The Sympathizer: Robert Downey Jr. Takes on Multiple Roles in Park Chan-Wook’s Spectacular New Series

Warner Bros Discovery has just released some big news: as of May 23, the HBO Max platform will change its name simply to Max in the United States, a change that will come to Spain next year. The announcement comes with the intention of making a new, more complete catalog on the platform, adding all the new Discovery Plus releases.

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However, the announcement did not come alone, but with dozens of news: a new series about Harry Potter, another one about Game of Thrones, another one about The Big Bang Theory and much more. But one of the most notable announcements has nothing to do with franchises, but with a series that promises to be the best of the year: The Sympathizer.

From Max – which is called HBO Max until May 24 in the U.S. and next year in the rest of the world – have shown a trailer for the series, which will be directed by Park Chan-Wook and in which Robert Downey Jr. will play several persoanjes. It couldn’t look better:

What will The Sympathizer be about?

The Sympathizer is the series adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning 2016 book of the same name. Written by Viet Thanh Nguyen, the novel takes us to Saigon (Vietnam) in 1975 to tell the story of an army General who seeks to flee the country to start a new life in the United States of America.

However, everything is complicated by one of his comrades, who is a Viet Cong informer and is informing on the military’s plan. The story revolves around this man, who lives in a constant diatribe between betrayal and loyalty to his country. HBO Max‘s official synopsis is clearer about what we will be able to see in the series:

“It’s April 1975 and Saigon is in chaos. In his villa, a South Vietnamese army general draws up a list of those who will receive passage aboard the last flights out of the country. The general and his compatriots intend to start a new life in Los Angeles, unaware that one of them, the captain, is reporting on the group to a superior in the Viet Cong. The Sympathizer is the story of this captain: a man raised by an absentee French father and a poor Vietnamese mother, a man who went to college in the United States, but returned to Vietnam to fight for the Communist cause.”

Undoubtedly, both from the original storyline and from what we’ve seen in the trailer, this is a very striking story that has every chance of winning at the Emmys and Golden Globes. And with HBO behind it, it is clear that the quality will be enormous.

The Sympathizer cast and crew

The Sympathizer is an HBO original series co-produced by A24, the producer of Everything Everywhere All At Once and The Whale. The director and showrunner is Park Chan-Wook, one of South Korea’s top filmmakers who has directed Oldboy, The Handmaiden and Thirst. This is his second series after The Drummer Girl, but with so many hits behind him we certainly know he will do a great job.

The cast couldn’t be more striking. The lead is Hoa Xuande, who we have been able to see in the Netflix version of Cowboy Bebop. But alongside him many other stars stand out: the aforementioned Robert Downey Jr. plays several supporting characters who will apparently have a great weight in the plot and even interact with each other; there will also be Sandra Oh (Killing Eve), Fred Nguyen Khan, Toan Le, Vy Le, Alan Trong, Vy Le and Ky Duyen.

Downey Jr.’s Sandra Oh, Fred Nguyen Khan, Toan Le, Vy Le, Alan Trong, Vy Le and Ky Duyen will also participate. Also note that Park Chan-wook (‘The Handmaiden‘) will direct several episodes and also serves as co-showrunner with Don McKellar.

When is The Sympathizer released?

Although the trailer might suggest an early release, The Sympathizer will not be released until 2024 on the platform we will already know as Max. It will feature seven episodes and is expected to be released independently, as Warner Bros. Discovery’s platform usually does.

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