Adapting a book as masterful, evocative, and engrossing as Min Jin Lee’s 2017 smash Pachinko is no easy undertaking. The broad, wide story of family relationships, hope, tragedy, and survival follows four generations of a Korean family as they journey through history, beginning with Japan’s takeover of Korea. Read on to know all about Lee Min Ho’s Pachinko, as the Apple TV adaptation of the book.
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WHAT IS PACHINKO ABOUT?
The eight-part series is based on Korean-American author Min Jin Lee’s 2017 historical novel of the same name. The epic story follows a Korean family as they relocate to Japan and then to America, as it tackles issues like poverty, racism, and stereotyping. Kim Min-ha, veteran actor Youn Yuh-Jung, Korean-American actor Jin Ha, and Japanese-New Zealand actress Anna Sawai also appear in the film.
The persona is hardly one to gain Min-ho followers, as his character is a ruthlessly ambitious and opportunistic man with ties to the mafia. Rather than attempting to break free from his image, the actor claims he was “hungry for fresh characters and new stories.” That’s why he was intrigued by the role of Hansu.”
WHO PLAYS THE MAIN CAST IN PACHINKO?
Yuh Jung Youn as Older Sunja, Lee Minho as Hansu, Jin Ha as Solomon, Min Ha Kim as Teenage Sunja, Anna Sawai as Naomi, Eunchae Jung as Young Kyunghee, Inji Jeong as Yangjin, Jimmi Simpson as Tom Andrews, Jun-woo Han as Yoseb, Kaho Minami as Etsuko, Steve Sanghyun Noh as Isak and Soji Arai as Mozasu.
WHEN AND WHERE TO STREAM PACHINKO
The drama series will be shown in three languages: Korean, Japanese, and English, and will premiere on Apple TV+ on Friday, March 25. On the debut date, the first three episodes of the season will be available. According to a Netflix representative, Indian viewing of Korean dramas surged by more than 370 percent between 2019 and 2020. Given the worldwide phenomenon that was series like Squid Game, Hellbound, and, most recently, All of Us Are Dead, that figure would only be higher in 2022 but since Pachinko is an Apple Tv production, it won’t be streamed on Netflix.
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