WOWPOINT x Toho and Yeon Sang-ho team up on Netflix series “Gas Human,” released worldwide today

Netflix unveiled its Netflix Original series 〈​Gas Human〉 worldwide on July 2. Taking its premise from Toho’s legendary tokusatsu film 《​Gas Human No. 1》 released in 1960, the new series has been reimagined from scratch as a fully original story spanning a total of eight episodes built on the universe of the original. This is a project built on the same cosmos, with a lineup that includes the film 《Train to Busan》, 《​Along with the Face》 ​​, 《​The Swarm》, and the Netflix series 《​Hellbound》, 《​Parasite: The Grey》, among other globally talked-about titles. Director Yeon Sang-ho, who has repeatedly created hit projects, serves as the executive producer and writer. Director Shinzo Gatajiyama, known for deftly portraying the darkness inside the human heart through the streaming series 《​Gannibal》 and the films 《​Brothers at the Edge of the Volcano》·《​Missing》, directs the series, completing an intense crime thriller. The attention on the show has been building even before its release, including the fact that South Korean production company WOWPOINT teamed up with Japan’s Toho to plan and produce the Japanese Netflix series.

Centered on the story of a detective and a reporter as they track the unknown entity “Gas Human,” which carries out a string of murders, the series follows Detective Okamoto Kenji, portrayed by Shun Oguri, and reporter Kono Kyoko, portrayed by Yuu Aoi, who pursues the truth and brings a heavy on-screen presence. Hirose Suzu and Kento Hayashi appear as a pair of video-creator siblings, raising the tension with bold, unexpected performances. In addition, Yutaka Takenouchi completes a fierce character as a former yakuza-linked corporate executive. For the role of the unidentified monster “Gas Human,” model UTA makes her acting debut, taking on her first performance as an actress. With overwhelming presence and a bizarre atmosphere, she is set to drive the core tension of the work.

Ahead of the release of this series, Netflix officially announced that “Ellie My Love,” a hit song by Japan’s representative band Southern All Stars, will be used as the show’s “Key Song,” cutting through the core of the series.

The choice of music was made possible as production staff actively pushed the idea based on a recommendation from writer Ryong Yong-jae, who co-wrote the script with director Yeon Sang-ho, the executive producer and writer, for this series. “Ellie My Love,” loved for many years as a song that represents Japan, will be used as an important device in the drama to connect the truth behind the case in the story and the relationships among the characters. On the selection of the track, which adds depth to the series’ narrative, director Yeon Sang-ho shared the following remarks.

“While discussing with writer Ryong Yong-jae what kind of music would be good for the 〈​Gas Human〉—a series role—he suggested, ‘How about Southern All Stars’ “Ellie My Love”?’ From that point on, the many different emotions of 〈​Gas Human〉 and the unique feelings of ‘Ellie My Love’ matched so closely that this song became the central emotion of 〈​Gas Human〉. I worked on writing the later-part scripts while listening to it.

In the end, “Ellie My Love” became more than just an insert song—it found its place as the central emotional core of the rebooted 〈​Gas Human〉.

I really want to say that the meeting between 〈​Gas Human〉 and ‘Ellie My Love’ was fated.”

In addition, 〈​Gas Human〉 has VFX handled by Shirogumi (白組), which won Japan’s first Academy Award for visual effects for the film 〈Godzilla Minus One〉. In this series, where the monster “Gas Human,” brought to life with cutting-edge visual effects, is combined with the crime thriller genre, production has attracted major interest from the planning stage in Japan’s visual content—something rarely seen for Japanese video content.

As police, the media, video creators, underworld forces, and the interests of the power structure intertwine and drive the story around the foreshadowed murder cases, “Ellie My Love” serves as the decisive key, delivering a new kind of genre fun that people have not experienced until now.

Netflix said, “Please check for yourself what kind of synergy will be created when overwhelming visuals meet a timeless classic song.”