With sales totaling ten million copies...
W is Korea's top webtoon series.
Author of the popular W, Oh Seong-moo,
is afraid of his cartoon's main character, Kang Chul, who came to life.
Who are you?
So he tries to kill Kang Chul.
-Research some poisons. -Chul drags Oh Seong-moo's daughter
Oh Yeon-joo
into the cartoon world...
-Are you okay? -...and she ends up saving him.
-Why are my emotions important? -Because you're the main character.
KANG CHUL, THE MAIN CHARACTER
Through Yeon-joo, Chul finds out that he's the main character in a cartoon.
WHO KILLED HIS FAMILY?
Chul comes out into reality, Yeon-joo's world.
Mr. Oh Seong-moo?
He goes to the author Oh Seong-moo.
-There is no real killer. -Are you serious right now?
-That's how fiction is. -Think of a solution.
You are just an illusion.
You're nothing. You're just a character I created.
Why are you continuing the story by getting my daughter involved?
You're just a character. Do you understand?
You're just something I created!
If you call an ambulance right away,
he might live if he's lucky.
Mr. Oh?
Miss!
POLICE
What did you do?
Miss! Stop!
I'm here at the scene.
There's been a shooting.
-Mr. Oh. -The victim is injured badly.
-Dad! -Mr. Oh.
Dad!
Gosh. Look at this mess.
-Su-yeong, pick up the phone. -Okay.
Yes, hello?
Yes, this is Yeon-joo's mom's phone.
What?
What? Okay, thank you.
Who was it?
It was a guy named Su-bong, who works for Seong-moo.
Why would he call me?
He says Seong-moo is in critical condition.
They're taking him to Yeon-joo's hospital.
Why?
He got shot.
We found him awake with a gunshot wound in his chest.
His daughter is a doctor, so we're moving him to her hospital.
Dad, we're almost there. Please hang on just a little more.
You'll be fine. It's nothing serious. Don't be afraid.
We can't get a pulse or BP.
The ECG shows ventricular fibrillation.
No. Massage his heart!
-How far is the hospital? -We are two kilometers away.
Move!
Please.
EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTER
Yeon-joo, what's going on?
Please move him to the trauma room. Hurry!
-What happened? -Professor.
He has a gunshot wound. He had been given him CPR.
The chest X-ray shows massive hemothorax on the left side.
I inserted a chest tube. He lost more than a liter of blood,
and the bleeding isn't stopping.
I gave him a lot of fluid, so his pulse and BP returned,
but the echo showed that
the bullet got lodged onto the left ventricle apex.
Book an operating room
and get the cardiothoracic surgery team ready.
Send him up now.
Move it!
Yeon-joo, leave the room.
I'm staying.
You'll only put massive pressure on me. Don't you trust me?
-Watch his vitals carefully. -Okay.
We'll perform a sternotomy first,
and we will do a repair after checking the wound.
If we can't, we'll start pumping blood to the heart.
Let's begin. Scalpel.
You're still here.
MAIN OPERATING ROOM
Chul was there.
I saw him. It was definitely Chul.
He was holding a gun.
Where did he go?
I don't know.
It was too hectic.
The police asked if I saw the shooter, but I couldn't say.
I didn't know what to say.
So that's why he was like that.
There was a reason Mr. Oh wanted to kill Chul.
He knew from the start that this would happen.
Why...
Why did you save Chul back then? You should've let him die.
This happened because you saved him that night.
He's just a cartoon character.
Yeon-joo!
Yeon-joo.
Fortunately, the bullet is still in here.
Get me the 3-0 prolene suture, please.
Visitation has ended. If you're a patient, the ER is...
TO YEON-JOO
Please give this to her.
Who?
Dr. Oh Yeon-joo of Cardiothoracic Surgery.
Okay.
Good afternoon. We have breaking news.
Popular webtoon artist of W,
Oh Seong-moo, is currently in critical condition after being shot last night.
