[Photos &] "That Han So-hee?" Even Choi Min-sik Is Surprised by Their Meeting — Korean Version of 'The Intern' Brings 37-Year Veteran and 10 Billion-Won CEO Together at Production Briefing

Actors 'Choi Min-sik' and 'Han So-hee' have teamed up for the Korean remake of the Hollywood classic 'The Intern'. Their meeting promises a fresh ensemble that could surpass the original, and the film will be unveiled in theaters next month on the 16th.

Remake infused with Korean sensibilities reinterprets generational conflict and harmony

In director Kim Do-young's 'The Intern', a remake of the film of the same name starring Hollywood actors Anne Hathaway and Robert De Niro, 'Choi Min-sik' plays Ki-ho, the 'senior intern'. He emphasized the film's distinct appeal. Speaking at a production briefing held on the 24th at CGV Yongsan I-Park Mall, he said, "We kept the basic framework of the original while weaving in emotions that all Koreans can relate to." He added, "I readily signed on because I believed expressing the joys and sorrows, harmony and generational conflict within a Korean setting would give the story new depth."

10 billion won in revenue three years after founding ... Perfectly embodying a 'startup CEO'

Set to open next month on the 16th, 'The Intern' follows Ki-ho, who joins the fashion company run by Sun-woo, a passionate chief executive. Director Kim Do-young expressed confidence that audiences would strongly relate to the characters, saying, "Both characters carry more realistic inner anxiety and loneliness than their counterparts in the original."

Han So-hee plays Sun-woo, the fashion 'startup CEO' whose company reaches annual revenue of '10 billion won' just three years after its founding. She said, "I focused on erasing the original's afterimage and building my own Sun-woo." She explained, "I delicately portrayed the unstable gap between a CEO's enormous sense of responsibility and personal ambitions by drawing on the lives of peers I know who work at actual startups." She also raised the film's visual polish with charismatic styling befitting the company's figurehead.

"That Han So-hee?" A master's admiration ... Overwhelming chemistry across generations

The two actors, who portray the layered relationship between a young leader and a veteran intern, showed unwavering trust in each other. 'Choi Min-sik' was so surprised by the news that Han So-hee had been cast opposite him that he responded, "That Han So-hee?" He praised her, saying, "I thought, when would I ever get to enjoy such a luxury? It made me pull myself together." He added, "Her attitude toward the work and the passion she poured into it were both admirable and perfect."

'Han So-hee' also shared her excitement, saying, "As soon as I heard that such a respected senior actor had joined the project, I knew it was an opportunity I would never have again in my life." She added, "I approached it determined to throw myself in without holding anything back, and I am confident that sincerity will come through intact on screen."