Director Yoo Cheol-ryong partners with Paul Eckstein to create Jamaican gangster film

Director Yoo Cheol-ryong, behind hit drama series “All In” (2003) on SBS and “A Sad Love Song” (2005) on MBC, formed a partnership with Hollywood producer Paul Eckstein to create a Jamaican gangster film.

According to local production studio Story TV on Thursday, director Yoo signed a contract with Eckstein, producer, and writer behind hits such as the Netflix series “Narcos” (2015-17) and American crime drama series “Godfather of Harlem” (2019-) for the cooperation.

“We’ve discovered a hidden story behind Glenn Wawl and Ricky Lee, two legendary figures of the notorious Jamaican gang Shower Posse,” Yoo said, “We are planning to wrap up the scriptwriting process this year and start production.”

According to Yoo, Wawl worked as an agent for Shower Posse, traveling actively between Jamaica and the United States from the 1970s to the ’90s. He is also known to have known Robert “Bob” Marley, a Jamaican musician who is considered to be one of the pioneers of reggae music.

“It is unprecedented for a Korean production studio to collaborate with Hollywood staff to create a project for the global market,” Yoo said, also mentioning that the project’s beginning goes back some seven years. “Because the story behind Shower Posse is so immense after the film production is finished, we are planning to expand the narrative into a drama series.”

Swedish documentary producer Peter Rinaldo and a veteran entertainment attorney, Brad D. Lewis, will also participate in the film as co-producers.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]