Park Hae-il: 'I feel a real sense of urgency now — I can't keep working this slowly'

Returns to the screen after four years in 'The Assassin'

Plays a veteran reporter chasing truth and press freedom

'I'd never seen a film that follows a journalist from start to finish'

"The Assassin" opens with a jarring image: journalists crammed into the back of a truck, hauled off to somewhere unknown. One of them is Jae-hwan, a section editor at the fictional Dongseong Ilbo newspaper, played by Park Hae-il. Tossed around like cargo, the men seethe at the absurdity of state censorship — their battered bodies a testament to those who fought with pens against bayonets in the 1970s.

Set against the backdrop of a real assassination attempt on the first lady on Liberation Day in 1974, the film follows Jae-hwan as he pursues truth — and the press freedom needed to share it with the world — without a moment's hesitation. A veteran reporter with sharp instincts and a cool analytical mind, he pieces together the puzzle of a shocking incident alongside key figures including police officer Cheol-gu, played by Yoo Hae-jin, and Yeong-il, played by Lee Min-ho. Jae-hwan embodies the film's very identity: a man who refuses to bend under the weight of power and chases the truth to the end.

Ahead of the film's opening, Park sat down for an interview at a cafe in Jongno-gu, Seoul. "The Assassin" marks his return to the big screen four years after "Hansan: Rising Dragon" (2022), and reunites him with director Heo Jin-ho a decade after "The Last Princess" (2016). "After reading the script, I thought, 'Is this what I've been waiting four years to do?' — the character sparked that much curiosity in me," Park said to open the conversation.

A scene from "The Assassin" [Hive Media Corp]

"I debuted in 2000, so I've been meeting journalists at least once a year for a long time. And yet I'd never thought about a work that follows this profession from start to finish, in one breath. So when Director Heo suggested the character of Jae-hwan, I think that's why I felt, 'I have to do this.' It was fascinating, and I really wanted to do it justice."

In the film, Jae-hwan exists purely as a journalist — nothing more, nothing less. The story offers no glimpse into his past or his family. Yet the question of what drives him so fiercely is not hard to answer. It is written in the clarity of his unwavering gaze, in the precision and composure of his every expression and movement. The smallest details of Park's portrayal speak for themselves.

"At first I asked myself all sorts of questions — does Jae-hwan have a family, is he married? But as I talked with the director, I came to feel he should be a character who focuses solely on the case, with no distractions. He's someone who calculates a great deal, so he has to be quick to read a room, and at the same time, his wealth of experience means he grasps context fast. I think I just acted out what the director planted in me, piece by piece."

"The Assassin" meticulously recreates the atmosphere of the 1970s — an era of simultaneous growth and repression — through detailed production design. Even on days when he had no scenes to shoot, Park frequently visited the set to calibrate his character's tone to the period. He was there, for instance, when Lee Min-ho filmed the scene in which Yeong-il calls his superior Jae-hwan from a payphone to report the shooting. At an earlier press conference, Lee laughed about it: "From the very first day of filming, I heard that sunbae Park Hae-il was going to come by — I was both nervous and a little intimidated."

"I tend to visit the set a bit early. I think it helps with the performance. The newsroom, for instance — the main space where Jae-hwan appears — particularly captures the air of the 1970s. To keep up with the fast-paced narrative, you need to get familiar with the space beforehand. I tried to understand it by going in, sitting down, even typing at the desks."

The further Jae-hwan pursues the truth, the more brutally power moves to block his path. Those who had freely slashed his articles with red pens eventually strip him of his livelihood, and when the newspaper refuses to abandon its commitment to honest reporting, they storm the building with clubs. But Jae-hwan and his colleagues at Dongseong Ilbo refuse to break. Even in the face of terrifying, merciless violence, they declare their resolve not to surrender as a free press. In a newsroom charged with solemnity, Jae-hwan reads aloud a declaration of press freedom — and in that moment, as power and journalism collide in raw confrontation, the film reaches its climax.

"Inside the newsroom there are so many actors — seniors and juniors alike — including Ryu Hye-young, Kim Dae-myung and Bae Sung-woo, along with a great many supporting actors. Because we were always together in that editorial room, a natural solidarity formed among us. When we reached the climax and cried out the declaration, there were no words needed — just this heat that came from that solidarity. It wasn't something that melted together slowly; it felt like a bond forged over a long time."

Park, long known as an actor who does not take on many projects, is back on screen after an extended absence. Finding even one of his works in a given year is a rare thing, yet he consistently receives more offers from the industry than almost any other actor, across both film and drama series. Offering something of a self-deprecating explanation, he said he is "not an actor with a lot to draw from, so it's hard to jump straight into another project after finishing one." But he added that getting older has given him a new sense of urgency, and that he intends to pick up the pace going forward.

"When I go into a character or a project, I've always needed time to come back out of it. But I started thinking that if I keep doing this, I really won't be able to make many more works. So I'm trying to shift the way I channel my energy — changing my mindset to just try everything I can while I still can."

Park closed the interview by reflecting on his renewed collaboration with director Heo Jin-ho. In his own words, Heo is the only director working today who could have created a character like Jae-hwan. Park expressed his gratitude to a filmmaker who believed in him again and drew out the best he had to offer.

"Director Heo carries himself like a true elder on set. His attitude of wanting to share the filmmaking process with his actors makes you think, 'Ah, this person trusts me' — and you just let your guard down completely. I performed with a desire to challenge myself, and I think I acted as freely as I possibly could. The reason I have no regrets about those choices is Director Heo — he was always careful not to use his actors in ways that were careless or unproductive."

balme@heraldcorp.com