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| Henry Lau, left, and Katheryn Prescott pose for pictures during a media conference for the film "A Dog's Journey," Thursday, held at Yongsan CGV, Seoul. Courtesy of CGV Arthouse |
By Lee Gyu-lee
K-pop star Henry Lau is setting his music career aside to take on Hollywood, acting in the family-friendly drama "A Dog's Journey" produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment.
After debuting as a member of K-pop band Super Junior M in 2008, the Chinese-Canadian has been developing his career by starring in multiple reality TV shows here, alongside his music career. But this time, he has made his way to Hollywood, setting foot in the global cinema industry.
"This was a great opportunity for me. I was very surprised to be contacted by such a well-known studio, and felt I should try my best in this movie," Lau said during a media conference for the film, Monday, held at Yongsan CGV in Seoul.
"About halfway into filming, I realized that not many Asians have taken such major roles in Hollywood. So I felt the weight on my shoulders as it felt I was representing Asians. I will do my best to make us proud."
The film is a sequel to 2017's "A Dog's Purpose," based on the best-selling novel "Bailey's Story." The previous film took on the story of the devoted dog Bailey to find meaning and purpose in his life through reincarnation, eventually making his way back to his original owner Ethan. For this one, Bailey (voiced by Josh Gad) runs on a journey of reincarnation with one mission ― to protect Ethan's granddaughter CJ (played by Kathryn Prescott) at all cost.
Lau took the role of Trent, who is a childhood friend of CJ and stands by her side as she goes through her own journey of pursuing her dream in music.
"This is a family-friendly film with a lovely and heartwarming story," Lau noted. "Although the story revolves around dogs, there are stories to show the meaning of family and friendship."
Directed by Emmy-winning Gail Mancuso, the film fills 109 minutes with an entertaining and heartening adventure of Bailey, with a touch of humor, making his way back to CJ after he reincarnates into three different breeds. Alongside the cuteness-overloaded canine's performance, the film adds color to the story with the emotional and personal growth of CJ with Bailey's companionship and devotion that her mother failed to give as she was growing up.
"I think there's a lot of relatable things for everyone," Prescott said. "It's not just about the dogs, but also about human stories that people can relate to."
Lau spoke out on the chemistry they had as playing the childhood best friends in the film.?"Kathryn supported me and made me feel comfortable from the first day (on the set). I don't think I could've worked on the film this well if it wasn't for her, so I really thank her."
The two said they provided strength to each other in their respective performances ― Lau for music and Prescott for acting. "My character had to play guitar and singing but I've never done singing nor the guitar, so I did a lot of practice. Henry helped me with the guitar," Prescott said.
"Trent faces a hard time at one point, so I did a lot of research to act it out. It was very challenging and new as I don't have much experience in acting," Lau said, adding that Prescott helped him through that scene.
Lau also noted that his role in the film is probably different from his playful and outgoing personality that has been shown through TV. "This probably is not a familiar side of me for the audiences. But I hope people set aside their image of me and focus on the role in the film as is shown."
He shared his plans to continue striving and looking for various outlets he can utilize to share his feelings and emotions with audiences. "Music, reality shows, acting, all of them are ways to express my feelings. So I will continue to try to do my best in all those categories," he said.
"If I get another chance to star in Hollywood movies in the future, I am going to do my best to proudly show the best of Henry to the world."
The film will hit local theaters on Sept. 5.
