BRILLIANT
CASTING COUP
BY
MAVERICK
AGAIN MY
LIFE
DIRECTOR
HAN CHEOL
SOO
CLEARLY REVEALS
GLOBAL ACTOR
LEE JOON
GI
IS
IN
A LEAGUE OF
HIS OWN
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It is not easy to pull off an ingenious casting coup, especially when a genius director is in pursuit of an acting giant like Lee Joon Gi. During the Production Conference for Again My Life on 5 April 2022, Director Han Cheol Soo made a startling revelation. He recollected his 'Leading Man' offer to Lee Joon Gi for the television series, Again My Life. Lee, Cultura’s 2020 ICON for Television, is Director Han's ONLY choice. The filmmaker declared that he was not easily thwarted when he was obsessed with something. He was obsessed about getting Lee Joon Gi to lead the television series. After the first rejection, Lee Joon Gi finally accepted the persistent and insistent offer the second time around.
  ‘It’s my nature that once I set my sights on something, I get extremely obsessed over it. From the very beginning and even now, the only actor I’ve had in mind is Lee Joon Gi. Up until now, we’ve had 97 shoots for about 6 months. He’s doing such a wonderful job on the set. He gets along so well with the other actors and he has such great manners too.’
Director Han Cheol Soo’s strong pronouncement about his choice of Lee Joon Gi as the leading man for Again My Life caught everyone off guard. When asked by the MC Park Kyung Rim if Lee Joon Gi had convinced him that he had made the right choice, Director Han Cheol Soo’s answer was a resounding ‘Yes’. AGAIN MY LIFE PRODUCTION PRESENTATION OR PRESS CONFERENCE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNd2vdHvqvE
The event stunningly shows the unembellished truth about South Korea’s most sought-after actor. It’s difficult to deny the multi-hyphenate, Lee Joon Gi, who has eclipsed all other actors, the status of Korea’s finest actor or Best Actor.
Lee Hae-nal, the original writer of the novel on which the SBS television series, Again My Life is based, is on the same page as Director Han.  https://n.news.naver.com/mnews/article/140/0000047480?sid=004 https://twitter.com/jg_k_drama_417/status/1529401166936825858/photo/1 'No other actor except Lee Joon Gi could play this character Kim Hee Woo. As Kim Hee Woo, you have to act different ages from High School to adulthood, and Lee Joon Gi is the actor who could actually do all of those.'  Based on the success of the amazing television series, Again My Life as well as the wonderfully revealing Production Conference, we can understand why Lee Joon Gi has been chosen for the demanding and challenging role of Kim Hee Woo, the passionate and determined prosecutor. Lee is perfectly cast for the role of the charming genius prosecutor with extraordinary skills, including martial arts skills. All of Lee's qualities are self-evident in his portrayal of Kim Hee Woo in Again My Life.
‘From the very beginning and even now, the only actor I’ve had in mind is Lee Joon Gi.’ Director Han Cheol Soo 'No other actor, except Lee Joon Gi, could play this character Kim Hee Woo.' Lee Hae-nal (Writer)  Think about the implication of the words of Director Han Cheol Soo and the writer, Lee Hae-nal. The truth, The Naked Truth, is obvious.
 There are 100 Korean male actors in The Actors 200. And, there are many more male actors who are not listed in the prestigious list.
It seems that Director Han is spoilt for choice; he has so many options. But, Lee Joon Gi is The Chosen One, the director’s only choice for the leading male character.
When one speaks of the talents and acting performance, one cannot but be awed by Lee Joon Gi’s range. It hammers home the point that of all the innumerable actors available, only Lee Joon Gi (and nobody else) is suited to playing the challenging and unique role of the prosecutor, Kim Hee Woo, who returns to the past and morphs into his 20-year-old self. The statements of the genius director, Director Han Cheol Soo and talented writer, Lee Hae-nal, speak volumes. And to have Lee Joon Gi to agree to the role is a major casting coup for Han Cheol Soo. The 40-year-old Lee Joon Gi has successfully and amazingly transformed himself for the role in Again My Life. So, it is clear that Lee is a cut above the rest. Lee, who is set apart from the rest of the Korean actors, is in a league of his own. They are not his equals. Unsurprisingly, Director Kim Cheol Soo was not the only one who has lauded Lee with praises in the Production Presentation; his castmates, Kim Ji Eun (Kim Hee Ah), Jang Sang Hoon (Lee Min Soo) and Kim Jae Kyung (Kim Han Mi) have nothing but only well-deserved compliments for him.
What is most startling though, in another media interview, Kim Jae Kyung paid Lee Joon Gi tribute by singling him out as her role model. Kim Jae Kyung is not the only one impressed by Lee Joon Gi. Countless other youths have been impressed by him.
