bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

The Korea Times

By Baek Byung-yeul
Yoon Sung-hyun, director of Korean zombie drama Newtopia, has expressed confidence that the series will appeal to international viewers, particularly those who prefer a lighter approach to the zombie genre, blending humour with horror.
“There are many international fans who are familiar with the lighter zombie genre. Like [American-Canadian director] George Romero’s zombie movies, our drama also has parts that show a narrative related to zombies with a lighter feel.
“I expect this work to be a nostalgic piece for global fans, as it has many scenes reminiscent of zombie movies that mix humour and horror that I’ve seen in the 1980s,” Yoon said this week.


Newtopia is an eight-part series that will be released on Korean streaming platform Coupang Play and available globally through Amazon Prime Video on February 7.
The series follows Lee Jae-yoon (Park Jeong-min), a soldier, and his girlfriend Kang Young-joo (Jisoo), as they navigate a zombie-infested Seoul to find each other.
“I think this series has a lot of elements that overseas fans who like zombie movies will enjoy. There are many zombies without eyeballs or missing body parts and I think fans of traditional zombie series will like this part,” the director said.
“Of course, I also expect it to be a big draw for global fans who like Jisoo and Park Jeong-min.”

He praised Jisoo, who is a member of the K-pop group Blackpink, saying that the production could not have been completed without her.
“I felt lucky to work with Jisoo. I felt that the character of Young-joo could not have been done without her. There were points where she needed to express the character humorously, and Jisoo is a very humorous actress, so it was a good fit,” the director said.
“There are also many physically challenging action scenes and I am very grateful that she silently handled those scenes well.”
Coincidentally, the series includes scenes of a plane crash and a government declaration of martial law, both of which are expected to draw attention because of their resemblance to recent events in Korea.
Regarding this, the director expressed his surprise at these parallels, as the real-life events took place after post-production was completed.

“I was also surprised when martial law was actually declared after the editing was finished. I only faithfully delivered what was in the script,” Yoon said. “I thought it was important to remain truthful and show the core scenes that are the beginning of the series, so I decided to keep those in.”
Yoon asked Korean and international viewers alike to focus on the unpredictable choices the characters make throughout the series.
“There are many unexpected parts about what choices the characters will make and how they will move forward, so there is a freshness about the characters.
“The zombies show the grotesque and slow-moving traits similar to vintage zombie films I saw in the 1970s and 1980s, different from the zombies of today,” he said.
Read the original story at The Korea Times.


K-drama casting news about Blackpink’s Jisoo, After School’s Nana, Choi Soo-young and more

Study Group director mulls season 2 after K-drama series set in high school becomes a hit

Netflix K-drama When Life Gives You Tangerines: IU, Park Bo-gum juggle love and hardship

Netflix K-drama The Potato Lab: Lee Sun-bin, Kang Tae-oh headline formulaic rural romcom

K-drama news

Newtopia, starring Blackpink’s Jisoo, will appeal to fans of zombie humour, says director

Jisoo in a still from Newtopia. The Blackpink singer is “a very humorous actress”, says its director, Yoon Sung-hyun.

Jisoo of Blackpink in a still from Newtopia. Photo: Bound Entertainment

Park Jeong-min and Jisoo in a still from zombie K-drama comedy series Newtopia. Photo: Instagram/jisooyaachu

The 13 most anticipated K-drama series of 2025 ranked, from Squid Game 3 to Tempest

Jisoo in a still from Newtopia.

Kim Min-ha in a still from Way Back Love, which debuted at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival to rave reviews and is one of 13 K-dramas to look forward to in 2025. Photo: TVing

The main cast of Can This Love Be Translated? a K-drama from the Hong Sisters.

The main cast members of Two Women.

The main cast of The Price of Confession.

The main cast of When Life Gives You Tangerines.

Kim Da-mi (left) and Son Suk-ku in a still from Nine Puzzles.

Gong Myung (left) and Kim Min-ha in a still from Way Back Love. Photo: TVing

Jun Ji-hyun in a still from Tempest.

Squid Game season 3 follows shortly after season 2, which was in effect half a series.

Queen of Tears star Kim Soo-hyun addresses rumours he is dating Korean actress co-star

Kim Ji-won (left) and Kim Soo-hyun in a still from Queen of Tears.

Kim Ji-won and Kim Soo-hyun at a Queen of Tears news conference in March 2024. The actor has denied rumours he and his co-star are dating. Photo: The Chosunilbo JNS/Imazins via Getty Images

Kim Ji-won and Kim Soo-hyun as married couple Baek Hyun-woo and Hong Hae-in in Queen of Tears.

Kim Soo-hyun  and Kim Ji-won in a still from Queen of Tears.

Kim Ji-won in a still from Queen of Tears.

The 15 best K-dramas of 2024 ranked, from Queen of Tears to LTNS and Squid Game season 2

Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun in a still from Squid Game season 2. Photo: No Ju-han/Netflix

Lee Jung-jae in a still from Squid Game season 2, the most anticipated Netflix series of the year and the best K-drama show of 2024. Photo: No Ju-han/Netflix

The 15 best romantic K-dramas of all time, from Crash Landing on You and My Love from the Star to Secret Garden and Twenty-Five Twenty-One

Hyun Bin and Ha Ji-won in a still from “Secret Garden”. Photo: SBS

Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin in a still from “Crash Landing on You” (2019). There have been many romantic K-drama classics over the years. We rank our 15 best ever. Photo: TvN

Lifestyle

K-drama

News

Entertainment

Culture

Film & TV

K-Pop

Show’s director talks up its ‘vintage zombie’ look and actress Jisoo’s humour, and tips his hat to 70s zombie film maestro George Romero


Show’s director talks up its ‘vintage zombie’ look and actress Jisoo’s humour, and tips his hat to 70s zombie film maestro George Romero.


What's hot in Korea

Amazon

TV shows and streaming video

Korea Times