EXCLUSIVE: Although Korean star Hyun Bin first hesitated to take on the role of Korean independence fighter Ahn Jung-geun in Harbin , he knew deep down that he could not pass up such a rare opportunity. Director Woo Min-ho tried three times before he managed to convince Hyun to take on the leading role. Woo understood Hyun’s hesitation, given the magnitude of Ahn’s stature in Korean history.
“It isn’t easy as an actor to accept the offer to play the role of Ahn Jung-geun, because Koreans have their own ideas and thoughts about him as a patriotic martyr,” Hyun told Deadline. “I knew that playing Ahn wouldn’t be an easy task and it took a lot of courage. But after discussing with the director, I thought about how there might not be a lot of opportunities to play a great hero of Korean history, and that it may be really meaningful as an actor to take the role in new directions.
” Hyun has starred in hit series Crash Landing on You in 2019 and 2022 film Confidential Assignment 2 : International , among others. Harbin also features Jeon Yeo-been ( Vincenzo ) and Park Jeong-min ( Decision to Leave ). The film had its world premiere in the Toronto International Film Festival’s Gala Presentations section on September 8.
The film is set in the early 1900s, when Korea is forced by Japan to sign the Eulsa Treaty. Korea loses its diplomatic rights and becomes a Japanese colony. By 1909, when Harbin begins, Korea’s Righteous Army militia launches a campaign of armed res.