How big of a fan is “Kingdom: Ashin of the North” star Gianna Jun of the rich and complex universe that the “Kingdom” series has created? She loves the series so much that she was eager to portray any small role — even that of a zombie. Fortunately, she ended up playing Ashin, who is a key character behind all the events in “Kingdom”. And she’s such a huge fan that she was not even afraid of the terrifying zombies of the series.
“In fact, before we even began to shoot it, one of the things I was most excited of was coming face to face with the actors dressed as zombies. And when I got there on the set, I realized just how much trouble all of the actors were going through in order to present themselves as convincing zombies. I don’t know if I can say this, but I begged them for pictures as well. So I was able to take pictures with the zombie actors and really brag about it to my friends and family,” she said at the Netflix APAC press briefing for “Kingdom: Ashin of the North”.
‘Kingdom’ universe
Created by writer Kim Eun-hee, “Kingdom” made history as the first Korean original series of Netflix when it premiered on Jan. 25, 2019, and its global success has led Netflix to make a huge investment in Korean content.
This special episode takes place before the spread of the zombie plague occurs in the first two seasons.
“I was curious about abandoned outposts in the north and thought about how the resurrection plant could have grown somewhere like that,” Kim Eun-hee said.
“I was a fan of Gianna Jun and I admired her wide spectrum when it comes to acting. She’s considered a queen of romantic comedies, but I also liked the deep anguish she portrayed in her movies ‘Assassination’ and ‘The Berlin File,’” she added.
One of the most compelling aspects about the series is the unique backstory. The “Kingdom” universe that Kim Eun-hee created is a rich and complex one, and now “Kingdom: Ashin of the North” will shed more light.
Director Kim Seong-hun has promised there will be riveting points to look forward to in this special episode, which serves as the very beginning of the “Kingdom” story.
“Kingdom: Ashin of the North” premieres on Netflix on July 23 at 3 PM Philippine Standard Time.
