EXCLUSIVE: Deadline can reveal the first look image and poster for Korean filmmaker Na Hong-Jin’s (The Wailing) anticipated sci-fi thriller Hope, starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Hoyeon, Taylor Russell, Alicia Vikander, Cameron Britton and Michael Fassbender. You can see both below.
The teaser poster uses a direct frame from the film, capturing “a moment in the depths of the forest as a rider on a galloping horse seizes a young man by the collar, saving him just as he is pursued by an alien threat”.
Filmed in Retezat National Park in Romania, we’re told the sequence proved to be very demanding, requiring exact synchronization between actor, horse, rigging, and camera, and a long period of training for cast and crew, including cinematographer Alex Hong, who wanted to capture the shot in natural light at 120 frames per second despite the covering of the forest. Hong is well known for his work on Parasite and Burning and worked with Na on The Wailing.
Described as Na’s most ambitious project to date, the sci-fi action thriller is set in the remote village of Hope Harbor, near the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). When a tiger is suspected to have appeared and local police chief Bum-seok is alerted, it throws the community into chaos. What begins as a local emergency soon spirals into a deeper, more terrifying mystery, one that forces the town’s residents to confront the unknown.
Hwang Jung-min plays Bum-seok, the arrogant yet duty-bound chief of the Hope Harbor police substation. Zo In-sung portrays Sung-ki, a young local who passes his days hunting and fishing. Hoyeon appears as Sung-ae, a tenacious officer who remains steadfast in her duties under any circumstance. They are joined by international stars Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, with Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender, in the roles of the film’s alien characters.
The largely Korean language film, still in post-production, is slated for a summer 2026 release, with international sales handled by Plus M Entertainment and UTA Independent Film Group representing North America. Producers are Na’s production banner Forged Films and Plus M Entertainment.
The project is the director’s first since 2016 box office hit and Cannes entry The Wailing.
