'Squid Game,' 'Parasyte: The Grey' stars unite in 'As You Stood By'
A gripping new thriller about two women who conspire to kill an abusive husband — led by breakout actors from “Squid Game” and “Parasyte: The Grey” — is soon to release on Netflix.
“As You Stood By” follows Hee-soo (Lee You-mi) and Eun-soo (Jeon So-nee), two close friends who conspire to murder Hee-soo’s violent husband. The drama series is adapted from Hideo Okuda’s acclaimed Japanese novel “Naomi and Kanako,” with the Korean remake reimagining the story through the lens of female solidarity and moral ambiguity.
Speaking about the adapted series' Korean title, “It Was You Who Killed,” director Lee Jung-lim (“VIP,” “Revenant”) shared she wanted viewers to reflect on its layered meaning.
“The reason we chose the title 'It Was You Who Killed’ is because it carries the meaning of you, me and us. The story could be about you killing someone, or the story could be about someone who merely watched, or the story could be about us in general. I think once you finish watching, you’ll find yourself reflecting on the meaning of the title,” said Lee during a press conference in Seoul on Wednesday.
Lee added that her main focus as a director was to make the women’s morally complex choices feel emotionally grounded.
“Since the two female leads make choices that require persuasion, we put a lot of thought into how to convey those choices convincingly,” she explained.
Mindful of the story’s heavy themes, Lee said the team made the conscious effort to steer clear of sensationalized portrayals of violence.
“From the start, we were aware that visually depicting violent scenes could be quite disturbing. I had a lot of discussions with the director and we decided to include only the necessary montages. When you watch it, you’ll notice there’s barely any physical contact shown between bodies,” she said. "We tried to express the brutality of the situation by showing what happens before and after, instead."
"Since people with those experiences might watch our drama, I felt we had to approach it with great care,” she added.
As for what viewers can expect, Jeon hinted that the real tension begins just when the characters think their ordeal is over.
“After Hee-soo and Eun-soo get through something big, there’s a moment when they think everything is resolved — but that’s actually where things begin again. The emotions they experience as they face what follows are very complex," she said.
"That moment, when they wonder, ‘Are we finally free now?’ while simultaneously feeling anxious, will make it interesting to watch."
The eight-part series premieres globally Friday on Netflix.
yoonseo.3348@heraldcorp.com