After being shot by an unidentified man at around 11 p.m.,
he was immediately brought to a hospital, where he underwent an operation.
According to the police, he has yet to regain consciousness.
Mr. Oh Seong-moo is a star cartoonist,
whose most famous work, W, was first published in 2007.
Hey, shouldn't we call Mr. Oh's daughter?
We can't talk to her about that at a time like this.
-He's fighting for his life. -That's why we should tell her.
This can be an evidence.
This is too strange.
Are you okay? Are you not hurt?
He's a monster.
I didn't know it at first,
but I had created a monster.
So I decided to be the judge of him.
I never should've created him in the first place.
How can I let him be? I'm about to be eaten alive.
You should go get some rest. I'll stay with him.
Where's my mom?
She just went home with her sister.
I've sent them off in a taxi.
Good.
Thank you.
Go and rest.
The on-call room is empty.
INTENSIVE CARE UNIT
-Hello? -Yeon-joo, this is Mr. Park, the editor.
We met earlier at the hospital.
Oh, hello.
How is Mr. Oh?
He's still in critical condition, but he didn't get worse.
I see.
Look, I'm not sure if I should talk about this at a time like this,
but I need to check something.
What is it?
It's about W.
A new chapter came in, and we were wondering who sent it.
I'm sure it wasn't Mr. Oh,
but it does look like his drawing. So do you know who sent it?
Is there any chance Mr. Oh finished it beforehand?
-The content seemed a little strange. -When was it sent?
Early this morning.
We only saw it a while ago.
We haven't uploaded it online yet.
I thought we should check first. This may cause an issue.
May I see it?
THE NEW CHAPTER OF W
DO YOU WANT TO OPEN THIS FILE?
OPEN
W BY OH SEONG-MOO
KANG CHUL, THE GENERATION'S DEFENDER OF JUSTICE
WILL CHUL FIND OUT WHO KILLED HIS FAMILY?
KANG CHUL, THE GENERATION'S DEFENDER OF JUSTICE
TO YEON-JOO
Dr. Oh.
What is it?
-Is Dad-- -No. It's not that.
It's this.
I should've given it to you earlier. I didn't know you were in here.
Someone left it for you.
I'll just put this here.
Who...
is this from?
I'm not sure. I wasn't there when it arrived.
TO YEON-JOO
THIS IS THE MOST LOGICAL ENDING FOR THE MAIN CHARACTER
WHO BECAME A MURDERER WHILE SEARCHING FOR A MURDERER
TO YEON-JOO
This is the most logical ending for the main character
who became a murderer while searching for a murderer.
LIFE IS SOMETIMES...
THE END
Hello. Someone please come here!
He opened his eyes!
Hey! He opened his eyes!
Nurse!
There are ten surveillance cameras in the vicinity of the house,
but none of them recorded anything at all.
He should've been caught on camera if he went inside anywhere,
but there was nothing.
We haven't found the gun either.
What's very strange is that...
the bullet extracted during surgery disappeared.
Someone must have stolen it.
Is there anyone you suspect in the hospital?
I'm not sure.
This case is quite strange.
Since your father woke up, it'll be revealed soon.
He's the most trustworthy witness.
Hello? Did you look into it?
Dad, can you hear me?
There's something you should know.
Kang Chul...
Kang Chul killed himself.
The scene where he shoots you and then drowns in Han River,
including your conversation, appeared in the cartoon.
The editors saw it already.
They'll report it to the police soon.
We should try to cover up what happened together.
If we can't explain the cartoon's content,
the situation will get more complicated,
so Yeon-joo and I had a discussion.
The police concluded that the attack on cartoonist Oh Seong-moo
was actually his attempted suicide.
While drawing the last chapter of his cartoon that ran seven years,
Oh was suffering from extreme stress and depression.
On the day of the incident,
intoxicated and unable to decide on the ending,
he thus made an extreme decision.
