Actor Yoo Teo rejoiced at novelist Han Kang winning the Nobel Prize in Literature. He congratulated her by quoting a scene from a film in which he starred.

On the 11th, Yoo Teo posted a screenshot from the movie “Past Lives” (directed by Celine Song) on his official SNS. He shared a line spoken by Na-young (played by Moon Seung-ah) to Hae-sung (played by Im Seung-min).

In the film, Na-young, before her sudden immigration to Canada, said, “Korean people can’t win the Nobel Prize in Literature,” indicating her dream of becoming a world-renowned writer by leaving her home country.

She later moves to New York in the United States. She lives her life as a playwright under the name Nora, shifting her goals from the Nobel Prize in Literature to the Pulitzer and Tony Awards.

This scene was revisited as writer Han Kang became the first Korean to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. It is also the first time an Asian female writer has achieved this honor.

Yoo Teo humorously responded, referencing Na-young’s line, “Because Koreans can’t win the Nobel Prize in Literature,” by saying, “You should have stayed in Korea.”

The Swedish Academy earlier selected Korean writer Han Kang as this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature recipient on the 10th. They recognized her for confronting historical trauma through her numerous works.

She emerged as a representative Korean author by winning the Man Booker International Prize for her work ‘The Vegetarian.’ Last year, she received the Prix Médicis étranger for “The White Book.”

As soon as the award was announced, bookstores around the world were filled with Han Kang’s works. That morning, her books dominated the top 10 bestseller lists on online bookstores such as Kyobo Bookstore and Yes24.

Meanwhile, “Past Lives” tells the story of childhood first loves Na-young and Hae-sung meeting again in New York after 24 years and reflecting on their connection. Yoo Teo and Greta Lee starred in the film.

<Photo source = ‘Past Lives’ still cuts, SNS screenshots>