The pandemic coronavirus (COVID-19) also hit the TV and film industry. Many movies that were set to premiere in February, March, and early April were put on hold, including the thriller film "Time to Hunt."
On February 22, at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival, "Time to Hunt" pioneered to be screened in the event's Berlinale special section. But due to COVID-19, the film's supposed-to-be theater debut last February 26 was delayed, prompting the film's distributor, Little Big Pictures, to have its global premiere on Netflix. Since the pandemic, theaters in Korea hit its lowest number of moviegoers.
April 10 was the original date for "Time to Hunt." However, the film's debut was stopped by the Seoul Central Court last April 9 due to pending negotiations between the two companies. Contents Panda signed a contract with the Little Big Pictures. But with the internal dispute between the two companies, the local distributor Little Big Pictures terminated their contract with the international sales rep. Contents Panda protested since they already sold the film to 30 countries. They even had some promotions before Berlinale.
Shortly after, the two companies resolved their conflicts.
A statement was released by Little Big Pictures, apologizing to fans and Contents Panda. On the other hand, Contents Panda also declared a statement that they had fortunately concluded negotiations, and the film will be aired on Netflix.
The movie's dystopian setting will be headlined by actors Lee Je Hoon, Choi Woo Shik, Ahn Jae Hong, and Park Jung Min will be chased by Park Hae Soo, a mysterious man named Han.
Lee Je Hoon, 35, is an award-winning actor who gained widespread fame for his critically-acclaimed roles in the indie film "Bleak Night" and the commercial film "The Front Line." His role in the movie is Joon-Seok and will be the one to gather his three other friends to join his cause to rob people.
The 30-year-old Korean-Canadian actor Choi Woo Shik will play as Ki-Hoon. He debuted as an actor in "The Duo," a 2011 historical drama, and became very popular in world-renowned and multi-awarded film "Parasite."
The multi-awarded actor, 34-year-old Ahn Jae Hong, will play as Jang-Ho. The 2009 short film "A Perfect Sight" was his acting debut. His roles in the films "The Sunshine Boys" (2012) and "The King of Jokgu" (2013) made him popular.
Park Jung Min, 33, will play as Sang-Soo. Jung min made his debut in the 2007 short movie "The End of the World." He gained fame with his role in the indie it movie "Bleak Night" in 2011.
Park Hae Soo, 38, will be joining the film as Han, a mysterious and unstoppable killer who won the Best Actor award for his role in "Quantum Physics" (2019) at the 40th Blue Dragon Film Awards.
The setting will feature great suffering and injustice. "Time to Hunt" is an action thriller where four men had to rob in order to escape from their miserable life. Unfortunately, they ended up being chased by a killer whom they wrongly chose to rob.
"Time to Hunt" is one of the highly-anticipated Korean films, due to its star-studded casts. Not only that, but Yoon Sung-hyun will direct this film, who helmed "Bleak Night."
Further, the movie is the first-ever Korean film to cancel its scheduled theater release and went straight to Netflix. It will be simultaneously released on Thursday, April 23, at 4:00 p.m. in 190 countries.
