Ahead of its premiere, The Glory lead stars and creative team meet the press to share filming stories and what to expect in the series.
The Glory will have two parts. Part 1 starts streaming on Dec 30 with 8 episodes, and part 2 comes in March 2023 to complete its 16-episode run. It is Rated PG-19 and there are some explicit scenes so set expectations for young members of the family.
Writer Kim Eun Sook, director Ahn Gil Ho and lead stars: Song Hye Kyo, Lee Do Hyun, Im Ji Yeon, Yeom Hye Ran, Park Sung Hoon and Jung Sung Il attended the event.
The series follows the story of Moon Dong-eun, starring Song Hye Kyo from Encounter, Descendants of the Sun, who has painful memories from bullying and school violence. 18 years later, her revenge begins by driving all the perpetrators and everyone around them to the brink of ruin.
Joo Yeo-jeong, starring Lee Do Hyun from Youth of May and Sweet Home, is another victim of a miserable tragedy. Accidentally, or intentionally Dong-eun and Yeo-jung get tangled and conspire the revenge together.
Director Ahn Gil Ho, known for his works Happiness, Record of Youth, and Memories of the Alhambra and writer Kim Eun Sook, famous for her romance dramas The King: Eternal Monarch, Goblin, Mr. Sunshine, and The Heirs, has collaborated for this production, which raises anticipation to its release.
“The Glory” Presents Revenge-Driven Plot In Unveiled Official Main Trailer
Kim Eun Sook and Ahn Gil Ho Challenge Revenge-Driven Plot
Revealing that she picked up the idea of the story because of her daughter who will be an incoming high school sophomore, writer Kim Eun Sook summed up the series as the story of a woman crushed by school violence. Highlighting a profound question, she mentioned the weight of the pain carried by the victim and the perpetrator that her daughter also asked.
Conceiving The Glory, Writer Kim expounds on how she navigated the story while explaining how she chose the title.
“I read a lot of interviews by the victims of school violence. And they all said that they don’t want material compensation, but they want a heartfelt apology. So, for me, I thought, what would they get out of a heartfelt apology? But then, it was not something that they would get, but they want to restore something. At the time of school violence, they get to lose things that are intangible, like their dignity, their glory, and things like that. So, when they have a heartfelt apology, they go back to when it didn’t occur. That’s why I named the title The Glory. I think it’s my way of rooting for all those out there who are like Dong-eun, Hyeon-nam, Yeo-jeong. I want them to go back to where things didn’t happen.”
Expressing his thoughts about his new work, Director Ahn admitted wanting to work with Writer Kim and explains what led him to accept the project.
“I think there are many topics in the series. I think the story just reverberated with me and it was fun, too. And we have a wonderful cast lineup so it was really a no brainer to take this project.” – Director Ahn Gil Ho
In describing the main leads of the story, Director Ahn also made a sound description proving the apparent synergy that will be seen throughout.
“These two characters hold a deep hurt and wound internally. So when they are together, while there is this bright energy, they also needed to carry a sense of loneliness.”
Song Hye Kyo’s Long-Awaited Character
Returning to the small screens, Song Hye Kyo shared the reason why she chose the project. She discloses how after doing a lot of melodramas, but her work in The Glory is totally different as it was fun and challenging.
“When I read the script of The Glory, I felt that it was exactly what I am looking for. I always have the thirst for this kind of character and this kind of character. I thought it was meticulously and beautifully written. If I do a good job, it will be a great show.”
Preparing for her character, the actress unveils how she shaped Dong-eun.
“It was very challenging to portray a victim. It was extremely challenging. The young Dong-eun was helpless and hurt. And all of the hurt, she was open to it. She was unable to put up a fight against it. But the grownup Dong-eun, I didn’t want her to seem as pitiful. I wanted her to seem solid and strong. And that was what I tried to focus on. And how the grownup Dong-eun is aware that compared to when I was younger, I am much stronger, I have toughened up, and I can do this – that’s the kind of energy that I wanted to portray through the grownup Dong-eun.”
Writer Kim who previously worked with her in Descendants of the Sun was totally in awe by the actress. Director Ahn feels the same toward Song Hye Kyo.
“Dong-eun has a duality of being fragile and strong. I thought Song Hye Kyo is the only one who can pull it off. – Ahn Gil Ho
“I didn’t know Song Hye Kyo can have that expression. It was completely different so I was elated.” – Kim Eun Sook
Lee Do Hyun’s Earnest Filming Preparations
Lauding the male lead for his hard work, the director revealed Lee Do Hyun prepared a few choices to pick from in his scenes. He confesses to reading the script which has the first four episodes in one sitting. Divulging his interest in his character Yeo-jeong, he asserts wanting the viewers to feel the same.
“He is not like a clear-cut character, he is somewhere in the middle, but he has his own character. So, I wanted to make sure that I pull through this character. There’s a duality inside Yeo-jeong as well. I had a lot of conversations with the director on set, and I realized that the degree of my expressions of certain lines lead to a different mood when the scene changes to the next one. So, I would prepare a simple delivery of a particular line, a little bit heightened, a little bit more complex – these different versions of the same line in the scene, that’s what I prepared so that we can be more adventurous in terms of what degree we should finetune the acting.”
