Director Park Reveals Disney+'s "The Tyrant" Is Set in Same Cinematic Universe as "The Witch"

On July 15, press conference was held for the upcoming Disney+ original series The Tyrant. The event was attended by director Park Hoon Jung, along with actors Cha Seung Won, Kim Seon Ho, Jo Yoon Soo and Kim Kang Woo.

The Tyrant is a sci-fi action drama about people who gather for different purposes chasing each other after the last sample of the Tyrant Program disappears in an accident.

The Tyrant marks director Park's debut in K-dramas. At the press conference, he expressed his respect for drama makers, saying, "It was my first time working on a non-film project. It was tough. Perhaps because it was my first time, it was difficult, and I respect those who make dramas." 

Talking about the K-drama, he revealed an interesting fact: "It's an extension of The Witch [movie] series I've directed. It's a story [set] in the same, [but] bigger, universe. You can see it as the story of people and forces at opposite ends." 

Actor Cha Seung Won commented, "The Witch is the east, and The Tyrant is the west. They will converge someday," adding, "While they share the universe, it's a different story. There's ample opportunity for the two to converge." 

Director Park agreed, saying, "Cha Seung Won explained it very well. That's right. It's a work we thought about and prepared for from the beginning. Perhaps that's why there are many things fans can infer when they watch."

The Tyrant features renowned actors from the Korean cinema industry such as Cha Seung Won, Kim Seon Ho, Jo Yoon Soo and Kim Kang Woo. 

Cha Seung Won takes on the role of Lim Sang, who tries to remove obstacles related to the Tyrant Program. The actor said, "I am a huge fan of The Witch. I think the director's greatest strength is that he doesn't hesitate when shooting genre works like action and thrillers. The characters are also very intense."

Kim Seon Ho plays Director Choi, who has been secretly operating the program. He struggles to protect the program from outside forces amid the crisis of the last sample disappearing. The actor said, "I was excited to take on the role of Director Choi because he felt different from my previous characters." "He's a character who remains calm in any situation. Because he is driven by his beliefs, I thought a lot about what choices he would make and what [course of] action he would take," and raised expectations by saying, "When the drama is released, you'll see a different side of me [as an actor, never seen before]."

Kim Kang Woo plays Paul, who tries to shut down the Tyrant Program and steal the sample. The actor commented, "Paul is a foreign intelligence agent. After learning that the Tyrant Program was created in Korea, he infiltrates the country to shut it down."

He added, "Paul is very cruel [like he is devoid of] blood and tears. He's Korean by blood, but his nationality is American. He can be seen as a cocky, annoying black-haired foreigner with a sense of superiority."

Jo Yoon Soo plays Ja Kyung, a technician tasked with stealing the sample of the Tyrant Program. She said, "I have been a fan of director Park Hoon Jung. I consider it the luckiest thing in my life to play Ja Kyung."

It is reported that Cha Seung Won and Jo Yoon Soo underwent intense training for posture enhancement and deliver realistic action scenes.

Jo Yoon Soo said, "I received martial arts training and PT classes for a month and a half. There were many action scenes, so after one scene ended, I [would start] preparing for the next one. I built strength and learned how to coordinate action scenes."

She added, "I also learned how to handle guns and knives. Since Ja Kyung is a rough character, I tried to portray the action scenes in a beastly and raw manner."

The Tyrant will premiere on August 14 only on Disney+.

Source