SEOUL– Actor Kim Mu-yeol of “Juvenile Justice” on Tuesday expressed his gratitude to fans at home and abroad for watching the legal series and sympathizing with its grave messages to bring public attention to youth crimes.
“Juvenile Justice,” a Netflix Korean original released on Feb. 25, depicts five crimes committed by youngsters aged under 14, who are excluded from criminal responsibility. Based in part on true incidents that made the headlines in Korea in the past, the 10-episode series won rave reviews for its unflattering narrative to cast social questions on the validity of the age of accountability.
“I know this drama series deals with difficult and grave issues. Some say they feel frustrated,” Kim said during a media interview. “I’m so grateful that so many people are sympathetic to our messages, although it brings about emotional stress.”
The series has been atop a local chart released by streaming analytics company FlixPatrol since its No. 1 debut on Feb. 27. And it also rose to sixth place on the company’s global rankings last week, staying in the top 10 for about a week.
He said he thought the main theme of “Juvenile Justice” to seek effective ways to punish and rehabilitate underage criminals has resonated well with people not only in Korea, although it is not sensational or melodramatic to catch the eyes of global fans like the worldwide hits “Squid Game” and “All of Us Are Dead.”
“We all know recent Korean zombie shows or romances gained worldwide popularity, but our drama is relatively slow and boring,” he said. “But despite cultural differences, many countries are struggling with juvenile crimes and people go along with our drama.”
In “Juvenile Justice,” Kim plays Tae-ju, a judge of a juvenile court who sticks to the hope that all young criminals can be rehabilitated. He confronts his colleague Eun-seok (Kim Hye-soo), who cold-heartedly keeps expressing her belief that young offenders should take full responsibility for what they did.
Kim said he has been very different from Tae-ju as he has usually raged at news about brutal young offenders and blamed legal loopholes for the crimes.
But the 39-year-old actor, who debuted as a musical theater actor in 2002 and then expanded his career to screens, knew that Tae-ju represents a social stance on juvenile offenders, which is necessary to deal with the deep-rooted issue from a balanced point of view.
“There are many approaches and attitudes on youth crimes, and Tae-ju’s belief is hardly negligible, I think,” he said. “I was convinced that he has his own history that explains why he has such an optimistic viewpoint and becomes a judge in a juvenile court.”
As for the possible production of the second season, the actor said he is also looking forward to portraying Tae-ju as a better judge.
“Nothing has been decided yet,” he said. “But if it is produced, I will be very pleased to talk more about the issue. And I hope Tae-ju will grow to be a more sensible person.”
Source: Yonhap News Agency