Viral Korean Olympic shooter scores first acting role as assassin

AFP | London

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South Korean pistol shooter Kim Ye-ji, whose skill and nonchalance won the internet at the Paris Olympics, has landed her first acting role -- as an assassin.

The 32-year-old took silver in the women’s 10m air pistol in July and her ultra-calm demeanour, combined with her wire-rimmed shooting glasses and baseball cap, turned her into a worldwide online sensation.

As videos of her shooting went viral, she drew praise from celebrities such as Elon Musk. “She should be cast in an action movie. No acting required!” Musk wrote on his social media platform X at the time.

Now she will play an assassin in “Crush”, a spinoff short-form series of the global film project “Asia”, a spokesperson for Seoul-based entertainment firm Asia Lab said yesterday.

Kim will star alongside Indian actress and influencer Anushka Sen, the company said in a separate statement, saying it was excited to witness “the potential synergy that will arise from Kim Ye-ji and Anushka Sen’s new transformation into a killer duo”.

Since winning silver, a short clip showing Kim at the Baku World Cup in May has gone viral, spawning fan art, endless memes and multiple edits setting the clip to K-pop.

Kim signed with a South Korean talent agency in August to assist her in managing her extracurricular activities and she has since been featured in a magazine photoshoot for Louis Vuitton.