Squid Gameis one of Netflix’s most popular shows of all time and boasts several interesting characters. The first season centers closely around Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) as the main lead. While the protagonist has miraculously survived the events of the first games, most of the previous main characters are dead by the timeSquid Gameseason 2rolls around. One of the villains, however, is not dead and plays a key role in season 2. This is the Front Man, aka In-ho, who plays a bigger role in the second season when he chooses to participate in the games himself.
Front Man is played byKorean actor Lee Byung-hun, who has participated in both Korean and English-language films and television shows. His career began over three decades ago as he played parts in several Korean TV shows in the 1990s. Since then, he has been in everything fromEnglish-language movies such as the 2016 version ofThe Magnificent Sevento Korean titles such asA Bittersweet Life.Recently, he was also in the dramaThe Match, which is available on Netflix. Now, Lee plays another villain in a brand-new Netflix movie.
Lee Byung-hun Is Playing A Different Antagonistic Role In KPop Demon Hunters
He Voices Gwi-Ma
Lee has a voice role inKPop Demon Hunters. In a unique twist on aHannah Montana-like story, the film is acomputer-animated pop musical about a K-pop girl groupwho spend time in the spotlight while also hiding their true identities as demon hunters. The film is co-directed by Chris Appelhans and Maggie Kang and was just released on Netflix. In addition to Lee,KPop Demon Huntersfeatures a leading voice castincluding Yunjin Kim, Daniel Dae Kim, May Hong, Arden Cho, and Li-young Yoo.
Lee plays Gwi-ma, who is the demon lord in the movie. Gwi-ma is served by Jinu (Ahn Hyo-seop), who essentially made a deal with the devil, as the saying goes, and is now forced to work with the demon lord. Given that the protagonist girl group is fighting against demons, the demon lord is their main enemy, making Lee’s character one of the antagonists.
Gwi-ma isa very different type of villain thanSquid Game’s Front Man.Unlike the show’s villain, who violently costs human lives, theKPop Demon Hunterscharacter is a much more family-friendly character. As such, the animated film can show a different side of Lee’s villain capabilities, as he takes on a slightly softer tone. So far,KPop Demon Huntershas an incredibly strong Rotten Tomatoes score, amassing 92% with 12 reviews thus far. Even with Lee playing a very different type of role, audiences are responding well.
KPop Demon Hunters Is A Great Addition To Lee Byung-hun’s Collection Of Villains
Lee Has Also Played Storm Shadow In G.I. Joe Movies
Squid Gamewas not the first time that Lee played a villain in a movie.His very first villain role was inThe Good, the Bad, the Weird, a 2008 Korean spoof of the classic spaghetti WesternThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. While it was not an American movie, the film screened out of competition at the world-renownedCannes Film Festival, giving Lee far more international attention. This opened the door to more opportunities for Lee and helped establish his cinematic identity.
This was effective, as he waslater cast as Storm Shadow intheG.I. Joemovies. He made his Hollywood debut in 2009 withG.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, a part that he followed up in subsequent films. This helped him establish his propensity for villain characters from very early on in his career. This likely helped him get roles such as the Front Man inSquid Game, and withKPop Demon Hunters, he is continuing on this trend.