The ending of Oh Seong-moo's popular webtoon, W,
was revealed this morning.
The ending was unexpected
and completely different from what people hoped for.
-Many were shocked and angry. -What is this?
It ends with the main character, Kang Chul,
killing the artist who created him and jumping into the Han River.
Many people posted complaints and called to protest,
causing the site to crash temporarily.
Avid readers are extremely disappointed
and pressuring the artist to change the ending.
They have started a petition to bring Kang Chul back to life.
Dr. Park, could you sign here?
-Are you busy tonight? -Yes.
Then let's go have a drink.
-Pardon? -This webtoon is driving me nuts.
Let's go.
Okay.
I heard Mr. Oh was discharged from the hospital.
He was back at home because he hated hospitals.
He should still get treated at the hospital.
I'm taking time off and staying with him.
I see.
-It must be difficult for you. -It's all right.
It's fine since I haven't been with him in a while anyway.
I see.
Did you hear?
People are still angry even though it's been a month.
They want Kang Chul revived.
Did you hear about the petition that's circulating?
Really?
I don't go online much these days.
I see.
Actually, our producer Mr. Seo is going through a hard time.
-The movie is the biggest problem. -We're in serious trouble.
There's not much excitement anymore.
No one's interested in watching the movie version
since they know the main character dies.
Since Mr. Oh's been discharged from the hospital,
we thought he might have changed his mind.
No.
-Does he want to change the ending? -He wants to retire.
He's quite old,
and he had worked hard until now.
Please be understanding.
Certainly, I understand.
He must have been very stressed out,
but I'm just asking for a few more scenes.
-If he draws a couple more-- -He won't.
He won't draw again. He can't.
He's gone through
a lot of difficulties than you can imagine,
so I can't persuade him.
I'm very sorry.
Yeon-joo, I'm very disappointed to be honest.
The main character's death
isn't cool or touching at all. How could he
have such an unfortunate death?
It's just a cartoon.
Pardon?
He's just a character in a cartoon.
Don't get too emotional over a mere cartoon.
You'll forget it soon.
Dad, I'm home.
Yes. I'm in the bathroom.
I was with Mr. Park just now.
What did he say?
He finds it hard to give up especially because of the movie.
I turned down his offer. He will give up now.
That's good.
Yeon-joo...
Yeon-joo.
Are you here to pick up your things? I haven't finished packing them yet.
That's not it. Come here.
I got a call from the police.
They said they found a drowned body a few days ago,
and it looks like it's been about a month since the person died.
They only found it now because it was entangled in seaweeds.
The time of death is close, and they found it
near Hangang Bridge.
The description is also...
I think it's Chul.
Yeon-joo!
-Yes? -What are you doing? We should go.
-Okay. -They're cremating him this afternoon.
Hurry up. Come on.
-Okay. -We'll be stuck in traffic. Hurry.
What if it's really Chul?
I asked them to call me if they found anything,
but even if it's Chul, we can't really take his body.
What would we say if they ask us who it is?
We should leave it as an unidentified body.
We can't bury him or not bury him.
That's...
-You said you're a friend of Mr. Park? -What?
Yes. I am his friend.
Please come this way.
Since it's summer and has been a while, it's severely decomposed.
It may be hard to see.
This may be too shocking, so you can just check the document.
I'm a doctor.
I'll be fine. Please show me.
I see. Okay.
Please check his clothes. Is this what he was wearing?
It's not him.
This person is wearing a ring. It's not him.
Are you sure he wasn't wearing a ring on the day he disappeared?
This is not the person we're looking for.
Definitely not.
Here you go.
What about you? Are you not eating?
I don't have an appetite. I'll eat later if I get hungry.
You should eat your meals on time.
You'll get sick.
I know.
It's become a habit since I started working at the hospital.
Where did you and Su-bong go this afternoon?
I think you lied about going grocery shopping.
The police called and said they found a drowned body.
But it wasn't him.
