Two of Asia’s most celebrated actors, Shu Qi and Lee Sinje, are performing with each other for the first time in Netflix’s new thriller drama “The Resurrected,” world premiering at the 30th Busan International Film Festival before streaming globally.
Co-directed by Leste Chen and Hsu Chao-jen and filmed in Thailand, “The Resurrected” tells the vengeful story of two mothers, played by Shu and Lee, after their daughters become victims of telecommunication scams in the fictional city of Benkha. The cast features Taiwanese and Thai actors including Alyssa Chia, Fu Meng-po, Chung Hsin-ling, Sukollawat Kanaros (Weir), Caitlin Fang, Cheng Jen-shuo and Patrick Nattawat Finkler.
At the script stage, the dual protagonists’ revenge story had already moved both actresses. The chemistry they developed during filming brought levity to the dark material.
Both of you have appeared in only a few drama series but have been more active in films. What drew you to this particular script?
Shu Qi: First of all, this script is quite special. When director Leste Chen came to me, I felt that this was a role I’d never done before. Nowadays, with more and more people moving from theaters to watching films at home, I thought, well, why not try out a different shooting style for a change?
Lee Sinje: Of course, I was drawn to the script itself, and the role was also something I hadn’t really tried before. On top of that, I felt it’s quite rare to come across a story about women seeking revenge in a Chinese-language project. Of course, the production team is really strong. So I thought, even though it’s a drama series, as long as you have a good script and a good team, the outcome should be great.
How did you like working with directors Leste Chen and Hsu Chao-jen?
Shu Qi: I’d actually been talking with Leste about scripts for quite a while, maybe starting from two or three years ago. We were discussing other projects, and I had no idea about this one. So when he later asked me to do it, I thought, why not? It felt like working with old friends.
With Hsu Chao-jen, he has a strong Taiwanese accent in his Mandarin, so the fun part for me was that I didn’t have to be overly precise or polished with my speech — I could just be at ease. When I was working on the parts he directed, my Taiwanese-accented Mandarin came out really strongly, and I often had to pull it back. It was actually a lot of fun.
Lee Sinje: This was my first time working with both of them, and I really had a lot of fun. Although the shooting was tough, on set they gave me very different impressions — one being more outgoing, the other more reserved. Leste was on set most of the time, so whenever I was acting, he was the one communicating with me. He would always tell a lot of jokes, which really helped ease the tension when things got stressful. Both of us had filmed in Thailand before, so we were already quite familiar with the place. Therefore, even though it was my first time working with him, everything felt very familiar and went smoothly. Director Hsu is more of the observant type. He struck me as quieter, more of an observer.
Despite the fact that it was a dual-director setup, there was never any conflict or disagreement on set. I imagine they must have done a lot of balancing and coordinating with each other beforehand, so everything ran smoothly. I also felt they were both really dedicated, very attentive to every detail, and they made sure every scene and every actor’s performance were captured really well.
The story focuses on the struggles of two mothers after losing their daughters. What kind of characters are they? How are they different from each other?
Shu Qi: The characters’ personalities are actually quite different. Mine is more like the chatty, bazaar-gossip auntie type, leaning toward the good-wife-and-mother side. Whereas Lee is more of the strong, career-woman type.
Lee Sinje: Chao Ching is a career woman in the story. She came to Taiwan through marriage from Malaysia on her own, then later became a single mom. So she has to carry a lot more responsibility, which makes her seem tougher, more resilient, and calmer when facing challenges. Wang Hui-chun, on the other hand, is a housewife. So the two of them are already in very different situations to begin with. When the two of them come together to seek revenge, you really see them…
Shu Qi: Somehow quite funny.
Lee Sinje: Yeah, exactly!
Shu Qi: The chemistry between them is pretty unique.
Can you talk more about that chemistry? This is your first time acting together. How did you like filming with each other?
Shu Qi: It was quite magical. Chao Ching tends to charge forward, comes across as kind of “manly,” while Wang Hui-chun is more the type to hide behind when something happens. It creates this sort of alternative, unexpected kind of couple vibe between the pair.
