I Was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor

Translator: Dreamscribe

The most authoritative film information and review site in the world, where countless international audiences come and go, a site no filmmaker could be unaware of. Not only directors but also various influential figures post their movie reviews there. The first to post a review for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ on that site was.

-[Kang Woojin’s <Joker> is toxic trash……]

-[Rating: 10/10]

-[Roger Wright / Film Critic]

It was film critic Roger Wright. A very renowned figure even in Hollywood. He was even known for giving notoriously harsh ratings. For reference, just last month, he posted a scathing review for a Hollywood movie.

It was along the lines of, “I wanted to gouge out the eyes that watched the film, and the actor’s performance was fit for dogs.”

His criticisms were so brutal that his comments became part of pop culture trends. However, Roger Wright wasn’t just famous for his harsh words. The films he gave favorable reviews to performed well, and those he slammed failed spectacularly at the box office, which helped elevate his reputation.

That very same critic, Roger Wright, showered ‘Pierrot’ with the highest praise.

It was the first time in roughly five years.

Regardless, there were numerous world-famous film review sites, including in Hollywood, and soon reviews for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ would start pouring in. These reviews might not decide everything, but just like in Korea, films that trend on these review sites abroad often see their box office fortunes swayed significantly.

Of course, these various sites are not limited to expert reviews alone.

They also get updated with audience scores, ratings, stars, freshness scores, and other types of evaluations from actual moviegoers. Since audience sentiment holds absolute weight in determining box office performance, it was a force that couldn’t be ignored. The fact that the first to review on those sites was an expert giving rave reviews made for a very pleasant start for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’.

At this moment, Kang Woojin also checked the first review from inside a moving van.

‘Hmm-‘

Naturally, his face remained calm, but internally, a deeply satisfied smile spread. Who wouldn’t be happy when such high praise was being heaped on them? And it wasn’t just any praise, it was a raving review.

“I was slightly annoyed at the ‘harmful trash’ part, but the ‘fantastic’ comment flipped it completely. Haha, ‘I think I’m going to love Kang Woojin’s Joker’-”

Though Woojin had received acting praise from countless people, including in Korea.

“Feels amazing.”

Being praised to the heavens in unfamiliar Hollywood, by a critic he didn’t even know by face, was enough to make him feel ecstatic.

Naturally, the team members around him were also in a frenzy.

“I thought he was going to totally bash it when he said Joker was toxic trash! But this critic’s drift is insane!!”

“Unbelievable!! Isn’t Roger Wright super famous as a critic?? There are even memes about him in Hollywood!”

“Yeah, but those memes got popular for him bashing movies. And he gave this one a rave review?? I heard he hardly ever gives compliments.”

“That just shows how awesome Woojin oppa’s acting was! And that ‘Pierrot’ was actually fun!”

Even ponytailed Choi Sung-gun didn’t say anything but was smiling. Of course, this kind of atmosphere wasn’t limited to Kang Woojin’s side. It was the same elsewhere too. Starting with the executives gathered at Columbia Studios that morning.

“Hahaha! Roger Wright gave us a glowing review!!”

“This is a good start, right? Since it’s a pre-release, box office numbers don’t mean much yet! But thinking ahead to the global release, this is a great trend!”

“There’s going to be another wave of news articles!”

Director Ahn Ga-bok and Chris Hartnett too, everyone involved with ‘Pierrot’ was all smiles. Following that, Kang Woojin and the others dove into another round of promotional schedules, and by late morning, Hollywood was flooded with a large number of news articles.

『LA TIME / Roger Wright, a critic known for stingy scores, on the pre-released ‘Pierrot’: “Toxic trash, but I’ll continue to love Kang Woojin’s Joker”』

『ABY / Kang Woojin receives standing ovation at surprise stage greeting / Photo』

It had already been buzzing with excitement since the first day of Pierrot’s pre-release, but the second day today was anything but quiet. In fact, it was more than twice as intense compared to the previous day. The trend was slightly different too.

『CNM / Audience members quickly post positive reviews after day one of Pierrot’s pre-release. Hard to find any criticism!』

By around noon.

-[Truly entertaining, incredibly shocking, and perfectly monumental. <Pierrot> will be recorded as one of the greatest films celebrating villains, and Kang Woojin, who played the Joker, was phenomenal.]

-[Rating: 10/10]

Following Roger Wright, reviews from experts praising ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ began flooding in.

-[<Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain> has written new history in Hollywood, and Columbia has made a film where villains are loved by the audience. Kang Woojin’s Joker will become one of the most influential villains in Hollywood history.]

-[Rating: 9.8/10]

/

-[Explaining the content of this film to those who haven’t seen it is a waste of time. I can only tell them to watch it, and they’ll have nothing to say but that it was fun. What more needs to be said? Go to the theater and experience the chills from Kang Woojin’s Joker.]

-[Rating: 9.7/10]

.

.

.

Directors, actors, critics, columnists, and so on, experts from various industries poured out praise. The scores were mostly 10s or 9s, and even those who were stingy gave it an 8. This kind of reception was rare.

『CNM / ‘Pierrot’ scores 9.8! If this continues, it may rank in the top 5 rated films. This is the first time in 3 years a film has received over 9.5 from critics』

If the second day of Pierrot’s release was driven by the power of critics, then on the third day, the 11th, the thoughts of audiences around the world came rushing in.

Starting with the reactions posted on various review sites.

-Masterpiece!! Thank you, Director Ahn Ga-bok! I love you, Kang Woojin! Dear humanity, witness this, this is cinema…

-‘Pierrot’ was the freshest and most amazing film I’ve ever seen! Pierrot! Sincere congratulations on winning the Oscar! Oh, too soon?

