The Best Revenge Movie Ever Made Is Becoming A TV Series
Get ready to witness cinema's most stomach-churning twist all over again: "Oldboy" is coming to television. The 2003 Park Chan-Wook masterpiece (which was based on a manga by Garon Tsuchiya) is going to be remade as an English-language TV show, /Film has learned, and Park will be directly involved in crafting this new version.
Park is partnering with Lionsgate Television to develop a series adaptation of the impressively f***ed-up story and will produce the show along with his frequent collaborator Syd Lim. "Lionsgate Television shares my creative vision for bringing 'Oldboy' into the world of television," Park said in a press release. "I look forward to working with a studio whose brand stands for bold, original, and risk-taking storytelling." Past Lionsgate Television productions range from "Mad Men" to "Party Down" to "Yellowjackets," and given the company's wide-ranging list of past streaming and network partners, it's still too soon to tell where we'll be able to watch the new "Oldboy."
Though Park has dabbled in directing television in recent years, this project marks his first TV collaboration with Lionsgate. His other small-screen projects include the BBC One period piece "The Little Drummer Girl" and HBO's miniseries "The Sympathizer" (which only just premiered this past Sunday). It's unclear at this point whether the "Oldboy" show is planned as a limited-run series or an ongoing saga, but the story it pulls from features a ticking clock narrative in which a long-imprisoned man attempts to find and seek revenge on his captor in just five days.
Maybe you can teach an oldboy new tricks
The division's Executive Vice President and Head of Scripted Development, Scott Herbst, seems hyped to welcome Park on board, saying in a statement that "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." While there's no word yet on any potential changes the story may go through when given the additional screen time a TV series allows, Herbst reassures fans that "this series adaptation of 'Oldboy' will feature the raw emotional power, iconic fight scenes and visceral style that made the film a classic."
It's been over two decades since "Oldboy" first rocked the film scene thanks to its precise filmmaking, intense story, and talented cast, and in that time Park's reputation as one of the best filmmakers working today has only grown. The South Korean writer-director is responsible for films as varied and excellent as 2009's vampire horror-romance "Thirst," 2016's lesbian mystery "The Handmaiden," and "Decision To Leave," a 2022 film that scored two BAFTA nominations and made the shortlist for Best International Feature at the 95th Academy Awards. In addition to the "Oldboy" TV series and "The Sympathizer," upcoming Park projects include the Netflix film "Uprising," which Deadline reports Park will co-write and produce, and the final season of the series adaptation of "Snowpiercer," which he executive produces.
The "Oldboy" TV show does not yet have a release date, and its network or streaming home also hasn't been announced as of publication time.