K-Pop Movie ‘Lost in America’ Set Up by Lynda Obst, Korea’s CJ ENM (EXCLUSIVE)

Patrick Frater
·2 min read

Producer Lynda Obst (“Interstellar,” “Hope Floats”) and Miky Lee (executive producer of “Parasite”) have joined forces to tap into the Korean music wave. They will produce “K-Pop: Lost in America,” a feature-length road movie to be released in 2023.

The CJ ENM production has tapped JK Youn, director of two of the biggest Korean movies of all time, to helm the project. With disaster action movie “Haeundae” in 2009 and melodrama “Ode to My Father” in 2014, Youn was the first person to direct two films that each scored 10 million admissions, the mark of a mega blockbuster, at the Korean box office.

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The narrative in “Lost in America” revolves around a K-pop boy group that mistakenly lands in Texas with only two days left until their global debut in the New York. With no money and little time, they must make their way to New York to perform on their dream stage.

“We plan to cast K-pop stars in addition to icons in the pop industry to appeal to a global audience,” said Youn. Casting begins immediately in Seoul. The pre-production stage of the film will officially kick off once the auditions are completed in August.

Obst, who produced “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” and “One Fine Day” and executive produced “Sleepless in Seattle” and “Contact,” described “Lost in America” as a “passion project,” drawing on her love for all things Korean, especially K-Pop.

“K-Pop and K-culture have never been more in-demand. Combining CJ ENM’s globally recognized production capabilities with the brilliant minds of smash-hit creators Lynda Obst and JK Youn, we have no doubt that we will be able to showcase a very special movie that will appeal to a global audience and K-Pop fans alike,” said Lee, CJ’s vice chairwoman

A co-founder of film distributor and producer CJ Entertainment and an early-stage investor in DreamWorks SKG, Lee has remained a powerful figure in the Korean entertainment scene for over 25 years, as it has grown to encompass movies, TV drama and music. Her production credits also include “Snowpiercer” and “The Handmaiden.”

CJ recently announced plans to scale up and become a global hub for entertainment. That is expected to involve expansion of its international production activities – it currently has 40 global films and TV shows in the pipeline — and international development of its Tving SVOD streaming service.

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