Lee Jung-jae to be back in 'Deliver Us From Evil' spin-off

WASHINGTON: Lee Jung-Jae, the star of Netflix’s hit series ‘Squid Game’, will reprise his role as a manic killer in ‘Ray,’ a TV series based on the 2020 Korean action-horror film ‘Deliver Us From Evil.’

According to Variety, many Korean media sources have reported that Lee will star in and co-produce the series through his own Artist Studio Company and Hive Media.

In the film, Hwang Jung-min starred as In-Nam, a former black ops agent who travels to Thailand to investigate an abduction. Lee’s character Ray, a Korean-Japanese ruffian whose brother was killed by In-Nam, pursues him there. Ray, who is heavily tattooed and charming, goes on a bloody vengeance rampage.

According to Variety, ‘Ray’ is expected to flesh out the backstory of the seductively evil Ray, revealing how he came to be such a cruel killer and pitting him against other villains from around the world.

The series is being written by Kim Bo-tong and is to be co-directed by Shin Woo-Seok and Hong Won Chan who is the original director of ‘Deliver Us From Evil.’

Variety reports that Hong Kyung-Pyo, whose credits include ‘Parasite,’ ‘Broker,’ ‘Burning,’ ‘Snowpiercer,’ and ‘The Wailing,’ will take over as director of photography.

Variety further reports that pre-production is reported to begin in 2023. No streaming platform attachment has yet been announced.

‘Deliver Us From Evil’ was released in August 2020, and made around USD 28.9 million from 4.36 million viewers.

According to Variety, Lee recently became the first Asian performer to win the best actor award in a streaming series at the 2022 Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards. He is also attached to the second season of ‘Squid Game.’