The Korean Netflix crime thriller Believer 2 is a sequel to the 2018 film Believer starring Cho Jin-woong, Cha Seung-won, Kim Dong-young, and Lee Joo-young. However, if you are a fan of the series, you may have noticed that there is a major cast member absent from the sequel. Why isn’t Ryu Jun-yeol in Believer 2? And who has replaced him in his previous role?
Netflix jumped into green-lighting the second film after the theatrical success of the first. The film picks up and runs with the established concepts, with Won-ho looking for Rak (Jun-yeol), who went missing after Brian was jailed.
The film continues to expand on its lore and does its best to make sure that there is plenty of ultra-violence and gore to keep fans happy, while also trying to fill in some gaps from the first film. In a narrative rug pull, it appears that although heavily implied in Believer, Rak and Mr. Lee were not the same person after all, so the absence of Ryu Jun-yeol is felt in the sequel’s narrative focus.
Why is Ryu Jun-Yeol not in Believer 2?
Ryu Jun-yeol | Image via Korea Herald
It seems that production-wise, the filmmakers did their best to get the cast back together for Believer 2, but Ryu Jun Yeol and Jin Seo Yeon were both unable to take part in the film. Ryu Jun-Yeol played the part of low-level drug dealer Seo Young Rak in the first outing but is not credited in the second film.
The part that Ryu Jun-Yeol played is now portrayed by Oh Seung Hoon. The reasons behind the cast change are not clear, but it is worth noting that the sequel has taken five years to get to Netflix, and we would imagine that the model and actor had possibly moved on to other projects and was unable to commit to filming at the time of production.
Fans on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) were predictably unhappy about the change:
I enjoyed Believer better than the Part 2. Finally knowing who Mr Lee was ended up being underwhelming. They shouldn’t have changed Seo Young Rak’s character as well. The guy is good but not as good as Ryu Jun Yeol.
— Brown Sugar ? (@Yettyclassy) November 19, 2023
I just started to watch believer 2 and got confused about the main character.. then found out they replaced ryu junyeol ???? the new actor doesn’t exude the same vibes as RJY ? I think its better to change the character as well ? RJY’s presence was too strong
— ndyshawol ?KEY? (@ndypionipop) November 19, 2023
What is Ryu Jun-Yeol doing now?
Ryu Jun-yeol starred in six projects after the release of Believer, so has kept himself pretty busy. However, he hasn’t starred in a film in 2023, and his next role will be in Alienoid: The Return to the Future, a sequel to 2022’s Alienoid, which won’t be released until 2024.
Along with Alienoid, Ryu Jun-yeol only starred in one other project in 2022, which was The Night Owl. The generally lengthy production schedule of Korean movies and Jun-yeol’s recent activity does lend some credence to the fact that he was simply unavailable to participate in Believer 2 due to scheduling conflicts.
Gossip-wise, Ryu Jun-Yeol and girlfriend Hyeri are confirmed to have broken up. Hyeri and Ryu Jun-Yeol both starred in the global hit drama Reply 1988 in 2015 and by August 2017, the star-crossed couple were revealed to be dating, much to the excitement of fans of the show who loved their on-screen chemistry.
Who plays Rak in Believer 2?
Oh Seung-hoon | Image via Yonhap News
Oh Seung-hoon was cast for the role of Rak, who was played by Ryu Jun-yeol in the previous movie. Oh Seung-hoon had a humble start to his career in 2013 working his way upward through commercials and learning his trade by playing diverse characters in different mediums, including theatre, musicals, drama, TV, and film.
He would land a role in SBS’s Through The Darkness as the red hat character and KBS 2TV’s Bloody Heart. The role of Rak in Believer 2 may give his career a kick start, with the film being released on Netflix, and gaining a global audience.
RELATED: Will there be a Believer 3?
