[News Culture] Choi Min-sik and Han So-hee are teaming up for The Intern, a new workplace comedy set to arrive in theaters ahead of the Chuseok holiday on Sept. 16.
The film follows Ki-ho, played by Choi, a seasoned professional who joins fashion startup Woo22 as a senior intern after 37 years in the workforce. His arrival puts him directly in the orbit of Sun-woo, played by Han, a young founder who has turned her three-year-old company into one of the fashion industry’s fastest-rising names.
Their relationship begins with little in common. Ki-ho brings decades of experience but finds himself back at the lowest rung of the company, while Sun-woo has authority well beyond her years but little patience for older generations. What follows is an office story built around the unlikely bond between two people divided by age, status and the way they see the world.
The Intern is a Korean remake of the 2015 Hollywood film starring Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway. The original became a global box office success, earning more than five times its production budget.
Choi takes on the role of an accomplished professional adjusting to life as the oldest newcomer in the office. Han plays a work-obsessed CEO whose drive has pushed her company to the forefront of the fashion business in only three years.
The film is directed by Kim Do-young, who drew strong audience response with Once We Were Us last winter. His latest project reshapes the original premise around the rhythms of a Korean startup, placing workplace hierarchy, generational friction and unexpected companionship at the center of the story.
The newly unveiled poster shows Ki-ho and Sun-woo walking into work side by side.
Ki-ho wears the quiet smile of someone returning to familiar territory under entirely unfamiliar circumstances. Sun-woo, meanwhile, moves with the confidence of a founder who has built a rising company from the ground up.
The tagline, “Reporting for work today,” points to a story about new beginnings at any stage of life.
The trailer opens with Ki-ho preparing for his first commute in years, visibly caught between nerves and excitement.
During an interview with vice president Young-hwan, played by Kim Jun-han, Ki-ho is asked to name his biggest strength and weakness.
“My strength is my experience,” he says. “My weakness is that I’ve had a lot of years to gain it.”
The answer lands him an internship at Woo22.
Ki-ho arrives in a neatly pressed suit with a briefcase in hand, then settles into his desk by unpacking cream buns, traditional snacks, a thermos, a desk clock, a pencil case and a bottle of ink. The carefully arranged setup immediately sets him apart from the company’s younger employees.
Although he knows the professional world inside out, Ki-ho quickly realizes that experience alone will not help him navigate a new generation of co-workers. He searches for advice on working with Gen Z employees and looks up unfamiliar slang with complete seriousness, revealing both the humor and vulnerability of starting again.
Sun-woo is less than thrilled when her assistant Min-a, played by Ryu Hye-young, shows her Ki-ho’s résumé.
“Who is this terrifying man?” she asks after seeing his photograph.
“I’ve never been good with adults. You know that,” Sun-woo says when she learns that Ki-ho will be working directly under her.
Ki-ho, unfazed, introduces himself with impeccable formality.
“I’m Kim Ki-ho, the new intern.”
Their uneasy first encounter sets up the film’s central chemistry: a young CEO who keeps older authority figures at a distance and a veteran employee willing to begin again without demanding special treatment.
The Intern opens in theaters on Sept. 16.
Reported by News Culture M.J._mj94070777@nc.press
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