LEE JOON
GI’S
2016
CHINESE
FILM
NEVER
SAID
GOODBYE
'THE HARDEST
GOODBYES
ARE
THE ONES
THAT
NEVER HAPPEN'
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 NamooActors, Lee Joon Gi’s
management agency, recently dropped a tantalising little teaser. Lee Joon Gi is
currently filming an ‘Asian co-production.’ Short, sweet and instantly
intriguing. Details are still under wraps
but whispers across the region suggest that this is a true-cross-border affair,
jointly produced by multiple Asian production companies. Taiwanese media report
that a Japanese director, accompanied by his crew, was spotted filming on the
streets of Taipei, directing a Taiwanese actress alongside a Japanese actor.
Even more exciting? The project boasts an all-Asian powerhouse cast: South Korea’s multi-international award-winning megastar, Lee Joon Gi, Singapore’s top beloved shining star, Carrie Wong, two-time Taiwanese Golden Bell Best Actress winner, Alice Ko, and popular Japanese actor, Kentaro Sakaguchi.
Naturally, fans are buzzing
with questions. How do actors from different countries communicate on set? Are
they switching languages? Did Lee Joon Gi secretly level up his Mandarin or
Japanese? Perhaps, he did imply doing something like that some time ago.
 (Left) Director Lin (Right) photo uploaded by LJG
Fuel was added to the fire
when Lee recently uploaded behind-the-scenes Instagram photos from Singapore,
South Korea, and Japan. One particular shot catches attention: a man who looked
suspiciously like renowned Taiwanese director Lin Yu Hsien, Lee’s collaborator
from the 2016 Chinese film, Never Said Goodbye.
  
If it truly is Lin Yu Hsien,
this would mark a thrilling second collaboration between the Taiwanese director
and the South Korean multihyphenate. It’s powerful East Asian creative synergy
again.   Adding a fun bit of destiny
to the story - in 2016, Lee Joon Gi cheekily asked Director Lin on Instagram to
make an action-romance film for him someday. It seems Lin may have finally
taken him up on the offer.  Lee Joon Gi (Top) 2016 (Bottom) 2026 Director Lin Yu Hsien is no
stranger to acclaim. His documentary ‘Jump! Boys’, which followed young
gymnasts chasing their dreams, became one of Taiwan’s most beloved
documentaries and launched Lin from promising newcomer to national talent. Before
film making, Lin even worked as an elementary school gymnastics coach in Yilan.
In 2011, he wrote and
directed ‘Jump! Ashin’, earning him a nomination for Best Original Screenplay
at the 48th Golden Horse Awards.
Lin is especially praised for
his humorous, fast-paced storytelling and his keen observations of society. 
The director once revealed
that persuading Lee Joon Gi to star in Never Said Goodbye took serious
effort. Lee was always his first and only choice for the romantic lead,
describing him as, ‘a boy next door with a unique charm – natural, sincere
and down-to-earth.’ Determined to secure him, Lin
flew to Korea twice to personally discuss the project. He later joked that he had
to ‘trick’ Lee into saying yes. The film ultimately unfolded across Shanghai
and southern Italy, and the gamble paid off. Lee Joon Gi sang the song, ‘For
a While’, the ending theme song for the movie. The song is from his album,
Exhale.    
In Never Said Goodbye,
Lee plays Jun Ho, a South Korean university student studying in China. At first
the film feels almost playfully romantic. Jun Ho charms Xiao Yu (Zhou Dong Yu) with
a grand flash-mob dance in the school cafetaria and proves his devotion by
devouring an absurd amount of pork knuckles. The story unfolds in two halves – first through Xiao Yu’s perspective, then through Jun Ho’s.
 
The tone shifts
heartbreakingly when Jun Ho learns he has brain cancer and only 6 months to
live. Choosing love over selfishness, he stages his own death and quietly
shields Xiao Yu from the truth, hoping she’ll survive the pain of losing him. 'The hardest goodbyes are the
ones that never happen.'
 
The film lingers on the ache
of unfinished farewells – on people who disappear from our lives before we can
say what truly mattered. It’s a story that never quite let go. Lee Joon Gi’s performance is
devastatingly beautiful - leaving audiences emotionally wrecked, while the
cinematography elevates every moment into something breathtaking. If the mysterious new project
really does unite Lee Joon Gi and Director Lin Yu Hsien, fans may have to
prepare their hearts – again.
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