[Dispatch=Reporter Jeong Tae-yoon] "You'll be able to see a new side of the actors." (Director Kim Sunghoon)

Actors Park Bo-young, Kim Sung-chul, Lee Hyun-wook, Moon Jung-hee, and Lee Kwang-soo demonstrate 100% pure synergy. On a dangerous playing field centered around gold bars, they unleash desire, the most instinctive of emotions.

Disney+ new original series 'Goldland' (directed by Kim Sunghoon) held a production presentation on the 27th at Conrad Seoul Hotel. Park Bo-young, Kim Sung-chul, Lee Hyun-wook, Kim Hee-won, Moon Jung-hee, Lee Kwang-soo, and director Kim Sunghoon attended.

Director Kim greeted the attendees, saying, "When Bo-young was contemplating this work, she asked me to help her create a work that would be a turning point in her life. I did my best to make sure that wasn't a lie."

'Goldland' is a desire survival thriller. It depicts the story of Hee-ju (played by Park Bo-young), who obtains 150 billion won worth of gold bars from a smuggling organization, fighting to monopolize the gold amid a chaotic landscape of greed and betrayal.

Director Kim Sunghoon said, "Hee-ju is bound by gold in the land she most wants to leave," adding, "I thought the value had to be significant enough to require a certain size and weight. I deemed the size important to test desire, so I set it at one ton of gold bars."

Park Bo-young, Kim Sung-chul, Lee Hyun-wook, Kim Hee-won, Moon Jung-hee, and Lee Kwang-soo underwent record-breaking transformations over the one-ton gold bars. They are intertwined and create a dangerous synergy. Their relationships are the series' strongest viewing point.

First, Park Bo-young transforms into Kim Hee-ju and leads the story. She has been loved for her characteristic bright energy. Hee-ju is a customs officer. She dreamed of an ordinary life like everyone else, but the moment she encounters gold bars she happens to obtain, she becomes consumed by great desire.

Park Bo-young challenges the crime genre for the first time. "The director told me that when someone who seems likely to return the gold bars makes an unexpected choice, viewers could feel a different emotion. That's what drew me most," she said.

She hinted at her most rough and fierce transformation in her filmography. She underwent weight loss and bare-faced acting. She explained, "There are many scenes where I'm running away with the gold, so I wanted my face to look thinner and lost weight. I also reduced makeup significantly."

Director Kim Sunghoon praised Park Bo-young, saying, "She expressed both the blatant display of desire and careful details well. She showed acting that didn't shy away from any scene and didn't hold back physically. You'll see a new side of Park Bo-young."

Kim Sung-chul plays 'Woo-gi'. Woo-gi is an employee at the loan shark company 'Yes Money'. He is Hee-ju's dangerous business partner whose true intentions are hard to fathom as he oscillates between betrayal and cooperation. He is the first person to discover that Hee-ju has obtained the gold bars.

Taking this as an opportunity, he skillfully proposes a business partnership. He is a man honest about his desires. Kim Sung-chul hinted, "The character is one-dimensional. The mystery that arises from that honesty will create tension in the narrative."

Kim Sung-chul also filmed bare-faced. "Setup took less than five minutes. I just applied sunscreen and went straight to filming. Thanks to that, the most honest face came out," he explained.

Lee Hyun-wook plays 'Lee Do-gyeong', an airline first officer and Hee-ju's lover. Do-gyeong is the person who gets Hee-ju caught up in the illegal smuggling incident. To protect both the gold bars and Hee-ju simultaneously, he makes increasingly dangerous choices.

He said, "All the characters are honest about their desires, but I think Do-gyeong is the most realistic among them. I tried to find the most realistic reaction possible at each moment."

Director Kim Sunghoon added about Lee Hyun-wook, "He's an actor in whose face very cold appearances blend well with weakness. He's already fallen into desire, so the wavering anxiety and coldness had to be well expressed, so we communicated a lot and built it that way."

Kim Hee-won plays 'Jin Man', a detective in the settlement division who repeatedly engages in corruption with violent organizations. Rather than coveting the gold bars, he takes a step back to observe the situation and begins calculating the most advantageous choices.

He returned to acting after a long time away from directing. He said, "It was the most fun script I saw that year, so I chose it. Jin Man is a man who has fallen into a quagmire from which he can never escape for life, and later gives up, living in the depths of evil with recklessness."

Director Kim said, "Jin Man is a very important character to the resolution in the latter half of the narrative. He shows the endpoint of a life lived consumed by his own desires. Though Kim Hee-won has done many works, you'll be able to encounter another new side of him," he emphasized.

Lee Kwang-soo takes on the role of 'Park Sa-jang'. He is an organization executive who persistently pursues Hee-ju to retrieve the missing gold bars. The closer he gets to the gold bars, the more rough and vicious his true nature becomes.

His external visuals were upgraded as well. To express Park Sa-jang, Lee Kwang-soo came up with ideas himself, including a crazed gaze, deep scars carved into his cheeks, gold accessories, and tattoos, completing a bold visual.

He said, "The script doesn't show Park Sa-jang's past. I wanted to show his harsh life through scars and show his obsession with the gold bars through various gold accessories."

Following his previous Disney+ work 'Fragmented City', he took on a villain role again. "This is my first time playing a role that's good at fighting. I put effort into filming the action scenes. This level of weighty desire is a first for me, so it will be a different look than before," he said confidently.

Park Bo-young said, "There was a scene where Kwang-soo came down in reverse from my driving perspective, and I was so scared I kept screaming. The glass wasn't safety glass, but he was so immersed that he broke the glass with his hands and forehead."

Lee Kwang-soo also debated with director Kim Sunghoon over the gold teeth on that day. He said, "When the gold teeth became a hot topic, the director kept saying it was his idea. I could even release the text messages."

Director Kim claimed, "Kwang-soo suggested what if he wore gold teeth. So I said that was too obvious and suggested putting a frame like a window frame, even drawing a picture as I pitched the idea."

As much as the warm atmosphere, the powerful synergy is a point of the work. Kim Sung-chul said, "You'll be able to see many new sides of the actors. There were many fun moments throughout filming. It will be a fascinating series."

Park Bo-young urged, "There are no good or bad people in this work. Please immerse yourselves thinking about what you would have done. Lee Kwang-soo added, "It's a work that brings anticipation rather than worry. Feel the energy pouring down hotly."

'Goldland' airs on Disney+ on the 29th.

<Photos=Reporter Song Hyo-jin>