Ha Jung-woo Takes Lead in the Prequel 'Inside Men: The Birth of Villains'

Ha Jung-woo will take on the lead role in Inside Men: The Birth of Villains, the prequel to the critically acclaimed film Inside Men, which attracted over 7 million viewers when it was released in 2015. This announcement was made on August 20, 2026, by the production company Hive Media Corp..

The prequel aims to explore how the powerful cartel between politics, media, and capital began to form during the late 1980s in South Korea. Ha Jung-woo portrays Lee Gang-hee, a newspaper reporter who dreams of breaking corporate corruption stories but finds himself sidelined due to external pressures. This character is a younger version of the one played by Baek Yoon-sik in the original film.

Joining Ha Jung-woo in the cast are An Bo-hyun, who will play Ahn Sang-goo, a talent agency CEO driven by ambition and a quest for revenge, and Park Hae-joon, who takes on the role of Jang Pil-woo, a rookie congressman who recently transitioned from being a prosecutor. Additionally, Jung Sung-il will portray Oh Hyun-soo, the chairman of a conglomerate known for using unscrupulous methods to grow his business.

The direction will be handled by rising filmmakers Kim Min-beom and Kim Jin-seok, who bring fresh perspectives to the project after their collaborations on previous films.

The original Inside Men was based on a webtoon by Yoon Tae-ho, and while this prequel is not adapted from any existing material, it promises to expand the universe established in the original film. Hive Media Corp. has indicated that filming for Inside Men: The Birth of Villains is slated to begin later this year.