Chapter 213
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 213
Chapter Title: An Unimaginable Cameo
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The theater doors opened.
The people waiting for the next showing craned their necks, studying the faces of the audience members as they walked out. Everyone waiting was well aware of the ‘unusual reactions’ that had been posted online over the past two hours.
“Oh my god. Are you kidding me?”
“How much money do you think they spent?”
“I never imagined I’d see something like this in a Korean movie.”
The audience members leaving the theater were buzzing with excitement.
Their voices were low, but they were constantly whispering to the person next to them or eagerly explaining something over the phone, planting a strange sense of anticipation in those waiting.
‘I don’t know what it is, but it must be amazing.’
Watching Lee Miyeon and Park Sunga talk animatedly with sparkling eyes, Kim Soohan and his friends entered the theater, their faces full of expectation.
A short while later, they were all staring at the screen, jaws agape.
“...This is insane. Did you guys know?”
“No.”
Goosebumps erupted all over their bodies. They all left the theater with excited faces. At first, they were too stunned, and later, too engrossed in the movie to even touch the popcorn and drinks they had bought.
“I never imagined those actors would show up…”
“But what’s even crazier is that by the end of the movie, I’d completely forgotten about it.”
“The immersion… it was on another level.”
Immersion.
Kim Soohan and his friends were suddenly reminded of seven years ago.
The performance of a child actor who had captivated the chattering kids and uninterested adults in a single moment with the cry of a blue dragon.
“He was incredible back then, too.”
“That zombie. It was Seojun.”
“Ugh. It’s scary just thinking about it now.”
They all shivered at the memory.
The people waiting for the next showing saw the reactions of Kim Soohan and his friends, and their eyes sparkled.
What on earth was happening inside that theater?
* * *
“The movie should be ending soon.”
The reporter who had just uploaded an article titled [Escape’s Opening Day? What Are the Audience Numbers?!] looked at his watch.
“What’s the rookie saying?”
“He just sent this and then went silent.”
[Sunbae. This is insane!!]
The entertainment section reporters let out a hollow laugh at the text message.
“Did he go to a zombie movie and get got by a real zombie?”
“But the Escape message boards are having a similar reaction.”
The comments on the [Escape Message Board (Spoilers)] were similar. Information flowed for the first ten minutes of the movie, but after that, there was only silence.
-Looks like they died.
-Did a real zombie show up?
-In every theater? All of them?
The reporter looking at the [Escape Message Board (Spoilers)] on his monitor checked his email again. There were no new emails from the addresses listed as [Cocoa Entertainment], [Movie Dream], or others.
The reporter’s expression soured.
“They’ve got some nerve. How can they not send out a single press release?”
“I know, right? There was barely any promotion before filming, and they kept the fact that Lee Seojun was the lead a secret until the very end.”
“No press screening and no broadcast promotions, either.”
“They must think having Lee Seojun is enough. You can tell just by the pre-booking rates… It’s here!”
When the phone rang, the reporters swarmed around it. The senior reporter switched to speaker mode and waited for the rookie to speak.
-Sunbae! The production company must be crazy!
“Why? What happened?”
-Evan Block and Richel Hill!
The reporters blinked at the rookie's words. It wasn't that they didn't know who Evan Block and Richel Hill were. On the contrary, they knew them so well that they couldn't react.
Hollywood stars, Evan Block and Richel Hill.
Those were not names they expected to hear from a rookie who went to see a Korean movie, not a Hollywood one.
“Why Evan Block and Richel Hill all of a sudden?”
-Evan Block and Richel Hill were in it! The Hollywood actors! And Lee Jiseok and Park Dohun were in it too!
“...What?”
-I’m telling you, Evan Block and Richel Hill were in Escape!
At the unimaginable news, the reporters’ jaws dropped.
* * *
The broadcasting world was in an uproar.
While a few were disappointed to have heard the spoiler they couldn’t avoid, most of them grabbed their phones and telephones, their eyes gleaming.
“So this is why they didn’t do any broadcast promotions! Can you get Lee Jiseok’s agency on the line?!”
“No! The line is busy! But if it were me, I wouldn’t have revealed it either!”
“Are they insane?! Why did no one know those two came to Korea? What about Lee Dajin!?”
“It’s the same over there! I want to see the movie too!!”
Watching the veteran staff mix their impressions with their duties, the youngest writer just blinked her eyes.
“I said I want to see it too! What are you doing over there?”
“Uh… a post is gaining traction.”
“A post?”
Even as they kept calling the agencies of the *Escape* actors, the PDs and writers turned their gazes to the junior writer’s laptop.
