From
Send to

Not the ‘Little Women’ you know from the novel

New tvN drama series tells story about lust for money that threatens to destroy three sisters

Aug. 30, 2022 - 14:21 By Lee Si-jin

From left: Actors Nam Ji-hyun, Kim Go-eun and Park Ji-hu pose for photos before an online press conference Monday. (tvN)

Inspired by American author Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 coming-of-age novel of the same title, tvN drama series “Little Women” seeks to bring a different taste to the story loved around the world.

“I imagined the 'little women' from the novel coming to South Korea. We start off by presenting the money problem, a harsh reality that many viewers can easily relate to, and the story ends with a huge twist that will exceed all expectations,” director Kim Hee-won, who was previously behind popular TV series “Vincenzo” (2021) and “Money Flower” (2017), said in an online press conference Monday.

Director Kim Hee-won (tvN)

Cable channel tvN’s new Saturday-Sunday drama series revolves around the three Oh sisters and their differing world views -- especially about 70 billion won ($51.9 million) in unclaimed money.

While the eldest, Oh In-joo (played by Kim Go-eun), believes money makes the world go round, middle sister Oh In-kyung (Nam Ji-hyun), a tenacious reporter, believes justice comes first and the money needs to be reported.

An art prodigy and the youngest, Oh In-hye (Park Ji-hu), wishes to escape her family’s poverty by any means.

Kim Go-eun plays young office worker Oh In-joo in “Little Women.” (tvN)
Nam Ji-hyun stars as Oh In-kyung, a tenacious reporter, in “Little Women.” (tvN)

Jam-packed with everything from sisterly love and family comedy to dark money conspiracy, Kim brings fresh changes to the original novel about four sisters’ journey to womanhood.

The director thanked the star-studded lineup of actors for their performance.

“I look for two major principles when casting. One, the actors need to be people who the viewers truly wish to see on screen. Two, the actors need to be respected by the staff,” the director said.

“It took a long time to find these members, but they are the cast of ‘Little Women.’ I was simply honored to work with them.” Kim added.

“Yumi’s Cells” star Kim Go-eun, 31, was surprised by how talented her sisters were in the series.

“After finishing reading the script with the actors for the first time, I wondered whether I had met Ji-hyun and Ji-hu before. We quickly became close like real sisters. And I realized I was the only one who needed to worry about the acting,” Kim said, praising her co-stars.

Meanwhile, Park, who rose to instant stardom with Netflix’s zombie series “All of Us Are Dead,” said she was able to understand her character In-hye, who feels suffocated by her sisters’ love.

Park Ji-hu plays an art prodigy, Oh In-hye, in “Little Women.” (tvN)

“I received seemingly unending love and attention from my older sisters Kim and Nam. I feel happy, but at the same time I sometimes feel uncomfortable,” Park joked.

With an all-star crew -- screenwriter Jeong Seo-kyung, the co-writer of Park Chan-wook’s award-winning films "Decision to Leave” (2022) and “Handmaiden” (2016), art director Ryu Seong-hee of “Old Boy” (2003) and “Assassination” (2015) and music director Park Se-jun of “Vincenzo” (2021) -- “Little Women” is one of the most-anticipated TV shows in the latter half of this year.

The 12-part series premieres on Saturday at 9:10 p.m. on tvN.

“Little Women” will also be available via streaming platforms Tving and Netflix.