Why can't we find him?
It's been over a month now.
I think he went back into the cartoon as he died.
Don't you think so?
He's from the cartoon, so that makes sense.
I wonder.
I'm not sure either.
I want to ask you something, Dad.
If it says "the end" in the cartoon,
what happens next?
Does the world inside it end just like that?
Or do they continue their lives inside it?
The ending is always the same in fairy tales.
"And they lived happily ever after."
Do you think they really lived a happy life until they died?
Or do they stop existing on the last page of the book?
Yeon-joo.
Do you want me to draw something
and bring Chul back to life like everyone else?
No. I didn't mean that.
You don't have any reason to do that, Dad.
I have reasons I can't do it and reasons I won't.
The police came to see me last week.
You were not home then.
Put it here.
We found it on the rooftop of a motel and kept it as evidence.
Since the case is closed now,
we brought it because you might need it.
They brought my tablet that I had left at the motel.
Die!
It seems the police went to the motel and took it as evidence.
They brought it back since the case is closed.
Is that so?
I didn't know that.
When I got it back,
I thought about bringing him back to life.
He didn't shoot me right
despite never missing his target even by an inch.
He couldn't kill me on the spot.
No. I should say he didn't.
I know Chul better than anyone else.
THE END
Since he gave me a chance to live,
I thought I should do the same for him.
THE END
But...
THE END
I couldn't change it.
So I gave up.
Why couldn't you change it?
I'm not sure.
He and I both betrayed each other.
Maybe we can't turn things back again.
That's what I think.
I don't think my drawings will work anymore.
I see.
That's the reason I can't draw it.
And I won't draw it
because of you.
Do you know why you kept getting dragged back into that world?
No.
I think I know now.
I realized it when I saw that he had left his suicide note with you.
You became one of the main characters of the cartoon.
In other words, you became the heroine.
That's why I should end it here.
You're a real person.
You're my daughter
and your mom's daughter.
Don't you think so?
Yes.
So let's leave the ending of W at that.
But...
what does "The end" really mean?
Did So-hee find Chul's body
and have a proper funeral for him or...
is he still
floating in the cold water?
Will he...
drift endlessly,
forever alone?
We still have time. Let's get some coffee.
Just get some inside. The line will be long.
Let's do that, then.
We're at the airport and about to go in now.
Take care of yourself.
Call me as soon as you arrive.
The flight takes about 12 hours, right?
Right! Dad, don't drink.
You must never drink. Okay?
Not even one sip. I'm going to call and check.
And don't forget to take your medicine.
Have a safe trip. Make sure to call me.
Okay.
-Dr. Park! -Is your father going somewhere?
He's going to New Zealand.
He's already going on a long-distance trip? That's not good.
I couldn't stop him.
Plus, he's not going there to travel, but to rest.
-His friend lives there. -I see.
-You managed to wash your hair. -Pardon?
What are you wearing today?
What are you doing?
Let's go. I'm taking you out.
Take me out? But I'm okay.
-I'm not hungry at all. -Meet me in the lobby in five.
Put on some lipstick and wear perfume.
What's wrong with him now?
Dr. Park, this is not cool. You didn't even warn me.
-How can I go on a blind date now? -You're a substitute.
Substitutes should be ready all the time.
But I don't want to be a substitute.
You don't have a boyfriend.
I checked and it seems nobody has a boyfriend.
But you're the only one who's washed her hair. That's why you're the sub.
-Consider yourself lucky. -I shouldn't have washed my hair.
Why did I wash my hair? I never wash my hair.
Stop the nonsense and sit!
Okay.
How long has it been since you've been on a blind date?
-A blind date? -Yes.
-Was it six months? -Goodness.
Your father felt so bad for you
that he put in a lot of romance at the end of his work.
Isn't that it? He wanted to give you vicarious satisfaction.
He probably did.
He's here.
Isn't he handsome?
-Handsome? -He's so manly.
