Enjoy a lunar expedition on Christmas Eve with ‘The Silent Sea’ starring Gong Yoo and Bae Doona

K-drama fans are in for an early Christmas treat as star-studded sci-fi space thriller The Silent Sea will premiere on Netflix on Friday, Dec. 24. 

The Silent Sea is set in a distant future following an elite team of space explorers who go on a risky trip to an abandoned moon research station after the depletion of natural resources devastated the Earth. 

Earlier on Wednesday, Dec. 22, Netflix took fans on a behind-the-scenes glimpse on the upcoming K-drama posted on its Korean-entertainment-focused channel The Swoon.

In the video, The Silent Sea’s cast opened up about their first impressions and how they prepared for the sci-fi series. 

Gong Yoo revealed that he even shouted “Eureka” upon reading the K-drama’s script for the first time. He also said the K-drama came at a “perfect time” since he wanted to do a genre drama as his next project. 

To justify his role as the space sweeper’s team leader, the actor shared that he went for a more “rugged, tough look.” 

The Silent Sea executive producer Jung Woo-sung said the cast was handpicked despite the limited budget to show space exploration authentically.

??? 뭔데뭔데 ???웅성웅성 ??? 기지에서 무슨 일이 생긴 건데 ??? #고요의바다 #TheSilentSea #배두나 #공유 #이준 #김선영 #이무생 #넷플릭스 #Netflix pic.twitter.com/HQ1ASrteKz

— Netflix Korea｜넷플릭스 코리아 (@NetflixKR) December 15, 2021

Meanwhile, director Choi Hang-yong revealed in the online press conference that he wanted to create a story about the moon since much has yet to be revealed despite its close distance from the Earth.

“I wanted to create a story with the backdrop being the surface of the moon. During the research, I found out that even though the moon is the closest to us (Earth), there's not much that has been revealed to us,” Hang-yong said.

Bae Doo-na, who will play Doctor Song Ji-an, an astrobiologist who is determined to uncover the truth behind an accident at the abandoned Balhae Base research station on the moon, said she took the challenge of joining the cast lineup because she knew the drama would be “great.” 

"Because sci-fi and outer space series are not that common in Korea, I thought it was a big challenge," Doona added.

Lee Joon, former member of MBLAQ, described his character Ryu Tae-seok as “kind-hearted, diligent, and shy.” In the K-drama, Taeseok is the head engineer of the Ministry of National Defense.

Actors Lee Moo-saeng and Lee Sung-wook will also join The Silent Sea as the supporting characters. 

Following the success of the survival drama Squid Game and the thriller Hellbound, The Silent Sea is the latest original Korean series released by Netflix. It’s also one of the recent sci-fi entertainment to come out of South Korea, which earlier this year published its first space opera film, Space Sweepers, starring Song Joong-ki.