"'Money Heist' Adapted to the Korean Peninsula Ahead of Unification, Only We Can Do It"

Netflix 'Money Heist' Press Conference
Korean Remake of Spanish Original
Starring Yoo Ji-tae, Kim Yoon-jin, Park Hae-soo, Jeon Jong-seo, and Others
Will OTT Original IP Expansion Succeed?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] "'Thanks to 'Squid Game,' I am sitting here today. Recently, K-content has been achieving great success overseas, which has been a huge help. We also want to play such a role going forward."(Director Kim Hong-seon)

"If the original work is 'Paella,' then we are 'Fried Rice.' The grand festival that started in Spain is reopening in Korea. Please enjoy it."(Writer Ryu Yong-jae)

The popular OTT series 'La Casa de Papel' (Money Heist) is reborn as a Korean version with the subtitle 'Joint Economic Zone' on the 24th. This is an expansion of a successful OTT intellectual property (IP) into a domestic series remake and multinational content. Attention is focused on whether it will succeed at the box office and show new possibilities in the market.

Actor Yoo Ji-tae expressed confidence at the Netflix series 'Money Heist: Joint Economic Zone' production presentation held at the COEX Grand Ballroom in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, at 11 a.m. on the 22nd, saying, "The original fandom is solid, but a great story resonates anywhere," and added, "Through the North-South setting, we incorporated our own charm and humor."

'Money Heist: Joint Economic Zone' is a series depicting a hostage robbery drama involving a genius strategist and robbers with different personalities and abilities, set against the backdrop of the Korean Peninsula on the verge of unification. The setting imagines the Korean Peninsula, divided after liberation in 1945, approaching unification in 2026, establishing a fictional joint economic zone in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on the military demarcation line that once separated North and South, allowing free movement and economic activities, and creating a unified mint producing a joint currency. The cast includes Yoo Ji-tae, Kim Yoon-jin, Park Hae-soo, Jeon Jong-seo, Lee Won-jong, Park Myung-hoon, Kim Sung-oh, Kim Ji-hoon (Denver), Jang Yoon-ju, Lee Joo-bin, Lee Hyun-woo, Kim Ji-hoon (Helsinki), and Lee Kyu-ho.

Director Kim Hong-seon, who directed the drama 'The Guest' and 'Voice' and the film 'The Age of Rebellion,' is at the helm, and writer Ryu Yong-jae, who wrote 'Gooey,' 'Psychopath Diary,' and 'Time Between Dog and Wolf,' is responsible for the script.

Writer Ryu said, "I really wanted to do a remake. The characters in the original were also attractive. I thought hard about adapting it into a Korean story. I believed we could tell the story with our characters set in our country." He added, "I wrote it thinking about how domestic viewers could enjoy a work with a great original. The North and South Korean robbers come together, blending landscapes, and I felt this could be a reality approaching us. The dramatic events in the original will also feel fresh."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Why was the fictional setting of a joint economic zone chosen? Director Kim explained, "I wondered if everyone would accept the situation as reality, or if setting the North-South situation in the future would make it more acceptable. I thought viewers worldwide would be curious about the North-South story, and I portrayed the stories that happen within it."

"I worried that simply following the lively and attractive characters of the original might result in mere imitation. Rather than changing them, I wanted to naturally vary the characters within the framework, and I completed this through discussions with the actors."(Writer Ryu Yong-jae)

The masks worn by the robbers were also changed to suit domestic sensibilities. Jeon Jong-seo said, "I was curious about what kind of mask we would wear after watching the original, and I was surprised to see the Hahoe mask. It wasn’t expressionless but had a smiling face, which felt humorous and grotesque. The simultaneous feeling was intense. The mask alone conveyed many emotions."

Kim Yoon-jin expressed confidence, saying, "This is a story only possible in our divided country, and a Korean story that condenses the strengths of the original has been born."