Anne Hathaway’s 2015 sleeper hit comedy The Intern is getting a Korean remake backed by Warner Bros. Nancy Meyers wrote and directed The Intern, which focused on the friendship that forms between a retiree who takes an internship at a growing fashion company to stay busy, played by Robert De Niro, and its driven CEO, played by Hathaway.
The Intern made just under $195 million worldwide. South Korea actually had the biggest international audience for the movie, grossing $24 million in the country. Now, Korean audiences are going to get their own version, backed by Warner Bros. Discovery as part of a deal with Asia production company JOAT Films, owned by Jack Nguyen.
Production on the Korean remake of The Intern is now underway, with Choi Min-sik taking on De Niro’s role, while Han So-hee plays the role originated by Hathaway. Choi is best known for playing the main character of Dae-su Oh in the action classic Old Boy. Han has starred in Netflix’s Korean crime drama My Name and the Disney+ series Soundtrack #1.
|
The Intern’s Top International Box Office Markets |
Total Gross |
|
South Korea |
$24 million |
|
Japan |
$14 million |
|
Taiwan |
$7.6 million |
|
Australia |
$6.7 million |
|
Mexico |
$5.9 million |
Kim Do-young directs this Korean version of The Intern, likely largely following the plot of the original Nancy Meyers movie, though set in Korea instead of the original movie’s New York location.
What This Means For Warner Bros.
As mentioned, this is part of a new deal between Warner Bros. and JOAT, with The Intern remake marking the first movie of that partnership. With the deal, Nguyen will develop Asia-focused films for Warner Bros., with a particular focus on turning Warner Bros.’s IP into local-language reimaginings.
This deal with South Korea adds to a big year that Warner Bros. is having at the country’s box office. Warner Bros. movies have made more than $58 million at the South Korean box office in 2025 as of writing, including Brad Pitt’s F1 earning more than $38 million.
Our Take On The Intern Korean Remake
Hollywood has taken plenty of popular and/or acclaimed international movies and remade them in English for US audiences, so no complaints about the shoe being on the other foot with The Intern.
Meyers movie certainly is one that feels like it could translate well with a foreign-language remake. This story of two individuals from different generations bonding and learning lessons from each other is something that should work in any culture. We already have proof of that based on how well the original version of The Intern was received.