Professor, this is--
He graduated in the top of his class in law school.
Besides, nobody can be tall, handsome, and smart at the same time.
At least he has one.
There might be a man with all three.
Who? Me?
-Doctor. -Here.
-Have a seat. Yes. -Have you been well?
This is Oh Yeon-joo, a Cardiothoracic Surgery resident.
You can introduce yourself.
Hello. My name is Kim Pung-u.
Hello.
You're totally my type.
Sorry.
Your standards are so low.
It's easy for me to find a girl to introduce you.
He's humble, too!
-Am I? -Of course.
You must be happy.
I've never seen her so happy.
KANG SEOK-BEOM
Was washing your hair a jackpot or a bust?
I need to use the ladies room.
Be careful.
-She's really pretty. -Is she all right?
-I think she's really into you. -You think so?
I felt it a little, too.
-It's a bust. -I knew it.
Mad Dog must've really gone mad.
I suddenly came to my senses.
I'll use this blind date as a starting point
and work really hard from now on. I'm totally motivated.
Yes. I haven't been dating for a while.
Yes. You've been too busy being a good daughter.
I'll work until the moment I lose the lottery.
Hey, you have work to do too.
You have to set me up with one person a week for a month.
Am I indebted to you?
How can I set you up with one person a week? I'm too busy.
-Hello? -Hello?
Hello?
What's up with the sound? Hello?
I read it, too.
So that Oh Yeon-joo in it is--
It's his daughter. He used his daughter's name.
His daughter? That's amazing.
He got lucky. He was never going to be saved.
But he was lucky enough to meet the greatest doctor.
If it weren't for me... What is this?
What's up with your hair?
Please lend me your phone.
-What happened to you? -Please lend me your phone.
You can use my phone.
Did you get doused with water? Did the pipe explode in the bathroom?
TO BE CONTINUED
Thank you.
-Hey! Where are you going? -Bye.
Su-bong.
Draw the eyes a little bigger.
Ma'am.
If the eyes get any bigger, they'll take over half the face.
-It's better to make the nose big-- -Shut up.
You haven't adjusted to my style yet.
The characters in my work should have eyes as big as these.
They cannot escape from the world of emotions.
Keep drawing.
Still, isn't it better to make the nose bigger?
I'll get the door. Make the eyes this big.
Expand them.
Who is it?
She's a loony.
-Hello. -Is Su-bong here?
Who are you? Goodness.
What happened to you?
-Is it raining outside? -Let's talk.
Wait. Let me ask... I'll be right back.
What's going on? Could you let go of my arm first?
What brings you here?
Did they find his body?
No. Please save Kang Chul.
-What? -Please save him.
He can still be saved.
What do you mean? Isn't it over?
Time didn't pass. It had stopped.
"The end" meant that the time stopped in the last scene.
He's still in the river right now suspended in time.
-How do you know? -I saw him.
I saw him in the water a moment ago.
So you went into the water.
Yes, I saw it just now.
I don't know.
I couldn't get a hold of Mr. Oh.
So you're saying the editors didn't change it?
I don't know. I'm not in charge of it either.
Mr. Park is on vacation, but people keep calling
and posting messages.
What do I do?
It's "to be continued, and not "the end"? Did I read it wrong?
-That's awesome. -I look forward to what's next.
No more nonsense please.
Did the author come back to his senses? Bring Kang Chul back to life.
You must have gotten better, Mr. Oh.
I believed in you despite what the others said. You can do it.
That's not possible because Mr. Oh went to New Zealand.
I'll call him in the morning since he'll arrive then.
I haven't called him yet.
Okay.
I fixed the tablet my dad used.
Can you use it to draw?
Are you sure Mr. Oh didn't do it?
He's on a plane right now, so how could he?
He said he couldn't fix it either.
Are you saying "The end" changed to
"To be continued" by itself? Why?
I have no idea.
I can't understand this. The story is over.
