Lee Joo-young transforms into 'Hop-chin-ja', a parody of Jo In-sung riding a puppy

Actress Lee Joo-young has revealed that she is completely immersed in the movie 'Hope', which is currently creating a massive box office sensation. On the 18th, Lee Joo-young posted several photos on her social media (SNS) accounts, wittily recreating famous scenes from the film.

In her post, Lee Joo-young wrote, "I've become a 'Hop-chin-ja' after watching 'Hope', and I've been playing like this all day." Here, 'Hop-chin-ja' is a newly coined term referring to fans who are deeply immersed in the movie 'Hope'.

'Seong-gi' Parody with Her Pet Dog

In the released photos, Lee Joo-young appears wearing a purple top and training shorts. Holding a toy gun, she strikes various poses to recreate the atmosphere of the movie. A particularly eye-catching scene shows her posing while riding her pet dog like a horse. This is a humorous parody of the horseback riding action performed by actor Jo In-sung in the movie 'Hope'.

In another photo, Lee Joo-young showed off her acting by aiming a toy gun at her pet dogs. These photos, which comically reconstruct the tense situations from the film, capture the gaze of the pet dogs looking indifferently at Lee Joo-young's eccentric behavior. Fans who saw the post reacted with comments such as, "This is the epitome of being overly immersed," "A parody that even Jo In-sung would laugh at," and "I think the dog must have been the most bewildered."

Director Na Hong-jin's New Work 'Hope' Creates a Box Office Sensation After 10 Years

The reason Lee Joo-young is so immersed in the film is the movie 'Hope', which is currently dominating movie theaters. 'Hope', the new work released by director Na Hong-jin about 10 years after 'The Wailing', was released on the 15th. The film tells the story of Beom-seok (played by Hwang Jung-min), the head of the Hopo Port branch office in the Demilitarized Zone, who hears news of a tiger sighting from the village youths and gets caught up in an unbelievable, mysterious incident.

With the passionate performances of actors including Hwang Jung-min and Jo In-sung, the film surpassed 2 million cumulative viewers as of 1 PM on the 19th, just five days after its release. In theaters, the 'Hop-chin-ja' culture of imitating or recreating famous scenes from the movie is spreading like a game. Much like the example of 'Participatory Culture' explained by media scholar Henry Jenkins, fans are not merely consuming the content but are producing a new culture through parody and recreation.

Lee Joo-young's Filmography Expands to Voice Acting

Meanwhile, Lee Joo-young is steadily expanding her territory in her recent activities. In the movie 'Pilgrims', which was released last month, she showcased her capabilities as a voice actress by taking on voice acting roles. She is building her own unique identity by expanding her spectrum from live-action acting to voice acting.