for martial art flicks. And for the Korean actors, it’s a risk to come to Hollywood, even though it’s the biggest entertainment market in the world. Those risks include alienating themselves from the South Korean market and losing out on opportunities, as well as losing creative freedoms which potentially could be limited by big Hollywood studios. There are certainly risks but more importantly, the Korean wave is continuing and people are noticing.
For our articles on the Korean wave, you can check out a few past articles.
If you’ve been watching the baseball playoffs, you’ll notice that they keep playing the Ninja Assassin trailer during commercials. And guess who’s the lead actor in this all-Asian affair? It’s Korean pop sensation RAIN. The man known as the nemesis to Stephen Colbert. It’s coming out this Thanksgiving to kick-off the holiday season, and it looks like the studio is being aggressive by buying expensive commercial time during the playoffs.
Rain isn’t the only Korean guy in this big studio movie. Also co-starring with the Kpop sensation is Randall Duk Kim, Rick Yune and Sung Kang. Pretty cool that there all these Korean dudes in a big studio film. Check it out this Thanksgiving.
Synopsis from IMDB: Ninja Assassin follows Raizo (Rain), one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.
In Berlin, Europol agent Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris) has stumbled upon a money trail linking several political murders to an underground network of untraceable assassins from the Far East. Defying the orders of her superior, Ryan Maslow (Ben Miles), Mika digs into top secret agency files to learn the truth behind the murders. Her investigation makes her a target, and the Ozunu Clan sends a team of killers, led by the lethal Takeshi (Rick Yune), to silence her forever. Raizo saves Mika from her attackers, but he knows that the Clan will not rest until they are both eliminated. Now, entangled in a deadly game of cat and mouse through the streets of Europe, Raizo and Mika must trust one another if they hope to survive and finally bring down the elusive Ozunu Clan.
The Hollywood Reporter published a very interesting article this morning about the Korean wave (“hallyu” in Korean) of actors finding their way into big hollywood studio films. Coincidentally, we published a similar article yesterday about this occurrence. Very interesting. Coincidence? Perhaps.
They beg the question, what’s with the interest in South Korean actors when they can barely speak English? Someone once said, “don’t think it’s just about the money, it’s ALWAYS about the money.” Hollywood used to view Asia as a region of incremental dollars for their films, but with the significant rise of South Korean films, dramas, and their talent pool, Hollywood has taken notice of its big potential. For example, the Hollywood Reporter article starts off by noting that South Korean actor Lee Byung-hun was the most anticipated sighting for the fans waiting at the hotel, and not Sienna Miller and the other actors in G.I. Joe.
“For Hollywood, it [hallyu] is a sign that Korean actors hold major ticket power in Asia,” said Choi Min-soo, the head of marketing at CJ Entertainment, the importer of “G.I. Joe.” “It’s also a sign that the Asian market is no longer just ‘one of them.’”
Hollywood may have almost exhausted what it can do domestically, and the last few years we’ve seen Hollywood look to remake dozens of films that were first produced overseas and the subsequent trend is to import the actors and actresses that have a strong following. In the business world, it’s about scale and Hollywood is finally realizing that the scale is much bigger when you start weaving and integrating pieces together from outside the U.S. borders.
For Paramount Pictures, the film’s distributor, this was a promising sign — one that suggests the potential benefit of casting an Asian superstar to attract regional ticket buyers when marketing a quintessentially American film.
The strategy seems to be on the rise with major Hollywood productions that once had limited roles for Asian actors. Aside from Lee, who plays the film’s charismatic Storm Shadow, other Korean actors are also participating in the trend.
Similar to the Korean wave of singers i.e., Wonder Girls, BoA, etc. entering the U.S. market, it’s these supporting roles that are paving the wave for greater acceptance of Koreans in the biggest media and entertainment market. For those doubters, did you really think America would have a black president 2 years ago? Believe in the Korean wave!
Why can’t Korean actors be cast as lovers, not fighters? Three South Korean entertainers have been cast in three big American films, which is pretty impressive but interestingly they’re cast as fighters. Rain is in the principal role of Ninja Assassins – you guessed it, as the Ninja. Lee Byeong-Heon has been cast as Storm Shadow in GI Joe – you guessed it, as a Ninja. And due out next summer, Kwon Sang-Woo has been cast as Kato in The Green Hornet, which was portrayed by Bruce Lee, but not a Ninja. Kato is a driver and an enforcer (aka fighter). Now let’s give Hollywood some credit because that’s three South Korean men who don’t speak English that well that have found big roles in big studio films. Now do they talk much? No but at least they’re paving the way for greater acceptance of Asian-American men in big studio films. Does anybody have a script for a Korean man that doesn’t require putting on a hood or throwing a thousand punches? Take a look at the previews of Ninja Assassin, GI Joe and an old clip of Kato (Bruce Lee) in The Green Hornet TV series.
Korean actors and singers are the most popular across Asia, and with that success, many of these artists are trying to break into the biggest country for entertainment: the good ol’ USA. A couple of magazines have taken notice such as this week’s People Magazine highlighting the attempts of the Wonder Girls, Se7en and BoA entering the U.S. BoA just released her self-titled American album in mid-March. Se7en is touring the coutry from New York to Atlanta (this weekend) and the Wonder Girls just finished off their first set of concerts in the U.S. with the JYP Tour.
Complex magazine has taken notice as well but they must have an affinity for Koreans because they’ve done polls on the Wonder Girls and Girls Generation as well as features on Jarah Mariano and Grace Park. In a recent issue, Complex raises the flag on the Korean invasion into the American market: ”Which Korean entertainer will become an American star?”
In their (subjective) opinion, they rate the crossover potential of Boa, Se7en, Jeon Ji-Hyun, Rain, Bae Seul-Ki and Lee Byung-Hun. There’s certainly challenges for these artists to import their brand and talents into the U.S. market, but there are a few folks who reside state side that are doing it organically: Tim Kang, Aaron Yoo, Sung Kang, Kim Yun-Jin, Daniel Dae Lee, John Cho, Grace Park, Justin Chon, Moon Bloodgood and many more. I guess it’s attacking the U.S. market domestically and internationally.
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In previous columns and articles, we had kept mentioning the increasing numbers of Koreans (from South Korea or Korean-American) breaking into Hollywood and it looks like Newsweek has taken notice of this trend as well. In an article titled “Korea Takes Hollywood,” Newsweek magazine (issue dated November 16) writes about the increasing importance of Korea as a new or emerging market for Hollywood because at the end of the day, it’s always about the money. However, it does go beyond money and they’ve also noticed the talent pool of actors and directors. Most recently, Koreans have penetrated Hollywood with significant roles like John Cho in Star Trek and FlashForward and Lee Byung Hun in G.I. Joe. How about leading roles? Kpop star RAIN will be the first Korean to be in the lead role of a major Hollywood studio film in the upcoming “Ninja Assassin,” and the cast includes other Koreans: Sung Kang and Rick Yune. On a side note, we’ll be at a private screening for Ninja Assassin and meeting up with RAIN later this week. 
