Steven Yeun of ‘The Walking Dead’ will be executive producing and starring as a North Korean defector in a film adaptation of Kang Chol Hwan’s memoir ‘The Aquariums of Pyongyang.’
Originally published in French in 2000, The Aquariums of Pyongyang is an autobiographical tale of Kang Chol Hwan, who was a North Korean defector and concentration camp survivor after 10 years of imprisonment. Hwan’s memoir not only documents his horrific experiences inside the prison camp but also the bleak reality behind life in North Korea as well as his treacherous escape to asylum.
Hwan is the first survivor of one of these concentration camps to escape and to publish his personal account of the North Korean prison system.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Yeun will be starring as Chol Hwan and collaborating with Radar Pictures, the production company behind movies like Riddick and Spring Breakers. He’ll also be teaming up with producers Ted Field, Mike Weber, and Michael Napoliello in partnership with Sean Lee.
We can expect to see more horrifying things than zombies in this film. Hopefully, The Aquariums of Pyongyang will spread more awareness to the human rights violations in North Korea by playing on the big screen.
(Source: KoreAm | Hollywood Reporter)