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'The Bequeathed' is Yeon Sang-ho's latest occult horror with a Korean edge

Published: 16 Jan. 2024, 17:12

LIM JEONG-WON
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A scene from the new Netflix original series "The Bequeathed" [NETFLIX]

Netflix original series “The Bequeathed,” the latest work by director and screenwriter Yeon Sang-ho, is about a woman who inherits a burial ground and finds herself getting involved in mysterious events.

Yeon is most looking forward to the responses from foreign audiences, since these ancestral burial grounds — not your average graveyard — are not as common overseas.

“Through the central material of burial grounds, we could tell a unique story of Korean occult horror and at the same time address the universal theme of family,” Yeon said during an interview with reporters on Jan. 15. “I was looking for material that could deliver Korean-ness and have its own color, and that was burial grounds.”

Yeon created the original story for “The Bequeathed,” set to release on Jan. 19, and co-wrote the screenplay for its six episodes, but left the directing this time to Min Hong-nam, who was his assistant director for a number of his films including “Train to Busan” (2018).

Director-screenwriter Yeon Sang-ho [NETFLIX]

Having been behind some of the most popular films and series from Korea these past years, such as “Seoul Station” (2016), “Peninsula” (2020) and “Hellbound” (2021-), Yeon’s “The Bequeathed” is also largely expected to make it big.

“I hope that this series brings about a chance for people to talk about important topics, especially family,” Yeon said. “The concept of burial grounds may be unfamiliar to foreign viewers, but I think the way we handled the material will bring people to empathize with the characters and make them have conversations about the larger topics.”

“The Bequeathed” was in fact the first project that Yeon wanted to take on after his mature animated films “The King of Pigs” (2011) and “The Fake” (2013) did well, but he ended up filming “Train to Busan” first, the director-screenwriter said.

Actor Kim Hyun-joo stars as the main character Seo-ha in the new Netflix original series "The Bequeathed," about a woman who inherits a burial ground from her long-lost late uncle, co-written by director-screenwriter Yeon Sang-ho [NETFLIX]

“I wanted to film ‘The Bequeathed’ first, but the way people responded to it during the pre-production stage was completely different from how they reacted to ‘Train to Busan,’” Yeon said. “I think the story of the latter half of the series was hard for some to digest. I can’t talk about it too much now since it would be a big spoiler, but it is a very shocking tale.”

Actor Kim Hyun-joo, who has worked with Yeon for the series “Hellbound” and the film “Jung_E” (2023), both on Netflix, is once again the main lead in “The Bequeathed.” The decision to cast Kim again was because of her ability to show a different side of her every single time, according to Yeon.

“Including works that have not yet been released, I have cast Kim four times in major roles — and that is all for good reason,” Yeon said. “She continuously shows different sides of herself, and I become amazed at the freshness and charm that her portrayals bring to the screen. I also think it’s because of the release dates that it seems like I only work with her, but that’s not the case either.”

A scene from the new Netflix original series "The Bequeathed" [NETFLIX]

As Yeon’s previous works have all done relatively well at the box office or on streaming services such as Netflix, perhaps with the exception of “Jung_E,” it may be natural for the director-screenwriter to feel pressure for “The Bequeathed” to succeed also. That pressure is always with him, but by now he has learned how to control and deal with it.

“Making series and films is something that you can’t decide on your own — others have to decide to invest in your projects,” Yeon said. “So I always work with the thought that I could face retirement anytime soon whether I want it or not. Working only with the fear of succeeding or not succeeding isn’t very productive. I just want to receive a proper amount of praise and a proper amount of criticism.”

When asked where he gets his inspiration and ideas from, Yeon said that it was mainly from the internet.

“I watch a lot of YouTube and a lot of documentaries on unsolved mysteries and news reports on criminal cases,” Yeon said. “The neighborhood where I live is very quiet and nothing much happens. So I spend my leisure time doing a lot of internet surfing and watching these kinds of videos, and it ends up giving me a lot of my ideas, I think.”

The second season of “Hellbound” is also coming along swiftly, according to Yeon.

“We are looking to release the second season in the second half of this year,” he said. “We had to change the main cast [due to actor Yoo Ah-in’s drug charges], and there were some difficulties, but I am confident that the second season of ‘Hellbound’ will also entertain viewers.”

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]