Hellbound: Release Date, Cast, And More
Following the success of "Squid Game," Netflix is ramping up their K-drama content on the streaming service. "Hellbound" is a South Korean original streaming series directed by Yeon Sang-ho, the director of the critically and fan-acclaimed horror film "Train to Busan."
Hellbound Release Date and Where to Watch It
"Hellbound" premiered at the 2021 Toronto Film Festival in September, becoming the first Korean drama series to make it to the fest. The rest of us can watch it when all six episodes debut on Netflix in 190 countries around the world on November 19, 2021.
What is Hellbound?
Director Yeon Sang-ho and illustrator Choi Kyu-seok co-wrote "Hellbound," based on Yeon Sang-ho's webtoon "The Hell," which had been illustrated by Choi Kyu-seok.
"Hellbound" is a series about a nation struggling to deal with the new phenomenon of "sinners" condemned quite literally to die by angels, and a religious sect on the rise. Of course, the police are going to be pretty curious about both the deadly celestials and the growing cult. The TIFF website describes "Hellbound" as a "wildly original take on the procedural drama."
Hellbound Cast
The main cast of "Hellbound" include Yoo Ah-in ("Burning"), Park Jeong-min ("Bleak Night"), Kim Hyun-joo ("Glass Slippers"), Won Jin-ah ("The Age of Shadows"), and Yank Ik-june ("Breathless"). Additional cast members include Kim Do-yoon, Kim Shin-rok, Ryu Kyung-soo, Lee Re, and Im Hyeong-guk.
Yoo Ah-in, who simmered in the 2018 Lee Chang-dong thriller "Burning," stars as Jung Jin-su, a cult leader who creates a new religion, Saejinrihwe, preaching "the New Truth." Park Jeong-min plays Bae Young-jae, a producer at a broadcasting station investigating the emerging religious movement. Won Jin-ah stars as Hong Ji-yeong, Bae Young-jae's wife and a member of the movement. Kim Hyun-joo plays Min Hye-jin, a lawyer who opposes the religious cult.
Yang Ik-june stars as Jin Gyeong-hun, a police detective assigned to investigate the supernatural creatures that come to take away the damned. (They're the ones that look like the Crites from "Critters" if they had crossbred with the Abomination from "The Incredible Hulk.") His daughter, Jin Hee-jeong, is played by Lee Re.
Hellbound Writer, Director, and More
"Train to Busan" helmer Yeon Sang-ho directed based on a script that he co-wrote with Choi Kyu-sok. It is based on a webtoon written by the two of them and drawn by Choi Kyu-sok. The live-action adaptation will be a Netflix Original, produced by Lezhin studio.
Hellbound Trailer and Synopsis
Here's the official synopsis:
Unbelievable demonstrations of hell take place in the middle of Seoul right in front of crowds. Mysterious beings condemn individuals to be hellbound, and otherworldly beings appear exactly at the specified time to kill the condemned in a brutal burning. Rising above the utter chaos resulting from these inexplicable supernatural occurrences is the commanding voice of Jung Jinsu, the leader of an up-and-coming religious organization, The New Truth. He claims that only sinners are marked for condemnation and that these occurrences represent divine will to make humans righteous. A group of his followers with blind faith, the Arrowhead, take into their own hands the punishment of those who go against the divine will. The world becomes a living hell.
Min Hyejin, a lawyer, challenges Chairman Jung by claiming the demonstrations of hell to be simply supernatural occurrences. She joins forces with the few who try to protect the hellbound and return the world to the realm of humans, not gods. They go up against the chaos instigated by The New Truth.
Then one day, an infant born two days ago is condemned, making it difficult to believe the divine will that only sinners become hellbound.