South Korean director Na Hong-Jin made his debut at San Diego Comic-Con to preview his latest film, Neon’s alien action flick “Hope.”

Before the action auteur took the stage in Ballroom 20, a sizzling film of his previous work, from his 2008 debut “The Chaser” to “The Yellow Sea” and “The Wailing,” all set to Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train,” played for the rapt audience.

“Hope,” Na said, “is a continuation in terms of the same metaphor and the same meaning, but in terms of style, thought and content it is completely different. Whatever assumptions you have about my premises and my previous work, I would advise you to abandon them completely first.” [this one].”

“Hope” is set in the remote village of Hope Harbor, where a mysterious creature has wreaked havoc. Police and local hunters set out to track the beast and were instead hunted. But not everything is what it seems.

The alien action film stars Hoyeon, who broke out internationally thanks to his Emmy-nominated role in Netflix’s “Squid Game.” Na said it was one of the best decisions he made in bringing the film, a 10-year passion project, to the big screen.

Hwang Jung-min, who leads the international cast, recommended Hoyeon for the role of a tenacious police officer. “She said if you meet her, you realize how special a person she is,” Na said, explaining that she immediately set up a meeting. The director and star read the script over takeout and she quickly accepted the role. “The funny thing is that Hwang Jung-min never actually met her, or even knew her very well.”

Hoyeon appeared in a special video message to introduce two clips that would play exclusively for the Comic-Con audience. The first is a tense sequence in which Hwang and a group of men make their way through the rubble of their city, only to finally come face to face with the gigantic alien stalking them. The second was an extended look at a chase scene in which a played character must jump from his horse to the police car, all while one of the fanged creatures chases him down the road. After the exciting clips wrapped, director Na revealed that these weren’t the most difficult scenes to film: that honor belongs to another chase scene with the characters fleeing through the forest on horseback.

Na also praised Hoeyon’s performance in another scene and shared that he spent six months learning how to drive a car with a manual transmission. “After six months, he got to a point where he could do those drafts at very different and difficult angles as well,” he said. “So she was driving the car and doing all the acting herself, and I think the word ‘difficult’ isn’t enough to describe what was happening in that scene. My cinematographer and I almost died of anxiety just watching it.”

Speaking of dying, during the Q&A portion of the panel, Na joked that “90%” of the film’s characters could die… but he won’t reveal who. The exchange sparked laughter from the crowd.

“Hope,” also starring Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Taylor Russell and Cameron Britton, premiered in competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, where it electrified audiences. Neon hopes to replicate the same success when the film opens in the United States on September 9. At Cannes, Na revealed that she had plans for a sequel.

“I think you can easily imagine this sequel. And there is a script that is already done that I would like to film,” he said during his press conference in Cannes. “So, if I have the opportunity, if possible, I would make a sequel.”