Director Kim Tae-yong described his new film as "a warm home-cooked meal," setting the emotional tone for Number One.
The movie combines a universally relatable feeling—home cooking made by a mother—with a distinctive fantasy device: each time the protagonist eats his mother's food, a visible number decreases. When it reaches zero, his mother will die. The intention is simple and direct—to leave audiences wanting to share at least one more meal with their own mothers.
Actors Choi Woo-shik and Jang Hye-jin reunite as mother and son following their collaboration in Parasite, returning with a quiet, emotionally grounded healing drama timed for the Lunar New Year season.
On January 29, the production team held a press screening at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall in Seoul, attended by Choi Woo-shik, Jang Hye-jin, and Gong Seung-yeon.
Number One follows Ha-min (Choi Woo-shik), who begins seeing a countdown each time he eats food prepared by his mother Eun-sil (Jang Hye-jin). When he realizes that the number reaching zero means her death, everyday meals take on irreversible weight.
The film is adapted from Uwano Sora's short story There Are 328 Times Left to Eat My Mother's Home-Cooked Meals, translating the abstract passage of time into a visible, numerical form embedded in daily life.
Director Kim explained that food became central during adaptation. Drawing from personal memories, he incorporated dishes and locations tied to his childhood, using them to anchor the film's emotional realism. He described the project as deeply autobiographical, similar in spirit to his earlier work Giant.
Kim reunited with Choi Woo-shik 12 years after Giant, praising his growth and commitment. He highlighted Choi's detailed preparation, including dialect work, and noted that this time the creative reliance flowed in the opposite direction.
Choi Woo-shik acknowledged the pressure of returning to work with the director after such a meaningful past collaboration. He said the experience felt smoother thanks to shared trust and accumulated experience, calling the set one of the most emotionally comfortable environments he has worked in.
Jang Hye-jin spoke about portraying Eun-sil as a woman who has endured hardship quietly—someone who suppresses emotion, focuses on action, and often masks worry with humor. She described the character as familiar and close, reflecting multiple generations of women.
Despite being from Busan, Jang noted that balancing dialect authenticity and clarity required careful judgment, ultimately choosing emotional truth over technical precision. Kim praised her ability to convey not just speech patterns, but the emotional texture beneath them.
Gong Seung-yeon plays Ryeo-eun, Ha-min's girlfriend—an original character created for the film to act as an emotional bridge between mother and son. She described the role as someone who treats personal shortcomings as possibilities, bringing lightness and rhythm into the story.
The ending credits carry special meaning, featuring photographs of the director's, cast's, staff's, and even future audiences' parents—an extension of the film's central theme.
Director Kim concluded that Number One is not a film that forces tears, but one that waits quietly for them. He expressed hope that it would feel like a meal placed gently on the table, leading viewers to choose their next meal with their mother.
Number One opens in theaters on February 11.
