[Sportschosun Interview] "Just grateful if he comes back safely"... 'Hope' is impressive, Jung Ho-yeon (full story)

[Sportschosun Jiyoung Cho] Actress Jung Ho-yeon, 32, brought Korea's own versions of 'Tomb Raider' and 'Resident Evil' to life through a performance filled with sincerity, sweat, and tears.

In the sci-fi thriller film 'Hope' (directed by Na Hong-jin, produced by Forged Films), Jung Ho-yeon plays Seong-ae, a police officer at Hope Harbor who does her job no matter the situation. She met with Sportschosun in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 8th and spoke about how she joined the film and the passion she poured into it.

'Hope' tells the story of the head of a branch office in Hope Harbor, located in the DMZ, who hears from local young men that a tiger has appeared. As the entire village goes on alert, the story unfolds as the characters face an unbelievable reality. The film drew major attention as Na Hong-jin's first new work in 10 years since 'The Wailing,' which was released in 2016.

In particular, Jung Ho-yeon, the film's only major female lead, has been earning praise for her boundless performance. Jung, who began her acting career in earnest through Netflix's 'Squid Game,' which was released in 2021 and drew global attention, made her big-screen debut with 'Hope' and once again proved her presence. In the film, she transforms into Seong-ae, a police officer in Hope Harbor with a clear sense of right and wrong, and dominates the middle and latter parts of the movie as a warrior who stands against aliens that have crossed the line. Most notably, Jung performed all of her action scenes herself, including intense car chases, drifting, and grenade launcher sequences, adding powerful energy to the film and showing off her charismatic, girl-crush appeal.

On this day, Jung said, "I don't really know what I'm feeling ahead of the release, but excitement seems to be the biggest emotion right now. This is a project I've waited for for so long, so I really want to meet audiences soon and hear their feedback." She added, "It would be too early to call it relief. The biggest feeling is still excitement. Seeing positive reviews makes me think, 'Thank goodness,' but I wouldn't say I feel relieved yet."

It had previously been reported that 'Hope' came together after Hwang Jung-min recommended Jung Ho-yeon for the casting. Regarding that, Jung laughed and said, "I didn't know during the audition, but later, while filming, I heard that senior Hwang Jung-min had recommended me to Na Hong-jin. Na Hong-jin and senior Hwang Jung-min apparently agreed that they wanted Seong-ae in 'Hope' to be played by a fresh face. They thought Seong-ae had to handle long-rifle action, and they wanted that to look natural. Then, after watching 'Squid Game,' senior Hwang Jung-min casually suggested, 'How about Ho-yeon?'"

Jung said she was thrilled to hear Na Hong-jin's offer. "When I first heard that Na Hong-jin wanted to meet me, it felt like I was flying. At the time, I was thinking about my next project after 'Squid Game.' It wasn't an offer for 'Hope' yet, just a request to meet and talk casually once. But I went in with the mindset of going to an audition, and I imagined a lot on the way there. Honestly, I really wanted to make a good impression on Na Hong-jin. I also wanted him to see me favorably as an actress. With those expectations, I finally met him, and his eyes were incredibly intense. They were so intense that I thought he might not even blink. The moment I saw those eyes, I thought, 'Don't pretend.' It felt like he could see straight through me no matter what I did, so I decided to show him as much of my true self as possible," she explained.

"The meeting with Na Hong-jin was so much fun," she continued. "We mostly talked about everyday things, and on our first meeting, he said, 'Now that Jung Ho-yeon has entered Chungmuro, I should buy her a bowl of Jajangmyeon,' and treated me to the best Jajangmyeon in the neighborhood. After we talked, he told the production company representative right there to give me the 'Hope' script. I was so surprised. I hadn't expected anything else to happen that day, but he handed me the script right away, and I was so happy. The script in my hands felt more valuable than any treasure. I held it close all the way home, and as soon as I got there, I wrote my name under the title 'Hope.' That's how desperately I wanted to do this project with him."

She also addressed the rumors that Na Hong-jin is something of an eccentric in the film industry. "I heard that Na Hong-jin never compromises when it comes to film. Maybe because I'm still a newcomer, I haven't heard that much about him, but I did hear that he never gives in on a project and does whatever a human being can do to achieve a good result. Once I actually worked on his film, everything was handled in incredible detail. Even from the fitting stage, I could feel how meticulous he was. Seong-ae only wears one police uniform, but we went through three fittings. There were many options for the uniform color, from dark blue to black, slightly lighter blue, and even gray. Na Hong-jin, cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, and the costume director all gathered to discuss how the outfit would look in natural light. They also carefully considered which blood and dust makeup would be most effective," she said. "My previous director, Alfonso Cuarón Orozco, even approved something as small as a brooch on my clothes. Working with directors like Alfonso Cuarón Orozco and Na Hong-jin made me understand how they make films, and I came to respect them. Senior Hwang Jung-min is also a perfectionist, isn't he? Watching senior Hwang Jung-min and Na Hong-jin approach this project with that kind of attitude made it impossible for me not to follow along naturally."

