Na Hong-jin’s “Hope” Makes Its First Public Appearance of Unreleased Footage at Comic-Con; Set for a North American Theatrical Release in September

A master who broke a decade of silence after “The Wailing” turns his focus on San Diego

Director Na Hong-jin’s new film ‘Hope’ is pushing into the heart of the global market. According to the distributor Plus M Entertainment, Na will receive an official invitation and attend the world’s largest pop-culture festival ‘San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC)’, held in San Diego, United States, from September 23 to September 26 (local time).

On September 23, the opening day of the event, Na will take the stage for a special single-session for ‘Hope’. The program includes not only a ‘Talk with the Audience (GV)’ that directly meets local North American viewers, but also an exclusive first-ever global reveal of ‘unreleased footage’, with the goal of instantly capturing the attention of fans worldwide.

The new release is set in ‘Hopohang’, an isolated village near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). It portrays in high detail the “unknown presence” that descended there and the blood-soaked struggle of the humans who face it. In the wake of ‘The Wailing’ (2016), this marks the first return of the filmmaker in a decade, and it has been cited early on as an ‘SF blockbuster’ and one of the most anticipated films of the year.

At-home audience response has already crossed a breaking point. After the film’s domestic release on the 15th, it surged past ‘620,500 cumulative admissions’ within just two days, devouring the box office at a frightening pace. A tightly constructed world and Na Hong-jin’s unmistakable ‘unique directing and storytelling power’ have fueled powerful word of mouth, providing a solid foundation for long-running success.

The next target for ‘Hope’, which has all but scorched the movie theaters of South Korea, is North America. With ‘an official North American theatrical release’ set for September 9, its entry at this San Diego Comic-Con is expected to become a decisive tipping point that will determine the film’s global box-office run.