He doesn't get killed without context. He kills himself willingly,
so why won't it end?
There must be another reason it can't end yet.
Another reason it can't end? What?
Wait a minute.
There's someone over there.
What are you talking about?
Isn't he going to jump?
No way.
-Let's go over there. -Okay.
Excuse me, sir.
Why are you standing there? It's dangerous.
Excuse me, sir.
What's the reason?
-I'm asking what the reason is. -Su-bong.
The reason isn't important right now. Saving Chul is.
This means we must save the main character.
He can't save himself, so it can't continue,
but he has no will to live.
-That's why we have to save him. -What's with you?
Time didn't pass.
It stopped at the last moment,
so anything is possible. Look.
That's right.
We should draw a police boat in the first scene.
A police boat happens to pass by Hangang Bridge right at that moment.
Draw a diver on the boat as well.
If the diver jumps right in, he can be rescued.
His death isn't confirmed. We only see him in the water,
so we can wake him up.
We can assume that he hasn't died yet.
Wait a minute. Just a moment.
You're not telling me to draw it, are you?
-You're the only one. You can-- -No, I can't.
I don't think it'll work.
I mean I can't do it.
It's Mr. Oh's work.
I can make it look similar, but it won't be the same.
I've told you many times that there's a difference,
-so talk to Mr. Oh when he comes back. -He won't do it.
He won't ever draw it because of me.
He's afraid I'll get dragged in again.
That's right! You just came back from the Han River, didn't you?
I shouldn't draw it.
-You escaped from jail last time. -Who cares about that right now?
Can't you understand me?
There's nothing else more important than saving Chul right now.
Sure.
It's true that Chul shot Dad,
and it can't be forgiven.
It's true that this cursed cartoon should end,
and it's also true that I shouldn't get dragged in again,
but Dad is still alive.
He got much better and is on a trip with his friends.
You and I are both fine as if nothing happened.
And the readers?
They'll only be temporarily upset.
He's just a cartoon character after all.
However, only Chul
has been blaming himself of being a murderer in that cold river
for over two months already.
Isn't that cruel?
And...
what about me?
I think all of this happened because of me.
Yeon-joo...
I'm asking you to save him first.
I beg you.
Goodness.
Yeon-joo, I don't think it will work even if I draw it. I'm not Mr. Oh.
You worked with him for three years.
This is Dad's,
where everything first started.
Fine! I'll try it.
I'll try it. My goodness.
Wait a second.
Gosh, my eyes hurt.
Why isn't it working?
This is not working!
It's been an hour since I finished, but nothing happened.
If it's working, something should change
like the next scene drawing itself or something.
I told you I couldn't do it.
This isn't my work. I was only his assistant.
If it were possible by having anyone draw it,
a fan would've brought him back already.
Just ask Mr. Oh to do it when he comes back.
Dad won't do it especially after finding out what happened today.
Yeon-joo. Please.
There's no other way than having Mr. Oh draw it.
I'm getting exhausted.
Is there any food?
I'm hungry.
Dad won't ever do it.
I'm cooking some ramen. Do you want some?
She doesn't even answer me
after making me do all the work.
Why did Mr. Oh leave...
-I don't want ramen. -Forget the ramen.
Do you remember?
I think I heard it from Mr. Oh a really long time ago.
Something about W.
That you...
She's here!
The one who broke out is here!
Over here!
LIFE IS SOMETIMES...
-Someone jumped off. -He fell in the water.
-Hurry and rescue him. -Okay.
Freeze! Don't move!
THE END
TO BE CONTINUED
I brought you back to life.
From now on, let's think of this as a sequel we're making together.
Who are you to decide what to do with my life?
Because I love you!
Married? Not going to get married, but we're already married?
I'm giving up on finding the real killer.
The real killer is looking for me.
This isn't the sequel I was hoping for.
I was afraid I would never see you again.
Subtitle translation by Jeong Lee