The film follows Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik), a man taken from the streets and imprisoned for fifteen years. One day he is released and given five days to find his captor.
Oldboy is the second title in Park's (photo) Vengeance trilogy, after Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002) and prior to Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005). The film received several awards, including the Grand Prix in Cannes in 2004, a first for a South Korean film. Spike Lee remade the film in 2013 with Josh Brolin playing the lead role, Joe Doucett.
“Lionsgate Television shares my creative vision for bringing Oldboy into the world of television,” said Park. “I look forward to working with a studio whose brand stands for bold, original and risk-taking storytelling.”
“Park is one of the most visionary storytellers of our generation, and we’re excited to partner with him in bringing his cinematic masterpiece to the television screen,” shared Scott Herbst, EVP and Head of Scripted Development, Lionsgate Television. “This series adaptation of Oldboy will feature the raw emotional power, iconic fight scenes and visceral style that made the film a classic.”
Courtney Mock and Tara Joshi are overseeing the project for Lionsgate Television and Bryan Weiser negotiated the deal.
Park is also known as the director of The Handmaiden (2016), Decision to Leave (2022) - which won him the Best Director award at Cannes - Stoker (2013) and Thirst (2009), and as a producer of both the film and the series Snowpiercer from TNT/AMC.
He recently produced and directed The Sympathizer, starring Robert Downey Jr. in the lead role, currently streaming on HBO Max. Uprising, the action thriller for Netflix, will premiere later this year.
