Gangs of London director Kim Hong-sun shoots Korean martial arts revenge film The Hit List
Director Kim Hong-sun has begun shooting The Hit List, a Joseon-era martial arts revenge thriller starring Jung Woo-sung and Squid Game actor Wi Ha-jun, adapted from a popular Kakao webtoon.
Director Kim Hong-sun, whose recent work includes Project Wolf Hunting and the third season of Gangs of London, is shooting a new martial arts revenge film in Korea. The project, titled The Hit List, stars Jung Woo-sung and Wi Ha-jun, the Squid Game actor, and is set in Joseon-era Korea. The film marks another step for Kim, who has moved between Korean features and international television productions.
The film is based on a Kakao webtoon that has built a large readership, giving the production a recognizable starting point with audiences before a single frame was shot. Its combination of martial arts action and revenge plotting places it in the genre Kim has worked in throughout his career. The historical setting of the Joseon era gives the story a period backdrop that differs from the contemporary London criminal world of Gangs of London, where Kim also directed.
Kim is reuniting with several members of the Gangs of London crew for the project, bringing a team that already knows his working methods. Cinematographer Lars Cox and gaffer Kieran Waites, both of whom worked on that series, are part of the production. Cox previously worked on House of the Dragon, and Waites on The Odyssey, adding large-scale television and feature credentials to the behind-the-scenes lineup. Carrying crew relationships from one production to another is a common practice when a director moves between projects and countries, and here it allows the team to keep a shared visual approach.
International rights to the film have been taken by Finecut, a Korean sales company that will handle the title in overseas markets. Deadline reports that Finecut is boarding the project with a date of November 2026, though that figure refers to the sales company's involvement rather than a confirmed release window. No exact release date has been announced in the available reporting, so audiences will have to wait for further updates from the production and its partners.
The production budget and the distributor for the domestic release have not been disclosed. Beyond Jung Woo-sung and Wi Ha-jun, the full cast has not been confirmed. Those details, along with the film's shooting schedule, are likely to become clearer as production moves forward and as the sales and distribution plans take shape.
Source: variety.com
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