Park Chan-wook's 'The Sympathizer' to air on Coupang Play in April

Director Park Chan-wook’s upcoming TV series "The Sympathizer" starring Hoa Xuande, Robert Downey Jr. and Sandra Oh will be available to Korean viewers on Coupang Play from April. [HBO]

Director Park Chan-wook’s upcoming historical black comedy drama series “The Sympathizer” will be made available for viewers in Korea through Coupang Play sometime in April, the streaming platform said Monday.

Coupang Play did not give a specific date when the series will be made available on its platform. The series will be on the platform exclusively for seven weeks.

“The Sympathizer” is an HBO original series adapted from the 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Vietnamese-American author Viet Thanh Nguyen.

The series will premiere on HBO on April 14.

The story follows an anonymous narrator referred to as the Captain, a North Vietnamese mole in the South Vietnamese army who is forced to flee to the United States near the end of the Vietnam War. He continues to report back to the Viet Cong while staying in a South Vietnamese community in exile in the United States, all the while struggling between his original loyalties and his new life.

Actor Hoa Xuande plays the lead role of Captain. The cast also includes Sandra Oh and Robert Downey Jr., who also worked as an executive producer on the show.

“The Sympathizer” is Park’s first work since the neo-noir romantic mystery film “Decision to Leave” (2022), for which he won Best Director at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. He also participated in the upcoming show as its co-runner, executive producer and writer.

Park is known for his Korean cinema classics and critically acclaimed films such as “Oldboy” (2003), “Lady Vengeance” (2005), “The Handmaiden” (2016) and “Decision to Leave” (2022). He made his TV directorial debut with the espionage drama “The Little Drummer Girl” (2018).

BY KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]