NEON, the acclaimed studio behind recent Best Picture Oscar winners Anora and Parasite, has secured the North American distribution rights to No Other Choice, the latest film from visionary Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook. This acquisition marks a highly anticipated return for both NEON and Park Chan-wook, following their successful collaboration on the re-release of Oldboy. The film is currently in post-production and is already being eyed for a significant awards run.
No Other Choice is Park Chan-wook's 12th feature film and is based on Donald Westlake's 1997 novel, The Ax. The plot centers on a man, played by the internationally renowned Lee Byung-hun, who finds himself abruptly laid off from his long-term job at a paper company. As his desperate search for new work continues, he is driven to make a life-altering decision.
The film boasts an impressive ensemble cast, with Lee Byung-hun (I Saw the Devil, Squid Game 1&2) and Son Yejin (The Last Princess, A Moment to Remember) starring as a husband and wife. They are joined by a formidable lineup of Korean talent, including Park Hee-soon (My Name), Lee Sung-min (The Spy Gone North), Yeom Hye-ran (The Glory), Cha Seung-won (Believer 1&2), and Yoo Yeon-seok (Mr. Sunshine).
Park Chan-wook himself is producing No Other Choice alongside Back Jisun of Moho Film, with Michèle Ray Gavras and Alexandre Gavras of KG Production also producing. Miky Lee of CJ Group serves as executive producer, and CJ ENM financed the project. The deal, negotiated by Jason Wald for NEON and Namyoung Kim at CJ ENM, signifies a renewed partnership between NEON and CJ ENM, who previously collaborated on the groundbreaking release of Bong Joon-ho's Parasite.
Park Chan-wook is celebrated globally for his distinctive directorial style and captivating narratives. His previous work includes the critically acclaimed Decision to Leave, for which he won Best Director at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. He gained widespread international recognition with films like Joint Security Area and Oldboy, and continued to impress with titles such as Thirst and The Handmaiden, the latter earning him a BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language. Most recently, he co-directed the HBO miniseries "The Sympathizer," starring Robert Downey, Jr.
Lead actor Lee Byung-hun is a versatile South Korean actor with a prolific career spanning various genres. His extensive filmography includes Park Chan-wook’s Joint Security Area, Kim Jee-woon’s action films A Bittersweet Life and I Saw the Devil, as well as Hollywood blockbusters like the G.I. Joe films, Red 2, and Terminator Genisys. He is also widely recognized for his starring role in Netflix's global phenomenon "Squid Game."
Son Yejin, often referred to as Korea's "Nation's First Love," is renowned for her work in popular romance films such as The Classic, A Moment to Remember, and The Last Princess. Her extensive television credits include beloved dramas like "Crash Landing on You" and "Something in the Rain."
The acquisition of No Other Choice further solidifies NEON's formidable position in the independent film landscape. The studio has had an incredible run of success, most recently with Sean Baker's Anora, which garnered five Academy Awards®, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress, and achieved the highest per-screen average of 2024 upon its theatrical release. NEON also maintained its impressive six-year streak of winning the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival with Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident, acquiring the film at the festival. At Cannes this year, NEON also debuted Julia Ducournau’s Alpha, Raoul Peck’s Orwell: 2+2=5, and Michael Angelo Covino’s Splitsville, which NEON also produced.
With Park Chan-wook at the helm and a stellar cast, No Other Choice is poised to be another significant artistic and critical success for NEON, promising an intense and compelling cinematic experience for audiences.