-Kang Woojin is the real deal, he is undoubtedly a phenomenal actor!

-You must watch ‘Pierrot’, your jaw will drop! The film contains both comedy and tragedy

-The Joker played by Kang Woojin is undoubtedly a villain, but I couldn’t help but love him

-Through Henry Gordon’s tragedy, the film criticized the world, and through the villain’s comedy, it stirred me, ‘Pierrot’ will be a masterpiece

Chaos spread across international forums and social media platforms. It was a stark contrast to the pre-release phase, when criticism and backlash against Kang Woojin had overflowed.

-I used to hate Kang Woojin, but now I’ll love him

-Kang Woojin is insane. Even if he mocks the Academy Awards, I’ll still watch his next film

-Joker… an unforgettable character, sending chills and shocks down my spine

-How did public opinion on Kang Woojin flip in just a day? Is ‘Pierrot’ really that good?

-First time in a while I held my pee throughout an entire screening

It felt like a different world altogether.

Later on.

While Kang Woojin was frantically running through his schedule, the Hollywood reactions to ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ were being transmitted to Korea. Especially hot were interviews with people like Ryu Jung-min and Hong Hye-yeon, who had visited LA themselves.

『[Star Talk] Hong Hye-yeon after watching Kang Woojin’s ‘Pierrot’: “When it opens in Korea, I hope everyone gets to see it.”』

In addition, the wave of overwhelmingly positive reviews from overseas film information and review sites quickly spread across domestic YouTube. This heated up Korea. Soon, domestic audiences were clamoring for ‘Pierrot’ and Kang Woojin.

And so time melted away.

Before anyone realized, it was already the fifth day of the pre-release schedule for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’, and today too, 33 theaters were sold out, as reported by foreign media. Hollywood had been overtaken, by ‘Pierrot’, and by Kang Woojin.

However, it was clear that certain ongoing matters were now picking up speed.

Two months ago, editing had already begun, and now, with Director Bill Rotner and many others focusing on post-production, ‘Beast and the Beauty’ was nearing the end of its initial editing schedule.

“Hmm, the outline should take shape around May at the earliest.”

An event, traditionally held by ‘World Disney Pictures’ as a fan-service for original work fans, was confirmed. Basically, it had the feel of a Korean production presentation, but in broader terms, it was an event to introduce the actors playing major characters.

“We should avoid March since it’ll be noisy with the Academy Awards. April is too late.”

“Then it’s best to hold it this month, in February.”

“Exactly. With Kang Woojin making such noise, the spotlight will naturally focus on him.”

Numerous reporters were scheduled to attend, and all the main actors of ‘Beast and the Beauty’, including Kang Woojin, would be introduced at the event. Though it was a recurring event for every film ‘World Disney Pictures’ produced, this time the media and public reaction was especially heated compared to previous years.

The reasons were likely due to Kang Woojin, Miley Cara, and others.

Meanwhile, the film ‘John Persona’ was deep in final preparations for its confirmed first shoot on February 27. With less than two weeks remaining until crank-in, key staff like Joseph Felton, the legendary Director Danny Landis, and others moved back and forth between completed sets and on-site locations.

“Let’s start testing the car chase scene. We’re opening crank-in with that.”

“Yes! Understood, I’ll get the Scorpio Arm (a special vehicle for filming) ready right away!”

“Launch the drone too.”

They pushed ahead with crucial checks. Since ‘John Persona’ would feature substantial action, the atmosphere on set was tense, and there was an abundance of rare equipment not usually seen on ordinary sets.

Additionally, ‘John Persona’ also began its promotions.

Although it felt a bit early, they couldn’t afford to miss the current momentum surrounding Kang Woojin.

The same went for ‘Guest’, which was also picking up speed. Having already held a full staff and cast meeting, ‘Guest’, with Miley Cara, Chris Hartnett in lead roles, and a special appearance by Kang Woojin, had already gained a decent level of recognition. Riding the wave, pre-production for the script reading progressed steadily. This side was in the midst of intense set construction.

Eventually.

『BBX / It’s been a week since the pre-release but still selling out, ‘Pierrot’ makes historic mark in Hollywood』

A week had passed since the pre-release of ‘Pierrot’, and February 16th had dawned. By now, it was a given that the entire movie was sold out, with new reviews and reactions exploding every day. And today, the 16th, marked the beginning of the second week of Pierrot’s pre-release.

At the same time.

“All right, let’s start circulating the works. Any additional entries can be compiled and submitted in the next round.”

“By the way, ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ is making huge waves, critics and audience reviews are overwhelmingly positive.”

“Makes you curious how much of a masterpiece it is, doesn’t it?”

“There’s so much praise about Kang Woojin’s performance too, aren’t you eager to find out why everyone’s so captivated?”

“We’ll find out soon enough. ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ is scheduled to be submitted by Columbia Studios today.”

The ‘Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS)’, which organizes the ‘Academy Awards’, began moving. In the latter half of February, it was time to enter the final stage of determining the official nominees. Later that afternoon, ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ was submitted to ‘AMPAS’.

As it had satisfied the precondition of a release lasting over one week due to its pre-release, this was naturally expected.

The next morning, February 17th.

‘AMPAS’ distributed the year’s selected works to nearly ten thousand members worldwide, who serve as the equivalent of Academy Awards judges. An enormous list of films was included. Big-name directors and top Hollywood stars appeared frequently. Just mentioning their names would resonate across the globe.

And naturally, among those jaw-dropping entries was.

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-<Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain / Columbia Studios />

Including ‘Joker’ as well.

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TL Note: Hi, this novel is now complete on Patreon. I will post new chapters daily for free readers, but if you wish, you can read all of it on my Patreon.

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