“Wonderfulfools” Production Press Event Wraps Up! “Feel the heartbeat and warmth of an amusement park, with a spoonful of sweetness!”

In the late 1990s century-end, a supernatural comic adventure 〈Wonderfools〉 where four neighborhood nobodies who happen to gain psychic powers throw themselves into a mission to protect the world after facing villains that threaten peace premiered its production press event successfully on Tuesday, May 12. At the event, Director Yin Sik Yoo, along with Park Eun-bin, Choi Dae-hoon, Lim Seong-jae, Kim Hae-sook, Son Hyun-joo, Jung Yi-seo, Choi Yoon-ji, and Bae Na-ra attended and shared a variety of stories, raising expectations for the work even further.

First, Director Yin Sik Yoo said, “〈Wonderfools〉 is set in the late 1990s century-end, an era when doomsday beliefs run rampant. When four people—known as the town’s losers—suddenly develop special abilities, they end up facing a mission to save the world against the villains.” He introduced the project and kicked off the press event. He then added, “I’ve always liked the superhero genre and had a romance with it in my head. The moment I saw the script for writer Heo Da-jung for the first time, my heart started pounding.” In particular, he said, “I think this genre has to be fun at its core. When you go to an amusement park, you feel that pulse from the moment the seatbelt clicks until the very end—you should be able to enjoy that feeling completely. I hope you’ll be able to feel emotions like a spoonful of warmth through the work,” revealing the message he wants to convey, and heightening curiosity about the story that 〈Wonderfools〉 will bring. He also talked about the English title, 〈THE WONDERfools​〉: “I like the unexpected fun that happens when mismatched things collide. The genre is major, but the characters are minor—so I wondered what kind of title could capture that collision well. In other words, it’s the story of ‘Fools’ who are in no way ready to be ‘wonderful.’” He introduced the meaning behind the title, building even more interest.

A variety of stories about the richly distinctive characters in 〈Wonderfools〉 also continued. Park Eun-bin, who plays “Eunchae-ni,” the official office troublemaker in Haeseong City who gains the power of teleportation, said, “Eunchae-ni’s way of thinking is pretty straightforward, so while getting to know the world of this friend, I was able to have a lot of fun and enjoyable experiences,” and shared her thoughts on playing Eunchae-ni. Regarding the character “Lee Woon-jung,” a specially recruited public officer from the Haeseong City civil affairs complaints office who has a secret, Director Yin Sik Yoo introduced, “Woon-jung is a character who lacks a bit of social skills. But in fact, she’s a psychic with the power of psychokinesis. She calls people who rush in after her ‘master,’ and she gets tangled up with them and ends up being forcibly socialized.” He added to the curiosity about “Woon-jung,” who will meet the trio of Haeseong City and gradually change.

Choi Dae-hoon, who plays “Son Kyung-hoon,” known as the representative pest-crazy insider of Haeseong City, said, “Kyung-hoon, in a way, has become someone who turned his back on the world on his own. I thought it was important to bring credibility to viewers about how he can blend and harmonize with these people,” and shared his acting focus for the chemistry with the other characters. Lim Seong-jae, who plays “Kang Ro-bin,” the royal troublemaker of Haeseong City who gains the terrifying strength power, said, “‘Robin’ is timid, but there’s something inside him that he carries, and he has something unique about his pose that can bring out his immense strength—so the director suggested it, and we even made it together.” He raised expectations for the “Robin” that Lim Seong-jae will portray.

Next, there were also stories about “Kim Jeon-bok” and “Ha Won-do,” as well as the three villains “Bunder-kin-deo,” which further amps up the tension. Kim Hae-sook, who plays “Kim Jeon-bok,” said, “Kim Jeon-bok is a character with a twist. I worked hard to bring out the charm of that twist,” explaining the effort it took to portray Kim Jeon-bok, who manages to have both a caring side and charisma. Son Hyun-joo, who plays “Ha Won-do,” said, “Ha Won-do is a person who dreams of a new world. I’m trying this genre for the first time, and Director Yin Sik Yoo helped me a lot,” raising expectations for the “Dr. Ha Won-do” that Son Hyun-joo will bring to life.

Among the three “Bunder-kin-deo” members, Jung Yi-seo, who plays “Seok Ju-ran,” said, “Seok Ju-ran has the ability to brainwash anyone so they can be controlled according to their wishes, so I used my imagination and studied several things—like her gaze and voice tone,” while Choi Yoon-ji, who plays “Seok Ho-ran,” added, “Seok Ho-ran is the youngest among the three ‘Bunder-kin-deo.’ She has a reckless, spoiled personality, but when it comes to doing her work, she’s definitely determined.” Their comments further piqued curiosity about the villains they’ll portray. Bae Na-ra, who plays “Kim Pal-ho,” said, “Kim Pal-ho tries to solve anything that gets in his way with gravity—his superpower,” and set expectations for another side of him as the unrestrained acting leader.

Meanwhile, there was also a talk about the production process, the filming set, and points to watch, adding even more curiosity about the work. Director Yin Sik Yoo said, “In 1999, everything looks noticeably different if you don’t look closely, so the art team and props team put a lot of effort into the details. We do things like putting graffiti on the walls with the vibe that was popular back then, and even in the scenes where the two main characters meet at Haeseong Super, we placed things like Y2K emergency kits,” explaining the effort that went into recreating the look of the century-end era.

In closing, Bae Na-ra said, “This is a work that was made with the best efforts of great actors and great directors. I hope you’ll enjoy it,” Choi Yoon-ji said, “It’s really fun and enjoyable—we worked hard filming, so please give it lots of love,” Jung Yi-seo said, “If there are people who might not be able to watch it, I’ll shout that you’ll end up watching 〈Wonderfools​〉 using your mind-control ability,” Son Hyun-joo said, “It’s like a fun, cheerful gift set with lots of different devices,” Kim Hae-sook said, “It’s such a fun and delightful work, and I think it will come to viewers around the world as an emotional moment,” Lim Seong-jae said, “If you like cute things, 〈Wonderfools〉!” Choi Dae-hoon said, “A slightly quirky and fun fairytale has been well prepared, so please enjoy it in a lighthearted way,” Park Eun-bin said, “If you want to forget the complicated reality, please choose 〈​Wonderfools〉,” and Director Yin Sik Yoo greeted viewers, saying, “Please laugh a lot, feel your heart race a lot, and take home a piece of warm heart with you.” With that, the production press event wrapped up successfully. The supernatural comic adventure 〈Wonderfools〉, which brought expectations even higher as it concluded on a high note, will be released on Netflix on Friday, May 15.