Jung also spoke about the gun action and car-chase scenes, which were executed to perfection. "Before 'Hope' really got underway, I started weight training. The gun weighed about 5 kilograms. I heard that Na Hong-jin is especially known for doing many takes, so I worked hard on weight training so I could hold the gun for a long time. I gained about 4 kilograms of muscle and trained several times with the firearms instructor. I went through that process for six months," she said. "I originally had an automatic driver's license, but I got a manual license. The car in the film was a Hyundai Stella, and I was told its interior had been modified so it could drift, which meant I needed a manual license. Fortunately, I passed on my first try, and I practiced the drifting scenes by taking direct lessons from a racing instructor. Watching the film, I was happy that the part where I load bullets into the gun seemed to show all the practice I had done. I felt that the movements looked fast and smooth, and that made me happy."

She added, "We filmed in an actual rural village, but we built temporary walls in front of the village buildings and shot there. Even if we were careful, the real buildings could still be damaged, so for the U-turn scene in the narrow alley, I had a stunt double help me. Everything else, including drifting on the road, I did myself. Anything I could safely do and act out myself, I handled personally." She continued, "I prepared very hard for this project. In one of the early scenes with my character, Seong-ae fires a gun and then gets back into the car without cutting. That scene alone used more than 20 takes. At first, because I still had energy, it captured Seong-ae firing while holding the gun perfectly. But in the later takes, it showed Seong-ae looking truly exhausted. By around the 18th take, I was moving almost instinctively. I think Na Hong-jin wanted to capture everything, from Seong-ae's composed side to her tired, raw side."

Jung said her first time acting alongside Hwang Jung-min and Zo In-sung was also special. "Senior Hwang Jung-min is never late on set and usually arrives at least 20 minutes early, so I ended up going early too. He is an actor who never lets his guard down on set. Usually, as actors get used to one another, they start to relax at some point, but he always stays alert to that. Especially when filming an action movie, you have to pay attention to safety, and he had this energy of never even blinking. I felt that kind of attitude was essential," she said. About Zo In-sung, she added, "He is such a flexible senior. He takes care of the staff on set and has an energy that makes the whole production flow smoothly." She continued, "Between Hwang Jung-min and Zo In-sung, I was just the bright, cheerful kid. Everything was fascinating and fun. I was thrilled to work with both of them. When I looked at the 'Hope' poster this time, my name was next to Hwang Jung-min and Zo In-sung. That alone feels like a dream. Throughout the shoot, I watched Na Hong-jin, cinematographer Hong Kyung-pyo, and seniors Hwang Jung-min and Zo In-sung talking about the film and discussing scenes. It was the kind of experience that's hard to buy even if you had the money, so I was happy."

Even the extreme action scenes, which were almost to the point of being too much, left her with a sense of pride. "I want to praise myself for not giving up halfway and seeing it through to the end. Through this project, I think I became a little more focused, and I learned a lot from the persistence of the senior actors and directors, as well as their determination to go all the way. I think I was trained by that as well. More than anything, I kept thinking that while watching senior Zo In-sung. There were quite a few scenes where I thought, 'Can someone really go that far?' When filming another actor's solo scene, people usually cheer from afar with things like 'Hang in there' or 'Fighting,' but on the 'Hope' set, at some point I started thinking, 'What does that kind of encouragement even mean?' It was simply, 'Thank you for coming back safely.' I didn't feel that way about my own scenes, but in the later part, when senior Zo In-sung was doing horse-riding action scenes, all I could think was how grateful I was that he came back safely," she joked.

Finally, Jung said, "The one thing I want to protect until the end of my acting career is my state of mind. While working on this project, I thought a lot about goodwill. My own sense of goodwill may not always lead to good results for everyone in the end, right? If you keep doubting goodwill as you live, you may start thinking, 'What matters most?' I kept reflecting on how difficult it is to live while protecting goodwill, and at the same time, I also came to think that I still want to live that way. Senior Hwang Jung-min also kept telling me during filming, 'Ho-yeon, I think actors should never lose their goodwill. An actor must not lose that.' What I mean by my state of mind is that I try and work toward a healthy mentality so I can keep living with goodwill." She added, "I also chose to take a break for the sake of that healthy state of mind. I didn't want to rush into finding my next project. I wanted to give myself time. As an actress, I think what I have gained now is a lot compared with my know-how and experience. I'm grateful and happy, but at the same time, because I want to do so well, my ambitions and experiences always collide at some point. So I try to give myself more time and comfort myself by saying, 'It's okay.' I also calm myself down by saying, 'At least in acting, take it one step at a time.' I want to become an actress who does her best within what she has, without trying too hard to prove or show off. I want to do everything I can so I won't be ashamed in front of the audience."

'Hope' stars Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender. It is directed by Na Hong-jin, known for 'The Chaser,' 'The Yellow Sea,' and 'The Wailing.' The film opens on the 15th.

Jiyoung Cho, soulhn1220@sportschosun.com