First Look At Park Chan-Wook’s Next Movie Starring Squid Game Villain Revealed As Filming Wraps

The first-looking image of Park Chan-wook's No Other Choice has been revealed. Park is an award-winning South Korean director behind classic films, such as the original version of Oldboy. Since Oldboy was released in 2003, he has helmed other award-winning movies and TV shows, including The Handmaiden, Decision to Leave, and The Sympathizer. He wrote, directed, and produced his upcoming film No Other Choice. The film is a comedy crime thriller about a man who decides to take extreme measures when grappling with his unemployment situation.

Per Deadline, the first look image of No Other Choice shows stars Lee Byung-hun and Son Ye-jin standing in a yard together, appearing to be dancing. In addition, the No Other Choice update revealed that filming is complete for the film. No release date has been confirmed at this time. Check out the image below:

No Other Choice Park Chan-Wook Lee Byung-hun and Son Ye-jin dancing in a yard

What This Means For No Other Choice

No Other Choice May Target Big Film Festivals

Park Hae-il and Tang Wei in Decision to Leave

While the image reveals little about any new plot details, the shot seems to focus on a lighter moment within No Other Choice. The film has been thus far categorized into the comedy, crime, drama, and thriller genres, highlighting its potential genre-bending nature. The plot — which involves a man eliminating his competition to grapple with unemployment — has a degree of absurdity. This will aid No Other Choice in having an interesting tonal quality.

No Other Choice originally began filming in August 2024, so the shoot was five months long. This hopefully speaks to the scale of the project, rather than any delays or production setbacks. If the project's post-production moves along swiftly, No Other Choice could potentially be a candidate for submission at this year's Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, or other major film festivals. Park won Best Director at Cannes in 2022 for Decision to Leave, so that may be a venue that No Other Choice will particularly target when it comes to distribution.

Our Take On The No Other Choice Image

Lee Byung-Hun Will Elevate The Movie's International Profile

The Front Man betraying the players in Squid Game season 2

For audiences outside of Korea, Lee is the most notable star, who is best known for his work playing In-ho/The Front Man in the international hit TV series Squid Game. It will be interesting to see Lee take on a lead role that seems to be much more darkly comedic than the Netflix K-drama. Lee's Netflix tie-in may also help No Other Choicesucceed at the box office when its audience would otherwise have been smaller.

Source: Deadline