Inside ‘Colony’: ‘Train to Busan’ Director Yeon Sang-ho and Gianna Jun Discuss Their Thrilling New Take on the Zombie Movie
Director Yeon Sang-ho, best known for "Train to Busan," returns to the zombie genre with "Colony," a new film expanding his "Yeoniverse" that reimagines the infected as a collective intelligence capable of learning and adapting together. The film marks the long-awaited big-screen return of actress Gianna Jun (Jun Ji-hyun) after an 11-year absence, and matters as a fresh evolution of a genre Yeon effectively redefined with his earlier work, introducing zombies that are smarter and more coordinated than typical genre fare.
"Colony" follows Jun's character Kwon Se-jeong, an unemployed biotech professor trapped in a high-rise during a rapidly mutating viral outbreak, alongside co-stars Koo Kyo-hwan and Ji Chang-wook. The film premiered in North America as the opening film of the 25th New York Asian Film Festival and is set for US theatrical release on 28 August via Well Go USA. Yeon told Variety that choreographing the zombies' collective movement was the hardest challenge, and unlike "Train to Busan," where breakdancers shaped the infected's motion, this time modern dance troupes were used to emphasise their group-based, hive-like behaviour.
In short
- Yeon Sang-ho's new zombie film "Colony" expands his "Yeoniverse"
- Gianna Jun returns to film after 11 years, alongside Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook
- US theatrical release set for 28 August via Well Go USA
Explained simply
South Korean director Yeon Sang-ho first gained international recognition with "Train to Busan," a zombie film that significantly reshaped how contemporary cinema depicts infected characters. He is now returning to the zombie genre with "Colony," which takes his approach further by reimagining the infected not as individual threats but as a collective intelligence capable of learning and adapting together.
"Colony" follows Kwon Se-jeong, a jobless biotech professor, who becomes trapped in a high-rise building during a rapidly mutating viral outbreak. The film marks the major screen return of actress Gianna Jun after an 11-year absence, alongside co-stars Koo Kyo-hwan and Ji Chang-wook.
The film represents a fresh evolution of the zombie genre that Yeon helped transform. It introduces infected characters that are smarter and more coordinated than those typically seen in such films, moving together as a unified, hive-like collective.
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