With news of actor Kim Do-hoon's casting going viral, all eyes are on whether Lee Joon-gi will join the Netflix film Dochabi.
On the 22nd, Lee Joon-gi's agency Namoo Actors told Newsen, "Lee Joon-gi has received an offer to appear in Dochabi and is reviewing it positively, but nothing has been finalized yet."
Reportedly, Lee was offered a villain role designed to supercharge the film's tension and is considering it. If he signs on, it would mark his first movie in about 10 years since the 2017 release Never Said Goodbye. Fans are buzzing to see whether Lee's no-limits, "true villain" side will finally hit the big screen.
A dialect word meaning goblin, Dochabi is drawing intense attention as the next project from the production company behind the 16.9-million-admission blockbuster The King's Warden.
What really stands out is Lee's special connection with director Ahn Tae-jin. Ahn served as an assistant director on the 2005 breakout hit The King and the Clown, which brought in 10.51 million viewers and changed Lee Joon-gi's life. Twenty-one years later, the once-fresh rookie actor and the on-site assistant reunite as lead actor and director—heightening curiosity about the new side of Lee Joon-gi that a team who knows each other best can reveal.
Netizens reacted with explosive excitement: "A Lee Joon-gi-style villain? I'm watching no matter what," "A proper 'real villain'—love it," "Just imagining Kim Do-hoon and Lee Joon-gi together feels so fresh," and "Acting power-show incoming."
Meanwhile, Dochabi is expected to begin principal photography in the second half of this year after wrapping up major casting.