Lee Sinje: Yeah, even though a lot of scenes are really intense and heavy, when I acted alongside her, some of the tense moments unexpectedly sparked a bit of dark humor. The funny thing is, we didn’t plan it or discuss it at all — it just happened naturally. We had this great unspoken chemistry.
You’ve mentioned that there are intense and heavy scenes. As this is a series about revenge, there are some brutal scenes as well that seem very challenging. Were they difficult to shoot?
Shu Qi: She’s definitely more worn out, since by the end she’s been through all the brutal scenes — she has quite a lot on her plate. I think the hardest part to get right was the level of intensity, “how far to go.” It’s like when we’re killing a fish for making a braised fish dish, Wang Hui-chun would just say, “I’ll do it,” and she would handle it in a way that’s not too exaggerated. Chao Ching would just go for it, snap! So there were moments like that in the series.
Lee Sinje: In those scenes, the two of us represent very different characters. So when we’re acting in these moments together, our synergy is really important — who should take the lead, who moves forward, who steps back. I think our unspoken understanding was really strong; as soon as we were on set, we could find the right balance for our characters.
Of course, it was also really tough. I felt that both of us were physically and mentally exhausted during the shooting. It was a very intense experience for me. Usually when I shoot a movie, the schedule is shorter. This one was almost three and a half months of filming.
Shu Qi: Yeah, it felt like the shooting would never end — we were rushing a bit in the end.
Lee Sinje: So you had to stay in character for a long time, which really tested your mental and physical endurance.
Shu Qi: That was one of the tougher things for Lee. Since she has a child herself, it’s very easy for her to fully immerse herself into the role.
Did this role make you feel pain, Sinje, since you’re playing a mother who’s lost her child?
Lee Sinje: It was really easy for me to connect with her. When you play a role like this, it inevitably touches on some of your own real experiences. You find yourself getting deeply immersed — it just happens. When you’re truly invested, it doesn’t feel like acting anymore; it feels real. That’s why it can be quite painful.
Shu Qi, you’ve mentioned that playing this role is challenging because you’re not a mother yourself. How did you establish your character and enrich her?
Shu Qi: I actually treated the daughter like a close friend, almost like a bestie. Because my character has been a longtime victim of domestic abuse, the only outlet she has is through her daughter, so the mother-daughter relationship feels almost like two sisters. So when the daughter ends up in a vegetative state, it’s really heartbreaking. It feels like losing your closest little sister. That’s the feeling I focused on. I also thought that every mother-daughter pair has their own way of interacting, so I approached it by treating my daughter in the role as both my child and a really close kid best friend.
Sinje, this is not your first thriller. How different is this one from your previous ones, in terms of how it felt or the story itself?
Lee Sinje: It’s definitely very different, mainly because I’m at a different age now. I did thrillers when I was in my twenties. Later on, I decided not to do that genre for quite a while, because it felt like I was repeating the same type of performance.
After all these years, coming back to “The Resurrected,” the audience might categorize it as a thriller. But for me, it didn’t feel that way — it has a very grounded script, tells the experiences of two mothers, and explores the power of female self-redemption. That’s what makes it really different. The strength of these women is very powerful and unique.
From your perspectives, compared to other series, especially Taiwanese dramas and Chinese-language series, what do you think is its biggest highlight?
Shu Qi: It’s about resurrection! “The Resurrected” — I think just the title itself is already quite intriguing for the audience. How do you bring the dead back to life?
Lee Sinje: Shu Qi’s in it! That makes me want to watch it already!
I haven’t watched it yet, but when I was reading the script, like I said, roles like these are rare. I also felt the story carries a sense of mystery. There are so many well-crafted characters, and I think they’re all very compelling. It seems to combine elements of commercial genres with a very solid, character-driven script, which I find really impressive. When I first got the script, I couldn’t put it down and read it all in one sitting. So I was sure it would keep viewers hooked, which is important for a series. The story is really engaging, and the characters are very compelling too.
Plus, it’s our first time doing a series together. Even though we’ve both been in the industry for a long time, we’d never met or worked with each other before. And the first time we met was on this project, performing together. So I think all these factors make it really exciting.
Shu Qi: Just watch it! I think once you get into the first minute, you probably won’t be able to stop.