Upcoming Coupang Play series “Newtopia” adds a new twist to Korea's zombie genre, with a blend of romance, comedy and horror that the show's team boldly dubs as "zom-com." According to the cast and the director, this unique approach was what attracted them to take part in the project.

“I’ve watched a lot of zombie shows before, but when I read the script, it wasn’t just about a zombie outbreak,” Blackpink’s Jisoo, who stars in the series, said during the series’ press conference held at Conrad Seoul in Yeongdeungpo Distrct, western Seoul, on Tuesday.


“There were so many colorful events unfolding, which made me curious, as it gave me the feeling that a new take on a zombie drama was about come to life.”

Directed by Yoon Sung-hyun, the series takes place in a version of Seoul that is plagued by an unknown zombie virus. It follows a young gomsin couple — a term referring to couples where the woman is waiting for her boyfriend to return from mandatory military service.

The series explores one of the common dilemmas faced by gomsin couples in Korea: breaking up due to the challenges of staying in touch and meeting while the boyfriend is performing his military duty. This was also the case for the characters Lee Jae-yoon, played by Park Jeong-min, and Kang Young-joo, portrayed by Jisoo. The story begins with the couple deciding to break up over this issue, but their plans are interrupted when a sudden zombie virus outbreak occurs.

The new series is co-written by Han Jin-won, who participated in writing the Oscar-winning film “Parasite” (2019), and Ji Ho-jin, known for writing the Disney+ series “A Shop for Killers” (2024).

Zombies are nothing new for both Korean and international viewers, as there have been numerous successful Korean zombie works like the film “Train to Busan” (2016) and the series “Kingdom” (2018-20). So, creating something that sets a new work apart from other zombie works was the director's "No. 1 priority."

To do this, the director said he went back to look at zombie works from the 1970s and '80s.

“Since the 2000s, zombie stories have rapidly evolved, with zombies becoming faster and more terrifying,” director Yoon said. “In contrast, zombies from the 1970s and '80s were slower, more humorous and even a bit cute, from my perspective. I thought this shift back to those earlier styles would feel refreshing.”

Although the series has a horror backdrop, the cast emphasized that there are many moments that will make viewers burst into laughter, as the actors also struggled to hold back their own laughs while filming.

“[The cast members on set] all had a strong desire to make jokes, and they all struggled to stop themselves,” Jisoo said. “Even though the series mixes zombies with romance and comedy, we still had to maintain a serious tone in certain scenes. It was challenging to find that balance, as we constantly found ourselves leaning toward humor.”

The series is the third collaboration for director Yoon and actor Park. They worked together on “Bleak Night” (2011), where Park made his debut and played the supporting role of Hee-joon, and “Time to Hunt” (2020), where he played Sang-soo — also a supporting character.

Park said he's grateful that the director finally offered him a lead role this time, saying it made the project "more meaningful" on a personal level.

The director was also intent on giving Park the role, saying, “As soon as I saw Jae-yoon in the script, Park immediately came to mind.” He also added that Park and his character matched "100 percent."

“Newtopia” is set to be released on Feb. 7 on the streaming platform and will also be on Prime Video for overseas viewers in over 240 regions.


BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]