Badland Hunters: Korean star Ma Dong-seok on the new Netflix action film, working with director Heo Myung-haeng, and relying on more than just his fists

Ma Dong-seok (aka Don Lee) says that playing characters who have flaws is very important to him – in Badland Hunters, his loner goes up against a fanatical cult

Known for his boxing, this time Ma gets to use guns, machetes and more, and director Heo would give him set-piece concepts to look over before anyone else

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Korean actor Ma Dong-seok, aka Don Lee, plays a loner pitted against a fanatical cult led by a mad scientist in “Badland Hunters”, a new action film on Netflix. Photo: Netflix

Daniel Eagan

Published: 8:00pm, 25 Jan 2024Updated: 10:38pm, 25 Jan 2024

When an earthquake levels society, survival in the post-apocalyptic world depends on hunting skills.

Badland Hunters pits loner Nam-san (played by Ma Dong-seok, also known as Don Lee in the US) against a fanatical cult led by mad scientist Yang Gi-su (Lee Hee-joon). Nam-san and his sidekick Choi Ji-wan (Lee Jun-young) have to rescue their kidnapped teenage friend Su-na (Roh Jeong-eui) before Yang harvests her body parts.

The film marks the latest step in Ma’s ascent. The actor and producer, a former bouncer and personal trainer, has been the one reliable draw in recent Korean cinema history. Badland Hunters, which is being distributed by Netflix, will introduce him to 190 countries around the world.

Reports in the press initially described Badland Hunters as a sequel to 2023’s Concrete Utopia, both produced by Climax Studio. But when asked about the ties between the films, director Heo Myung-haeng replied at a press conference: “Badland Hunters is not a sequel, it’s a totally independent production with its own universe.”

In an interview with the Post, Ma says that he wanted Heo, a stunt coordinator and martial arts director on films like Train to Busan, to direct from the start.

“I really like him,” Ma says. “We’ve worked together on a dozen or so projects, and I knew his action design was immaculate. He puts drama and emotion inside his action scenes, so I knew he would be capable of helming the entire movie.”

“This is my feature debut,” Heo says, sitting next to Ma. “I’ve worked for quite some time as a stunt coordinator, so I think that really helped here.”