[Title: Saw some foreigners who looked like Evan Block and Richel Hill.]
-…Looks like you really saw them…
-Why didn’t you recognize them!
=OP: T_T I’m telling you, Richel Hill spoke Korean so well T_T You saw it in the movie T_T
=You’re saying that wasn’t acting, but her actual skill?
=OP: T_T For real T_T
-If she spoke that well, even I would have just thought she was a foreigner… as if! It’s Richel Hill and Evan Block!
-That’s a real shame. You saw them right in front of you! You even talked to them!
=OP: T_TT_T
-So what did Evan Block and Richel Hill buy?
=OP: Well…
!
The main PD leaned in so close it was as if he was trying to climb into the monitor. His eyes glinted in the light of the screen.
“Something like this existed?”
“It was buried when it was first posted, but I think it started trending after *Escape* was released.”
“My god. Writer Im! Can you find out where this is?”
Writer Im, who had been on the phone with Park Dohun’s agency, answered.
“I think I can find it if I look… Are you planning to broadcast it?”
“...Would that be a problem?”
“Isn’t this a spoiler, too? The message boards will go crazy. Other broadcast stations and media outlets must know about it, but look at the articles that have come out so far.”
Writer Im changed the screen on the monitor to show the main PD.
[The Reason You Must Watch Escape!]
[Spoiler Alert! Things to Be Aware of Before Watching Escape!]
[A Film Beyond Imagination, Escape!]
The page was filled with articles about *Escape*, but there was no sign of Evan Block’s ‘E’ or Richel Hill’s ‘R’.
Everyone was testing the waters. Who would be the first to bite the bullet? The first one to speak out would get all the hate, but the second one would be fine.
“...Incredible.”
The main PD swallowed a groan.
But it felt like too much of a waste to just sit on such a great topic for weeks. Seeing the PD and writers lost in thought, the youngest writer raised her hand.
“Um… what about *Shadowman*?”
“*Shadowman*?”
“Instead of *Escape*, we can loosely tie it to *Shadowman*. The cast is the same, after all.”
“Huh…?”
That could work.
The PD and the writers’ eyes met. Encouraged by the positive reaction, the youngest writer excitedly continued.
“Since it’s already out that Lee Seojun is the lead, we can just air a show that Lee Seojun was on and show Evan Block and Richel Hill appearing together.”
“Ooh!”
And so, on the second day of *Escape*’s release.
The scheduled TV programming was changed.
[OCM, Special Broadcast of Shadowman 1, Shadowman 2, Assemble 1, Assemble 2!]
[WTV, WTV Awards Ceremony Rebroadcast!]
-Huh? So suddenly?
-Are they doing this because Shadowman 3 is coming out next year?
-Hehehehe.
=Heeheeheehee.
-???What’s so funny???
-A lot of unspoiled eyes here, I see.
=Sell me one. I’ll pay good money.
The broadcast stations began a move that some understood and others didn’t.
Other stations that didn’t have footage related to Evan Block and Richel Hill aired footage related to Lee Seojun.
[MBS, Golden Globe Awards Ceremony Rebroadcast!]
[SBC, Working Man Lee Seojun Episode Rebroadcast!]
[KBC, Naeuiwon Rebroadcast!]
-This is like a promotion for Escape without Seojun lol
-They didn’t even do this for Yeok, it’s strange.
-Ooh. That’s not what it…
=Shh. They’re still unspoiled!
=Yeah. Let’s protect them. The unspoiled eyes.
-??What on earth is an unspoiled eye?
=An eye that hasn’t seen Escape.
=22 I recommend you watch it as soon as possible.
=333 The world is full of hints lol, what a shame you can’t enjoy it lol
Just as the comments said, the world was full of hints.
[Evan Block]
Escape was fun. I don’t know who the actor Samuel is, but he was a good actor!
I hope we can act together next time.
#Escape#KoreanMovie#WhoisActorSamuel?#HeWasAsGoodAsMe;)
[Richel Hill]
Escape. In Korean, you write it as [탈출] and the English pronunciation is [이스케이프]!
Professor Maria! Such a wonderful character!
#Escape#KoreanMovie#WhoisActressMaria?#HerKoreanWasGood:)
[Ryan Will]
I’d like to shoot a hero movie with actor Samuel and actress Maria sometime.
Both of their performances were very impressive.
#Escape#KoreanMovie#HeroMovie
-Oh. Good enough for Evan Block to praise? He must be really good.
-I know, right. A Korean movie. So is he Korean?
=Ah. That’s not it lol
-Is Richel Hill learning Korean too? Is she good?
