Netflix Picks Up Kim Jee-Woon's Action Thriller 'Illang: The Wolf Brigade'

Netflix has picked up the next Kim Jee-Woon film for international release. The Korean auteur behind acclaimed works like A Tale of Two Sisters and The Good, the Bad, the Weird, will soon be thrilling South Korean audiences with his adaptation of the classic manga series Kerberos, but a global release was nowhere in sight — until now. Illang: The Wolf Brigade will soon be brought to international audiences on the streaming service.

Netflix has acquired the global rights to Illang: The Wolf Brigade, Variety reports. With that pick-up comes a title change from the initial romanized title of In-rang: The Wolf Brigade to Illang: The Wolf Brigade.

Variety notes that the streaming giant has picked up all rights outside Korea, but it has not yet revealed a release date. Netflix is likely holding back announcing the date until the Korean theatrical release through Warner Bros. starts on July 25, and the film finishes playing at the San Sebastian festival in September. But it's an unsurprising move from the streaming service, which has been steadily growing its international fare with a focus on the Korean TV drama and movie market. It's certainly keeping K-drama fans and foreign film column writers busy.

Illanf: The Wolf Brigade takes place in a near-future Korea, where a reunified North and South Korea has caused political turmoil, forcing the South Korean police to launch a special unit to stop anti-reunification terrorist groups. The film adapts Mamoru Oshii's classic Kerberos saga manga series, which has been adapted multiple times to radio plays, books, movies, and manga, but only in its home country of Japan. This will be the first international adaptation of the story, following The Red Spectacles and StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Cops released in 1987 and 1991, respectively, and the best-known 1999 Japanese anime Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade.Illang: The Wolf Brigade stars Gang Dong-won, Han Hyo-joo, Jung Woo-sung, with Kim Mu-yeol, Choi Min-ho, Han Ye-ri, Shin Eun-soo, and Choi Jin-ho, with the screenplay written by Kim. Here's a trailer you can watch, though it doesn't have any English subtitles:

Here is the official synopsis for Illang: The Wolf Brigade:

Set in 2029 where South and North Korea get ready for a unified government after a seven year preparation period. South Korean police launches a special unit to stop an anti-reunification terrorist group called "Sect."

Illang: The Wolf Brigade will be released in South Korean theaters on July 25, 2018. The film will likely be released internationally on Netflix later this year.