'Argylle' actors say director Matthew Vaughn's new spy action thriller 'feels at home here'

Actors Henry Caville, Bryce Dallas Howard and Sam Rockwell from English filmmaker Matthew Vaughn’s upcoming spy action thriller, “Argylle,” began a promotional tour in Seoul, Thursday. Director Vaughn, well-known here for his “Kingsman” spy franchise, was absent due to health reasons.

“Argylle” follows Elly Conway (Howard), a reclusive author who writes best-selling espionage novels in which an agent, Argylle (Caville), unravels a global spy syndicate. But as her work pushes her closer to a real-life spy organization, the line between fiction and reality begins to blur.

The actors said they chose to meet with Korean fans first before anywhere else primarily because of the reception for that film genre in Korea. Press screening for “Argylle” took place Tuesday, the first such screening globally.

“Something that I admire about Korean screens and filmmakers is the risks they take. They're like nothing you have ever seen before. So it makes sense for ‘Argylle’ to premiere here,” Howard told reporters during a press conference at Four Seasons Hotel Seoul on Thursday.

“We feel like -- this may sound strange -- this film feels at home here,” she added.

Rockwell, also praising South Korea for its filmmaking, said that he loves Korean films and that was the reason he wanted to bring a movie here.

It was Caville’s second visit to Seoul in six years. He was last here with “Mission: Impossible -- Fallout.”

In “Argylle,” Caville plays legendary agent Argylle, sporting a flat-top haircut and wearing a sleek spy suit. He said working with Vaughn to create comedic action was tricky.

“Argylle is an idealized spy and I leaned heavily on the script and Matthew’s direction. He will adapt (to things) on the day, so a lot of things were taken from what Matthew says in the morning -- like a dialogue or an action. So keystones (for the film) directly came from Matthew,” Caville told reporters.

“I honestly trust what Matthew does and he is an extraordinary filmmaker who is a lot of fun to work with," Caville continued.

Howard said she felt that director Vaughn was “different.”

“I had the very good fortune of auditioning for Matthew 20 years ago and it was such an incredible experience. I thought wow, this filmmaker is different, he is doing something different,” Howard told reporters. “Many years later, he produced a film called ‘Rocketman’ and invited me to play Elton John’s mother. Later, he just emailed me directly and sent me the script.”

The three actors of “Argylle” were to meet with local fans at a red carpet event on Thursday evening.

The movie hits local theaters on Feb. 7.