=She’s amazing lol Good enough to star in a Korean movie lol
-Even Director Ryan. Are they both Korean actors?
-Lmao, everyone’s being so mean lol
[Escape Message Board (Spoilers)]
-(SNS links for Evan Block, Richel Hill, Ryan Will)
-The whole Shadowman team is playing dumb lol
-For real lol Director Ryan is filming with him this year. Shadowman 3 lol
-This would be perfect if Seojun had social media.
-Seojun doesn’t do social media lol
>Oh my goood!!
>I get why everyone said it was insane lol There’s no way not to go insane!!
-Oh. Looks like the person above is watching the movie right now?
-I was super shocked too (wistful)
>Oh. The zombie! It’s really well made!
>But it has less impact than the actors?
-Here we go lol
-That’s not the main issue lol
>wha;sidf;ja
-Looks like the zombie got him lol
-But thinking back, it was seriously scaryㄷㄷㄷ
* * *
Yeoul Arts Middle School was in an uproar.
As expected of a school with a lot of interest in film, many of the students had gone to see *Escape*. Besides, how could they not be interested when their own classmates were starring in it?
And the *Escape* they saw was shocking.
“Oh my god. Oh my god!”
The students and teachers who had seen *Escape* would see Seojun and just repeat, “Oh my god,” with stunned expressions. Jiho, Jookyung, Joohee, and Jaehan, who had also been in *Escape*, dragged Seojun into a corner with trembling eyes.
“What is all this?”
“Hehehe.”
“This isn’t a ‘hehehe’ situation!”
“Evan Block and Richel Hill were there?”
“On set?”
Seojun shook his head at the kids asking with sparkling eyes.
“No. We filmed it on an indoor set.”
“Ah. That makes sense.”
“I wanted to meet them at least once…”
Seojun smiled at the disappointed kids and said.
“You know the long padded coats they gave out on set? Evan and Richel sent those.”
The kids’ eyes widened, and their cheeks slowly turned red.
“Really!?”
“The writing on the back was handwritten by them, too. Though it was printed, of course.”
“Woooow!”
The kids’ faces lit up like flowers.
“I just tossed mine in a corner!”
“Dry cleaning! I have to call my mom!”
“I’m going to hang it on my wall as soon as I get home!”
“That’s a great idea! So you can see the writing clearly!”
Seojun blinked at the kids’ reactions.
“In this summer heat?”
A black padded coat hanging on a wall would make one feel hot just by looking at it.
“Who cares! It’s Richel Hill and Evan Block’s autograph!”
Seeing the kids so excited, Seojun just shrugged. Technically, it wasn’t an autograph, but if his friends were happy, then that’s all that mattered.
* * *
The internet had turned into a battlefield.
It was a fierce war of intangible swords and shields.
Those who spoiled and those who were spoiled.
-Someone wrote an Escape spoiler in the bathroom stallㅠ
-Isn’t it too much to write it on a test paper while I’m grading!?
-I overheard it in front of the movie theater T_T
-I was trying to buy something secondhand T_T and the verification post was a spoiler T_T
And those who were still defending with their shields.
-Aaaaaaah. I can’t hear you. I can’t hear!
-Ughhhhhh. I can’t see it. I can’t see!
-I survived another day! I plugged my ears and stayed off the internet!
=You’re on the internet right now lol
-Word is, even the real-time search rankings are dangerous!
-T_T It’s a minefield out there.
-I want to see it on the big screen too…!
And so, two weeks passed.
As if they decided that everyone who was going to see the movie had seen it, the people who had been keeping the secret all shouted at once, as if to say, “The king has donkey ears!”
[What Are You Doing Here? The Unimaginable Cameos in ‘Escape’!]
[00 00 and 00 0! Special Appearances in Escape!]
[The Four Cameos of Escape!]
[What in the World?! The Stars Who Made Cameos in Escape!]
[Escape Theme Park Opens! By Reservation Only!]
-I almost fainted when I saw their faces in the theater.
=Me too. I got such bad goosebumps I couldn’t even speak.
=I just kept letting out a hollow laugh lol
-But aren’t the article titles too obvious? 00 00 and 00 0.
=The number of characters alone screams Evan Block and Richel Hill lol
-I can’t believe Park Dohun and Lee Jiseok were in it too.
-It’s Lee Seojun’s connections.
-His connections are on another level lol
-An Escape theme park?
=I want to go, but… I wonder what it’s like…
=Then watch the broadcast before you go. Film-goer-nim said he’s doing an outdoor stream.
=Whoa? He’s going to the Escape theme park?
#