Director Ryu Seung-wan revealed how he cast Ha Jeong-woo, Han Seok-gyu, Jeon Ji-hyeon and Ryu Seung-beom for his movie “The Berlin File.” At the press conference held at Apgujeong CGV on January 7, he revealed the secret of his A-list star casting.
 
“The Berlin File,” set in the German capital, is an action thriller about South and North Korean agents. Ha Jeong-woo plays the role of stateless, secret agent Pyo Jong-seong. Regarding Ha, Ryu Seung-wan said, “He looks like he has a story to tell. It’s expressed in the way he stands, and even in his small facial expressions.” Ryu admitted that he is a fan of Gu-nam, played by Ha Jeong-wu in “The Yellow Sea.”
 
“When he cries after getting shot in the freezing cold mountain, he seems to be thinking, ‘What am I doing here in this cold winter?’ He’s an actor who can show so much with his facial expressions. He was perfect for the role I had in mind.”
 
Ryu went on to comment on Han Seok-gyu who plays the role of middle-aged National Intelligence Service agent, Jeong Jin-soo.
 
“He’s the idol of my generation. During the Korean cinema renaissance, when I had just started as an assistant, I dreamed of working with Han Seok-gyu,” said Ryu. “For his role, I imagined a middle-aged, Korean man who has a special job. It will be interesting if the audience sees him as what he might have been like 10 years after ‘Shiri.’” 

Pyo Jeong-seong’s wife is played by Jeon Ji-hyeon. What’s interesting is that Ryu got the image of the heroine after he got a call from the actress.
 
“Jeon Ji-hyeon is like an icon. I couldn’t imagine her in the role of someone mysterious,” explained the director. “But when I met her in person, she was not what I had in mind. She was dressed really modestly, and I thought her beautiful like that. She was also very passionate about doing something outside her normal spectrum.”

About Ryu Seung-beom, the director said, “Ryu Seung-beom never once liked my script. But I think we are both developing the character steadily. I want to create a bad guy who is like the ultimate form of evil. Someone like the joker played by Benicio Del Toro. We talked about that.”