Top Korean actor, Gang Dong-won will star in “Tsunami LA,” a disaster action movie to be directed by Simon West (“Tomb Raider,” “Con Air”).
The film, featuring a massive tidal wave that hits Los Angeles, is to be produced on a budget of $55 million through Hannibal Classics and Foresight Unlimited. It is now in pre-production in the U.K. and will begin lensing in March, 2018. Release is set for 2019. Hannibal Classics and Foresight handle international sales.
Production is by Richard Rionda Del Castro (“USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage,” “Rage”), Moshe Diamant (“The Black Dahlia”), Michael Tadross, Jr. (“Gangster Squad”) and Mark Damon (“Lone Survivor”).
Gang starred in two of Korea’s top-grossing films of 2016: “Violent Prosecutor” and “Master” as well as 2015 hit “The Priests.” His acting awards include the Star of Asia prize at New York Asian Film Festival for his role in “Vanishing Time: A Boy Who Returned.”
“I found the script very interesting when Hannibal first showed it to me. Also, people of my generation all have a special reminiscence about West’s ‘Con Air’,” Gang told Variety. “And it is a rare opportunity obtain a leading role in a Hollywood film on my international debut.”
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“I am very excited to be the one to present this accomplished actor to the rest of the world in such an exciting project,” said West in a statement. “Our goal is to make a movie that reflects and celebrates the diversity of Los Angeles in a way that thrills worldwide audiences. West and I really wanted Gang as a co-star for this adventure. We will round out the cast with talented actors from all over the world, including the U.S., Europe, Australia, China and Brazil.”
“A Korean distributor has yet to be decided, but West is already thrilled to visit Seoul for the film’s Korean premiere,” said Gang. He is currently shooting Kim Ji-woon’s Korean adaptation of the Japanese animation, “Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade,” which will wrap shooting in February. Gang has two other Korean films to be released next year.
“If I get good results in Hollywood, that means I can help Korean films get bigger budgets when I join them [as bigger casts attract bigger investments],” Gang said. Gang is represented by Gurkin Asia for “Tsunami LA” and managed by South Korea’s YG Entertainment.