Writer Kim who met Lee Do Hyun to offer the role attests to how meticulous the actor was in defining his character.
“I remember our first meeting fondly when I explained to him and persuaded him that he could do it. And like he said, he brought five different versions of each line and scene, I completely believe him because not any actor can do that. But Do-hyun, I trust that he did that because I cannot forget the very first moment I saw him on screen. He’s such a big guy yet he is extremely detailed and meticulous when it comes to portrayals and expressions of his character. So I could not want anything more from him.”
Likewise, Song Hye Kyo explains even if The Glory is not romance-driven, the chemistry between her and Lee Do Hyun is fascinating. She adorably quips that because he prepared a lot of lines in the scenes, she can assure that their moments in the series are nice.
Im Ji Yeon’s First Villain Role
The chameleon actress also challenges a new look to her elaborate career. She also expresses her admiration for writer Kim Eun Sook.
“When I first read the script, it gave a big shock to me. I was totally immersed in the story. I thought, wow, this is what Writer Kim is. It was the first time for me to take a villain role. I always wanted to do it.”
Further acquainting viewers to her character, the actress communicated the perspective she brought to her character.
“Yeon-jin is at the center of the school violence perpetrators. She was born into a privileged family and married well. In the beginning, I had a lot of thoughts on my mind. I tried to understand why Yeon-jin would do this, what happened in her life led her to be like that. I thought really hard about that and debated within myself. But the answer that I found was that Yeon-jin was oblivious. She didn’t know. She was oblivious and she didn’t know why it was wrong to be mean to other people, why it was wrong to inflict pain. Because she grew up in an environment like that. She didn’t have to try to earn anything, and there was absolutely no sense of guilt that came when she hurt other people and inflicted pain upon others.”
Writer Kim explains how Im Ji Yeon is perfectly cut to Yeon-jin’s character.
“Well, because she had never played a villain, I thought I wanted to be the first one to damage her image as a villain, so to speak. And Yeon-jin here, she’s a weather reporter, we needed someone who also had that image and fit that role. And also, an image of someone who was angelic on the outside but had a devil’s heart. And I thought that Ji-yeon was everything that I just explained. And when I met her, she indeed smiled like a true angel but told me that she would do her absolute very best to be the most evil villain she could be. So we celebrated that and had drinks.”
What To Look Forward In The Glory
Taking turns, the cast expounds on the drawing points of the story. Yeom Hye Ran relays being taken aback by the vengeance plot. All the characters are so intertwined and persuasive.
Meanwhile, Park Sung Hoon conveys how he used to play a villain character role. As a big fan of writer Kim, he is happy to be part of her career’s inflection point. He also confessed to preparing four acting versions of his scenes which made Director Ahn really happy.
“When I was bringing the script to life, I thought that I should never let go of what message the narrative is trying to convey. And I really should focus in order to deliver the true essence of the story in an authentic way. If there’s violence in the scene, I wanted to make it authentic but not horrible. So, the storyline itself was very powerful and so I and the cast just stayed true to the script and wanted to leave feedback to the viewers.”
Echoing the happiness shared by his co-star, Jung Il Sung attests to great work that will transpire owing to a great cast and crew.
Mutually appreciative of each other, Writer Kim praised Director Ahn for his diligence at work while the latter commends her as well.
“We don’t know when PD Ahn sleeps. He’s the first director who never skipped my messages. Because of his energy, I was also driven. There were scenes I’m concerned but he shot it to perfection. I call him a magician. It was great working with him.” – Kim Eun Sook
“It was the best moment of my career. I just loved the whole experience. Writer Kim, she’s such a nice person, she’s so polite and humble, and she works really hard. That’s why we always want writer Kim, I realize why that is the case. And I realized that for every word and every punctuation mark in the script, she pours her heart and soul into this. So, it was so glorious for me.” – Ahn Gil Ho
A Story For Global Audience
Wrapping up the press conference, Writer Kim Eun Sook responds to the question from the media about the global appeal of The Glory with school violence as the main theme.
“Well, I don’t think that you can say that school violence is pertaining to only Korea. It’s definitely not something unique to a certain country. It’s universal, I know through Netflix, this series will be released in over 190 countries, and there are many victims of school violence. The parents, the students, those that are involved in the healing process. I think we all feel a universal emotion. So, I don’t think it’s going to be a difficult idea or concept to relate to or that it’s uniquely Korean. I feel, rather, that it’s very
easy to relate to. “
She also profoundly asserts her creative process that would reflect on The Glory.
“Until now, throughout my works, I believe that I have transformed albeit in small steps. I believe I have always moved forward. I always made it a point to never self-duplicate my works and I was creating constant change through my works. But this time, I’m going to do a genre and said to myself why? Because Netflix is paying for it. I felt like Netflix is going to be happy to invest in a piece like this. And we’re all on the same side as I say this, but I was extremely happy that everyone really loved the script. And I felt like I’m going to be able to hold my head up high with this piece. And I said to myself, if it doesn’t work out, I can always try again.”
Taking turns to invite viewers, the lead cast hopes that viewers will enjoy the show.
The Glory Part 1 premieres on December 30 exclusively on Netflix.
abbyinhallyuland extends gratitude to Netflix for the invite to the virtual press conference.
All Photos Courtesy of Netflix
[wpedon id=”2271″ align=”center”]
