K-star So Ji-sub channels shades of Liam Neeson from Taken in Agent Kim Reactivated
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South Korean actor So Ji-sub stars in Agent Kim Reactivated.
PHOTO: SBS
- So Ji-sub stars in Agent Kim Reactivated, a Korean action series about a devoted father using hidden skills to rescue his missing daughter, drawing comparisons to the film Taken.
- The series offers a grittier, action-focused story unlike the previous SBS hit My Royal Nemesis, targeting viewers seeking intense and emotional drama.
- So Ji-sub highlights the unique emotional drive of his character’s actions, motivated by love and survival, differentiating it from his past action roles.
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SEOUL – So Ji-sub, one of South Korea’s most enduring action stars, channels shades of Liam Neeson from action-thriller film Taken (2008) in his latest series Agent Kim Reactivated, a live-action adaptation of the hit Naver webtoon Manager Kim.
The series centres on a man known only as Manager Kim (So), an unassuming bank employee and devoted single father raising his daughter Min-ji on his own. To the outside world, he appears to be an ordinary salaryman. But when she suddenly vanishes, Kim is forced to reveal a hidden past and unleash a formidable set of skills in a desperate mission to bring her home.
The premise inevitably invites comparisons to Taken: A father races against time to rescue his abducted daughter.
The similarities, however, end there, as Agent Kim Reactivated is based entirely on Manager Kim and has no narrative connection to the franchise headlined by Irish actor Neeson.
Director Lee Seung-young leaned into the comparison during a press conference on June 25.
“I think it surpasses Taken. I’m just joking,” Lee said with a laugh.
“Taken is essentially a real-time pursuit story about a father searching for his daughter, while our story unfolds across 10 episodes.
“It retains the elements that made Taken compelling, but it’s also entertaining even when the main character Kim isn’t on-screen.”
Arriving on the heels of My Royal Nemesis, the globally successful K-drama that wrapped on June 20, Agent Kim Reactivated will take over SBS’ Friday to Saturday prime-time slot, a marquee programming window for the network.
It is now holding the No. 3 spot on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English Shows chart, and is the No. 1 Netflix TV series in Singapore.
The transition also marks a dramatic tonal shift for SBS. While My Royal Nemesis leaned into romance and comedy, Agent Kim Reactivated is positioning itself as a far grittier, action-driven offering.
“If My Royal Nemesis was a sweet cake, then our series is much spicier and more intense in flavour. I think it will offer a different kind of satisfaction for viewers looking for something new. That’s why I was genuinely pleased to see the success of My Royal Nemesis. We hope to connect with audiences through our own distinct style,” Lee said.
For So, who has anchored classic K-action projects such as Mercy For None (2025) and A Company Man (2012), the role offered more than another opportunity to showcase his action credentials.
“I had been wanting to do another action drama,” said the 48-year-old.
“At first, the action drew me to the script, but what ultimately convinced me was Kim’s story as a father raising his daughter alone and desperately searching for her. I felt that emotional journey would be a challenge as an actor, and that’s what made me choose the project.”
Asked how the action differs from his previous works, including Mercy For None, So pointed to the emotional motivation driving the character.
“In many action dramas, characters fight knowing that they might not survive. In Agent Kim Reactivated, the action comes from a father’s determination to stay alive and reunite with his daughter. It’s driven by a desire to keep living for someone he loves, which gives it a very different emotional texture (from my other works),” he said. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Agent Kim Reactivated is available on Netflix.