Son Seok Koo, who is seeing a rise in popularity with My Liberation Notes, will be greeting the viewers as a beastly man in The Roundup. The Roundup is an action movie that follows detective Ma Seok Do and his team’s pursuit of the villain Kang Hae Sang who has taken over Vietnam.
Son Seok Koo, who took on the role of Kang Hae Sang, told Newsen in a video interview, “I pondered a lot over how he should look. It’s a movie that’s not complicated and has exhilarating fun, so I thought there should be the fun of ‘watching.’ Outfits and a makeover weren’t decided over just one try. We had many meetings over it. I created all the outfits myself.”
The actor gained 10 kg for the role. “I pigged out. I didn’t have a trainer, though. I wanted a realistic body. But I worked out like crazy, lifting heavy things. But it was nice that I got to eat all that I wanted. It was totally fine to have a swollen face, so I ate before sleeping and before shooting.”
It must’ve been burdensome to play the villain role following Yoon Kye Sang, who played Jang Chen in the prequel, The Outlaws. “I thought I had just one job,” Son Seok Koo shared. “I wanted viewers to feel safe behind detective Ma Seok Do and feel they wanted to catch that bastard. Also, I wanted to give a big and scary impact by showing a villain crumbling down in front of thrilling action.”
Why did he appear in the movie? “I was offered a lot of villain roles at some point,” he shared. “I don’t particularly prefer blood-covered, tough action scenes. But if I were to do it, I thought I should choose the most vicious villain and not play any more villain characters for a while.” He then added, “I also chose The Roundup because I just loved The Outlaws.”
What was it like working with Don Lee (aka Ma Dong Seok)? “He is such an expert, so I filmed safely,” Son Seok Koo said. “It barely felt like real fighting. But it sure will look like one. Especially when we were filming the last action scene, we cracked up a lot. I’d pass out after just one punch in real life, but I put up with it pretty strongly.”
The actor will show a completely different face from what he’s showing in My Liberation Notes. “The show is streamed on Netflix, so a lot of people are recognizing me now. It feels good,” he opened up. “I’m very satisfied with how two different characters are coming out around the same time. I didn’t intend on it, but I’m glad that there’s one interesting thing to look forward to.”
Previously, Son Seok Koo shared that he is eagerly waiting for the release of The Roundup. “I decided to appear on My Liberation Notes a long time ago. I felt anxious about having a long break between projects, but now that I have two projects coming out into the world, I’m glad.”
For more info about the movie visit 815 Pictures.
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