Blue Dragons go to Lee Byung-hun and Kim Min-hee : Producer of ‘The Handmaiden’ accepts award for absent Kim

Actor Lee Byung-hun waves as he arrives at Kyung Hee University for the 37th Blue Dragon Awards. [NEWSIS]

Actor Lee Byung-hun and actress Kim Min-hee nabbed the best actor and actress awards at the 37th Blue Dragon Awards.

Held on Friday evening at Kyung Hee University, Lee was honored for his role in the political crime-thriller “Inside Men” (2015) and Kim for hers in the mystery-thriller “The Handmaiden” (2016).

“This is how it feels to receive an award at the Blue Dragon Awards,” said Lee, who played a gangster in last November’s hit, in his acceptance speech at the ceremony. “I’ve engaged in acting for the last 25 years but this is the first time I have won an award at the Blue Dragon Awards, which is truly an honor.”

“When I first read the scenario for [“Inside Men”], I thought it was too much of an exaggeration. However, I believe that reality now seems to have surpassed the movie,” Lee said, referring to the ongoing scandal revolving around the influence wielded by presidential friend Choi Soon-sil in the Park Geun-hye administration.

Actress Kim, who played a mysterious lesbian heiress in June’s hit, did not attend the ceremony. She has been refusing to make public appearance since a scandal erupted over her relationship with director Hong Sang-soo, who is 22 years her senior and also married with a child, following the release of “The Handmaiden.”

Instead, the producer of “The Handmaiden” Yoon Seok-chan received the award on her behalf and said, “Kim Min-hee worked harder than anyone else on the film from 2013 to last summer.

“Even though it wasn’t easy to act in a foreign language (Japanese), she overcame that difficulty and pulled off the role very well,” he said.

Other winners at the ceremony included filmmaker Na Hong-jin, who won the best director award for May’s mystery-thriller “The Wailing,” Japanese actor Kunimura Jun, who won best supporting actor for his role in “The Wailing” and actress Park So-dam, who won best supporting actress for her role in “The Priests” (2015).

Considered one of Korea’s most influential awards, this year’s Blue Dragon Awards ceremony was moderated by actor Yu Jun-sang and actress Kim Hye-soo.

BY JIN MIN-JI
[jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]