Premiering on Wednesday, November 4, "The Remarried Empress" is an epic romance fantasy following Navier (Shin Mina), the Eastern Empire's flawless empress, who is served with a divorce by Emperor Sovieshu (Ju Ji-hoon) after he falls for runaway slave Rashta (Lee Seyoung), only to demand approval to remarry Prince Heinrey (Lee Jong-suk) of the Western Kingdom.
"The Remarried Empress" is a legendary intellectual property boasting 2.97 billion cumulative global views across the franchise, which includes the original web novel and the webtoon of the same name based on it. As a romance fantasy, the story features surreal elements such as individuals who possess magical powers or the ability to transform into birds. Consequently, both concern and curiosity have surrounded how faithfully the live-action adaptation would realize the original universe.
The production team put the utmost effort into seamlessly integrating these fantasy concepts into a live-action medium with complete realism.
According to production behind-the-scenes details released on October 26, the crew closely studied the minute movements and appearance of real birds to capture the process of Prince Heinrey transforming into the mystical bird "Queen." VFX Supervisor Kim Shin-chul shared, "We invested the most thought and time into building the overall world," explaining that they focused on breathing lifelike vitality into the creature.
In particular, great effort went into seamlessly infusing actor Lee Jong-suk's unique charm into the look of the bird "Queen." When realizing the visual design of "Queen," the team meticulously factored in delicate harmony with surrounding elements—such as the costumes, hair color, and eye color of Lee Jong-suk portraying Heinrey—striking a balance between fantasy and reality.
The accompanying production stills of sets and costumes also delicately highlight each character's narrative. By contrasting the Eastern Empire's warm color palette evoking abundance and stability with the Western Kingdom's cold and angular architecture, the distinct spaces of the two nations vividly portray the relationships among the characters.
Production Designer Lee Tae-hoon stated, "Our guiding principle was to reflect each character's personality and narrative in their spaces," revealing how they differentiated Navier's quarters—imbued with dignity and solitude through red and yellow tones—from Sovieshu's space, which projects imperial authority through blue and black hues.
Director Cho Su-won also remarked, "Every object was used not merely as a decorative element, but as a tool to heighten the realism and immersion of the world." For Navier, costume details were tightly crafted to mirror shifting relationships and emotions, having her don opulent attire when with Sovieshu and softer, more restrained clothing when with Heinrey.
Bringing the original's imagination to life through striking live-action visuals, the Disney+ original series "The Remarried Empress" will debut Episodes 1 through 4 on Wednesday, November 4, followed by two episodes every Wednesday for a total of 10 episodes.
[Photo=Disney+]
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Sun-ae)