In the gripping new Disney+ medical thriller “Hyper Knife”, Park Eunbin and Sul Kyunggu star as a mentee and mentor whose once close relationship takes a dramatic turn for the worse. The press conference for the drama was attended by the leads, other cast members Yoon Chanyoung and Park Byungeun, as well as director of the drama, Kim Junghyun.
Park Eunbin stars as Jeong Seok, a brilliant neurosurgeon who is suddenly shunned by her mentor, Choi DeokHe (Sul Kyunggu), and stripped of her medical license. Forced to survive by performing back-alley surgeries for gang members with the help of the kind-hearted Han HyeonHo (Park ByungEun) and her loyal assistant Seo YeongJu (Yoon ChanYoung), Jang Seok is conflicted when her former mentor seeks her help with an impossible case—something Jang Seok, never one to back down from a challenge, is reluctant to refuse.
Keep reading to discover what the cast revealed at the press conference!
Park Eunbin
| Q: We were told that your character is slightly insane, but I thought it was completely insane! How did you come to take on this challenge, and after watching the final cut, how did you feel seeing this new side of yourself? Park Eunbin: When I was shooting my show “Castaway Diva“, I received the script and was reading the first page, which had such an intense, long line. It was a neurosurgeon character, and just reading about it hooked me right away. I think I was almost instantly drawn to it. I’m not the type of person who takes huge leaps or challenges; I’m more drawn to projects where I feel I can do a good job. So, I don’t think it was a difficult choice to make. For “Hyper Knife”, just like with my other projects, I went into it thinking, ‘What can I bring? How can I entertain the audience through what I can showcase?’ I hope you’ll stay for the entire ride and bear with Seok’s unique characteristics. |
| Q: What is the one thing audiences should look forward to in “Hyper Knife”? Park Eunbin: At the end of the day, it’s about two crazy genius doctors who are both extremely self-righteous and believe they can do no wrong. In order to achieve what they want, everything they do is intense and fierce. So, I hope you’ll stay with us on this journey all the way to episode 8. |
Sul Kyunggu
| Q: How did you try to portray your character, DeokHe? Sul Kyunggu: When I tried to mold my character, there is usually a consistent type, but this one needed more variation because there are only 8 episodes. I thought if my character remained flat throughout, it wouldn’t be fun enough. So, when he clashed with Seok, I wanted to show some clumsy aspects of him. He’s a genius in his field, but outside of it, he can come off as inept, clumsy, foolish, and childish. I wanted to incorporate those aspects into his personality. |
| Q:I feel like this is a competition of performance between the two of you. So, what was the chemistry like on set, and how did you feed off each other’s energy? Sul Kyunggu: The chemistry between us is just immaculate. There are scenes where Eunbin is quite hard on me, but while Eunbin wouldn’t feel the dopamine rush, I definitely felt it when she was being tough on me. I would do things to her, and she would do bad things to me, but what’s exciting and unique about this narrative, besides them being mentor and mentee, is that she used to look up to me but now harbors hatred toward me. For myself, I never really liked any of my pupils, but she’s the only one I truly admired and respected. Then, we clashed with one another, so it’s a very three-dimensional relationship we have. It shifted from admiration to hatred, but it’s not as simple as that—there are so many more emotions in the entire scope. So, we really tried to focus on all those different emotions. |
Yoon Chanyoung
| Q: Tell us about your character. Yoon Chanyoung: My character, YeongJu, starts with owing Jeong Seok one, but from that point on, he consistently stands by her as a dependable presence, always following her and caring for her. |
| Q: How was it like working together with Park Eunbin? Yoon Chanyoung: As I am a big fan of hers, I was a little nervous at first when I started working with her. I am with Jeong Seok for most of my scenes; she is always so nice and caring to me! We would chat freely, and I had a lot of fun on set. She made me feel right at home. |
Park Byungeun
| Q: Tell us about the character you play. Park Byungeun: He has a strong sense of calling. He doesn’t fully know what happened to Jeong Seok, but he has a deep passion for saving patients and respects her. I could feel this in the script—he holds immense respect for her, especially for her determination to save patients despite all the odds. He admires her, even without knowing all the different sides of her. HyeonHo himself is someone who doesn’t care about money or fame; what he truly wants is to help patients who can’t afford to go to the hospital, like homeless people. He’s always in the red, but he still wants to help. I often thought about what would happen if HyeonHo knew all of Seok’s secrets, but it remains a mystery to me |
| Q: What is the one thing audiences should look forward to in “Hyper Knife”? Park Byungeun: I would say it is the genuine and nervous intention between Seok and DeokHe. Also the harmony of the casts that surround the two! |
Kim Junghyun (Director)
| Q: These are truly fail-proof cast members, and of course, your directing caliber is well-proven. I also know that the shooting locations played a very important role, as you traveled to so many different corners of Korea. So, what did you place the most emphasis on when directing this? Kim Junghyun: It’s really about the relationship and the character dynamic between Seok and Deokhe. I think this story is both grounded and surreal, striving to maintain our unique tone—sometimes familiar, yet unfamiliar. |
| Q: Director, Eunbin is like a vitamin to those who watch her, what made you think of her for this role? Kim Junghyun: I think it’s the same with all directors—we always want to bring out a new facet of an actor. With “Hyper Knife”, I think I went to very drastic lengths. This is a role we wouldn’t typically expect from Eunbin, and I had very high expectations for her. I knew she would pull it off so well and truly nail the character. On set, I would monitor her and just think to myself, ‘Wow, she’s crazy! She’s so loud!’ I actually wondered if she had gone a bit crazy. I almost feel like crying because she did so well—it was so impactful, and I believe it will really grab everyone’s attention. |
