Fear isn't always about a monster jumping out of a dark corner with a chainsaw. Sometimes, it’s just a person standing a little too close to you in an elevator or a notification on your phone that feels... off. That is exactly what Jung Bum-shik tapped into with his 2022 South Korean anthology film. If you recognize that name, it’s because he’s the mastermind behind Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum, but this time he traded ghosts for the terrifying reality of modern isolation. The cast of New Normal 2022 had a massive job: they had to make the mundane feel lethal. And they did.
Honestly, the casting here was a gamble that paid off. You’ve got K-pop legends, rising starlets, and seasoned character actors all shoved into a version of Seoul that feels sterile and dangerous. It’s a movie about "honhon" culture—the Korean trend of doing everything alone—and how that solitude can turn into a trap.
Choi Ji-woo and the shift from Romance to Dread
Seeing Choi Ji-woo in a horror-thriller is weird. If you grew up on K-dramas, she’s the "Queen of Melodrama." She’s Winter Sonata. She’s grace and tears. But in New Normal, she plays Hyun-jung, a woman living alone who receives a chilling warning about a serial killer on the loose.
Her performance is all about the eyes. There’s a specific scene where she’s interacting with a repairman, and the tension is thick enough to choke on. You can see her calculating every word, every movement. It’s a masterclass in "polite terror." She isn't screaming; she's just incredibly, visibly uncomfortable in her own home. It’s a reminder that for many women, the "new normal" is a constant state of low-level surveillance and fear.
Lee Yu-mi: The face of the Gig Economy Nightmare
Lee Yu-mi is everywhere lately. After Squid Game and All of Us Are Dead, she’s become the go-to person for characters who are just trying to survive. In this film, she plays Hyun-soo, a young woman desperately looking for a job.
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Her segment hits home because it’s so grounded. It’s about the vulnerability of being young and broke. When she meets someone through a peer-to-peer app, the movie pivots into a commentary on how we trust strangers just because they have a high rating on an interface. Lee Yu-mi has this "girl next door" energy that makes the eventual spiral into chaos feel much more personal. You aren't watching a movie character; you're watching your younger sister or your best friend make a mistake that could cost them everything.
The K-Pop crossover: Choi Min-ho and P.O
Let’s talk about the idols. Usually, when you put a K-pop star in a gritty thriller, there’s a worry they’ll be "too pretty" for the role. Not here.
Choi Min-ho (from SHINee) plays Hoon, a lonely guy who finds a mysterious letter. It’s a romantic premise that turns sour. Min-ho plays it with this earnest, almost naive quality that makes the payoff gut-wrenching. Then you have P.O (Pyo Ji-hoon) from Block B. He plays Gi-jin, a character who is... well, he’s a bit of a creep. He’s obsessed with his flight attendant neighbor. It’s a brave role for an idol to take because it’s not likable. At all. He captures that specific type of "incel" energy—someone who thinks they are the hero of a romance while they’re actually the villain of a stalking story.
The cast of New Normal 2022 really succeeded because they didn't try to outshine the stories. They became vessels for the specific anxieties of 2022—the post-pandemic hangover where we forgot how to talk to each other but became experts at watching each other.
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Why the ensemble works better than a single lead
Anthologies are tricky. If one segment flops, the whole movie feels lopsided. But because the cast of New Normal 2022 is so varied, the film feels like a mosaic of a broken society. You have:
- Ha Da-in as the burnt-out convenience store worker who hates everyone. Her performance is incredibly raw—she looks like she hasn't slept in three years, which, let's be real, is a mood.
- Jeong Dong-won playing Seung-jin, a middle schooler who wants to be a hero. This was his film debut, and he brings a much-needed innocence that makes the darker turns feel even more cynical.
The connection between these characters is tenuous, mostly existing in the background of each other's lives. It mirrors how we live now. We’re all background characters in someone else’s horror story.
The technical brilliance behind the performances
Director Jung Bum-shik didn't just let the actors wing it. He used very tight framing. When you watch Choi Ji-woo or Lee Yu-mi, the camera is often uncomfortably close. You see the sweat. You see the micro-expressions of doubt. This puts a massive burden on the cast of New Normal 2022 to be perfect in their stillness.
There’s very little "movie magic" helping them out—no big CGI monsters or elaborate action sequences. It’s just people in rooms, elevators, or parks, trying to figure out if the person next to them is a neighbor or a predator.
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The harsh reality of the ending
Without spoiling the specifics, the movie doesn't give you a hug at the end. It doesn't tell you everything is going to be okay. It leans into the "New Normal" title by suggesting that this era of suspicion and isolation is here to stay.
The actors had to lean into that nihilism. It’s a brave choice. Most films want to leave you with a message of hope, but this cast delivers a message of "be careful."
If you're planning to dive into this movie, pay attention to the silence. Some of the best acting in the film happens when nobody is talking. It's in the way a character locks a door or the way they look at a ringing phone. That’s where the real horror lives.
Practical takeaways for fans of the genre
If you enjoyed the performances of the cast of New Normal 2022, there are a few things you should do to get the most out of this specific corner of Korean cinema:
- Watch "Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum" first. It’s the director’s previous work. It’ll help you understand his visual language and why he chose to move away from supernatural horror into "social horror."
- Look into the "Honhon" phenomenon. Understanding the Korean culture of solo living adds layers to Lee Yu-mi and P.O's segments that you might miss otherwise.
- Check out Choi Ji-woo’s earlier work. To appreciate her performance here, you have to see her as the romantic lead she used to be. The contrast is what makes her role in New Normal so impactful.
- Follow the rising stars. Ha Da-in, in particular, is one to watch. Her "unfiltered" acting style is a breath of fresh air in an industry that sometimes prioritizes "pretty" over "real."
The film serves as a bleak time capsule. It captures a moment in history where we were all tech-connected but socially starved. The cast of New Normal 2022 didn't just act in a horror movie; they acted out the quiet desperation of a generation. It’s uncomfortable, it’s jagged, and it’s hauntingly accurate.