Actor Daniel Henney is satisfied with how his new Korean project, the action comedy "Confidential Assignment 2: International," has turned out as he makes his return to the big screen in Korea after nine years.
The sequel to "Confidential Assignment," which enjoyed box office success when it was released in 2017, drawing some 7.9 million viewers, revolves around three detectives who team up to take down an international crime organization.
Henney plays an FBI agent who comes all the way from the U.S. to Seoul to work with a North Korean special agent and a South Korean detective.
In a press interview on Tuesday, Henney said he was "satisfied" to see the finished film. "I watched 'Confidential Assignment' when it was released and it is one of my favorite Korean movies. I believe the sequel is more exciting and thrilling."
"Since the original film was a big hit, I was worried that my appearance as a new character in the sequel could ruin the existing chemistry between the actors in the first film. I also worried about my acting because I can manage to do action scenes, but I'm not good at them. So I learned a lot about performing action scenes from [co-star] Hyun Bin while shooting this film," he added.
Henney talked about the challenge of returning to a Korean film set. "I've always wanted to do Korean projects, but it is not easy because I'm not a Korean and I can't speak Korean well and naturally. I have a huge interest in playing characters who speak Korean fluently, so I'm working with my agency to find suitable roles for me, but it's not easy," he said.
"I'm continuing my career in the States, so it is also difficult to find balance between working in the two countries."
The actor said he was pleased to meet Korean audiences again after a long time away. "It's an honor to work on this huge-scale film. I think I'm a lucky guy, as I can keep working in Korea. Hyun Bin and I said that we are very lucky. When we did the TV series 'My Name is Kim Sam-soon' together, we were just newbies and it is just amazing that we are still working as actors."
Henney was born and raised in the U.S. to a Korean-American mother and an American father of British and Irish descent. He first rose to stardom in Korea in his TV debut, "My Name is Kim Sam-soon," in 2005.
"Confidential Assignment 2: International" hits local theaters on Wednesday, in time for Chuseok, Korea's biggest holiday of the year.