   In Again My Life, due to his recklessness, Kim Hee Woo is murdered but is resurrected by the Grim Reaper. A series of thrilling scenes recount the prosecutor’s murder. He returns to the past. He is lucky to be able to turn back the clock. Events in his past life could not be forgotten; his memories are sharpened to the polish of knives. He is given the opportunity to fulfil and accomplish his unrealised dream or mission of bringing evil people, especially Cho Tae Sub, to justice. This gives him a sense of closure when he returns to the past. In the chilling and exciting television series, Lee Joon Gi portrays a man-child - a high-school student - a law undergraduate - a grown, mature prosecutor with martial arts skills.
LEE JOON GI A POWERHOUSE ACTOR
Lee Joon Gi is a POWERHOUSE ACTOR. He could play any character in a television series excellently or he could play a character better than any other actor in a tragedy or comedy. However, not any actor including Tom, Dick and Harry actors could play the character he plays.
   Lee’s acting performance brings knife-edge tension, scalding tears and infectious laughter to the show. The charming actor also showcases a certain sensitivity and sensuality in his portrayal of the masculine but alluring prosecutor. The actor conveys a depth of loneliness and regret after his resurrection and return to the past. His return to the past sparks traumatic memories as he is reminded of his previous ill-behaviour towards his loving parents.
  
     LEE JOON GI THE ACTOR WITH A THOUSAND FACES
Lee Joon Gi is ‘THE ACTOR WITH A THOUSAND FACES.’ He could transform into whatever character he wants. His portrayal of a man who is brought back to life in the unique fantasy-legal-action television series is fascinating and concise.
It must be reiterated that Lee Joon Gi is 40 years-old this year. In the television series, he morphs from an older person to a younger person, a high school student. He could look like a cute adolescent or he could look like a mature prosecutor or a sexy charmer. Unimaginable.
    Kim Hee Woo, a law
undergraduate, could be sugar and spice and everything nice or as cute as
a conniving fox when he slithers into the affections of the evil and
corrupt senior prosecutors.  
THE KING OF ACTION
Lee Joon Gi, ‘THE KING OF ACTION’ is required to perform action stunts and martial arts to make the show exciting and entertaining. There are as many as 16 thrilling fighting or action scenes spread over the 16 episodes of Again My Life. Lee does his own stunts. As a prosecutor, Kim Hee Woo could explode into convincing violence at a moment’s notice. There are many high-octane fighting scenes and Lee Joon Gi is poetry in motion in many such scenes.
     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ugwGdst5sA  https://twitter.com/i/status/1513477605546242048
    THE THEME OF EVIL
One of the most interesting themes in Again My Life is the theme of Evil.
 
Again My Life, the television series speaks of evil that is never-ending. The destruction of evil people does not mean the end of evil. Evil, in the fantasy-legal-action drama, is likened to the Lernaean Hydra, a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. The Hydra has a regeneration feature. For every head chopped off, the Hydra would regrow 2 heads. Cho Tae Sub had been destroyed. At the ending in Episode 16, Chun Ho Ryung, the chairwoman of the Ji Wang conglomerate, assisted by Lawyer Cha, emerges and recruits Cho Tae Sub’s former cronies for her criminal activities. The life-after-death theme, one of the the most important themes in the television series, ignites the audience’s curiosity about the mysteries of life and death. The idea of Reincarnation is foreign to many people but it spurs the audience to confront the issue of ‘Life after Death’ - what actually happens after a person dies. Enthusiastic drama viewers and critics hail Again my life as a superlative ground-breaking television series. Again My Life has given Lee Joon Gi the opportunity to turn in a tour de force performance. He makes the audience cry copious tears or he makes them laugh as he frequently ratchets up the humour. Kim Hee Woo’s boiling anger over crimes also stirs up the viewers’ emotions. The question is, how would other actors fare against the acting powerhouse, Lee Joon Gi in 2022 and 2023?
  AGAIN MY LIFE
   The fact that the amazing actor, Lee Joon Gi, who has been courageously facing non-stop challenges in his career and producing television masterpieces, demonstrates that he is a walking miracle. The passionate and hardworking Lee, whose career spans 17 years and produced a wealth of masterpieces and indelible hits, has spent his professional life perfecting his craft and learning new skills. The legendary actor, whose career has rocketed to the top with his 2005 The King and The Clown, is an inspiration to global youths. He is the face of not only Asia but the world.
LEE JOON GI AND HIS HUGE FAN BASE Lee, the global actor, has a wide fan base. He has the support of his global fans who are his cheerleaders. They send him moral boosters - coffee trucks / catered food support, rice wreaths for his press conference, organise support advertisements, and birthday / holiday gifts and wishes.
GLOBAL FAN SUPPORT FOR LEE JOON GI AND AGAIN MY LIFE 2022 CONGRATULATORY RICE WREATHS PRODUCTION CONFERENCE / PRESS CONFERENCE
ADVERTISEMENT SUPPORT FOR LEE JOON GI AND AGAIN MY LIFE (2022)
COFFEE TRUCK & FOOD CATERING SUPPORT FOR LEE JOON GI AND AGAIN MY LIFE (2022)
FANS CELEBRATE LEE JOON GI'S BIRTHDAY 17 APRIL 2022
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