As Korean films gain a broader world audience, Hollywood's most glamorous celebrities are swarming to the peninsula to promote their latest movies, with Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Renee Zellweger and Hong Kong actor Stephen Chow scheduled to make an appearance here next month.
Renee Zellweger will be visiting Korea on December 5 to promote her latest film, "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason", which depicts one woman's desperate attempt to escape single life. Zellweger, who will be paying her first call on Asia, has expressed great interest in the Korean film market, and chose the nation to kick-start her promotional tour of the region.
After holding a press conference at the Lotte Hotel's Crystal Ballroom in Sogong-dong at 11:00 a.m. on December 6, she will attend a preview of her film at the COEX center's Megabox theatre at 8 p.m. Zellweger, who had to gain 18 kilograms for her initial foray into the weight-conscious world of the unlucky-in-love reporter she portrays in "Bridget Jones'S Diary", drew media glare yet again by gaining 11kg for the sequel. After production wrapped up, the starlet quickly recovered her wafer-thin physique to mystify critics with her "rubber band-like body".
Stephen Chow, who earned considerable kudos here by making a stand as one of Hong Kong's representative "pro-Korean" actors, will arrive in Seoul on the night of December 5. He will be largely preoccupied with promoting "Kung Fu Hustle" (set to open here on January 14) and juggling his time between attending advanced screenings of several Korean films. Chow, who has visited Korea twice since coming to the country for the opening of his 2002 film, "Shaolin Soccer", adopted four roles for his latest vehicle, which involved stealing the spotlight as lead actor and stepping behind the camera to produce the movie. "Kung Fu Hustle" is an action-comedy that tells the tale of an aspiring gangster who meets a martial arts guru and learns the ancient art of kung fu.
Nicolas Cage will touch down on the capital December 13 to stir up the hype surrounding "National Treasure". His surprise wedding to Korean-American Alice Kim received much media attention and his wife is scheduled to accompany him on this trip.
Along with producer-director Jerry Bruckheimer and stunning German-born actress Diane Kruger, former wild-man Cage will widely promote "National Treasure" during his visit.
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