Actor Ko Hyun-jung cast in 'The Mantis' crime thriller

Actor Ko Hyun-jung has been cast in "The Mantis," a new crime thriller on SBS about an unusual collaboration between a police officer and his serial killer mother, the series' PR company Shall We Talk announced Tuesday.

Ko Hyun-jung, left, and Jang Dong-yoon [IOK COMPANY, BH ENTERTAINMENT]

Actor Ko Hyun-jung has been cast in "The Mantis," a new crime thriller on SBS about an unusual collaboration between a police officer and his serial killer mother, the series' PR company Shall We Talk announced Tuesday.

Ko will portray the mother, nicknamed "the mantis," who brutally murdered five men two decades ago, while Jang Dong-yoon has been cast as Ko's son, a police officer who reluctantly teams up with his estranged mother to solve a series of copycat murders.

The film is a Korean remake of the French show "La Mante" and is expected to air next year.

The series will be directed by Byun Young-joo, known for the 2002 romance thriller "Ardor" and the 2012 thriller "Helpless." The screenplay is by Lee Young-jong, the acclaimed writer behind the hit historical film "12.12: The Day."

Yonhap