The spin-off of the 2023 hit Netflix movie Kill Boksoon, Mantis (2025), delivers thrilling and mind-altering scenes with its bloody and seat-stealing actions.
The latest Netflix Korean action thriller movie Mantis (2025) unfolds the story of Lee Han-ul, aka Mantis (portrayed by Im Si-wan), after he returns to South Korea right after the fall of MK Entertainment, an assassin entertainment business where he works.
After returning to South Korea, Han-ul met his childhood friend, Shin Jae-yi (Park Gyu-young), who was also a trainee under MK Entertainment before. The two decided to build their own assassin company. But as threats and values clashed, Han-ul and Jae-yi had a conflict with each other.
The film premiered on September 26, 2025, Friday, at 4:00 PM KST. Among the cast are Jo Woo-jin as Dok-jo, Choi Hyun-wook as Benjamin Jo, Bae Gang-hee as Yang Soo-min, Hwang Seong-bin as Puma Lee, and Yoo Su-bin as Kim Dong-yeong.
Apart from the cast of Mantis, two prominent cast members of Kill Boksoon had a special appearance: Sul Kyung-gu as Cha Min-kyu and Jeon Do-yeon as Gil Bok-soon.
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Who is Lee Han-ul and Shin Jae-yi in Mantis?
Lee Han-ul, known as Mantis in the assassin world, is the top assassin after Bok-soon in MK Entertainment. He returned to South Korea for a vacation; however, he learned that the CEO of MK Entertainment, Cha Min-kyu, had died.
Following the death of Min-kyu, agencies in contract-killing tried to recruit him. Han-ul refused all of them and reconnected with his childhood friend and love interest, Shin Jae-yi.
Shin Jae-yi was also one of the trainees in MK Entertainment. However, she left after Han-ul was chosen by the CEOs even with her top skills. With this rejection, Jae-yi left with a wound that always reminded her that she’d never be on top of Han-ul.
Jae-yi Works Together with Han-ul
Even after the unspoken rivalry between Jae-yi and Han-ul, Jae-yi accepted Han-ul’s offer to build a company together. The two built Mantis Entertainment together with Soo-min and Puma Lee.
They accepted contract-killing work at different levels. Level A contracts were handled by Mantis, Level B were assigned to Jae-yi, and Level C were for Soo-min. However, conflict arose between Han-ul and Jae-yi after Han-ul took most of their assignments. Eventually, the two fell apart.
Jae-yi went to Benjamin Jo, the CEO of Meta Software. Jae-yi agreed to work with Benjamin and became the chairwoman of JB Entertainment.
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Who is Benjamin Jo?
Benjamin first appeared on screen when he went to Dok-jo, Han-ul’s former teacher and the other half of MK Entertainment. Benjamin’s curiosity about the world of Mantis and the assassins led him to build his own business.
This is where Jae-yi started to become the chairwoman. As Mantis started to lose his work, she rose to the top of their business. Hence, Mantis found himself working again with MK Entertainment and this time with Dok-jo.
Benjamin stirred chaos between Jae-yi and Dok-jo. Jae-yi initially refused to duel Dok-jo, but Benjamin sent a knife to Dok-jo on Jae-yi’s behalf.
Han-ul Coming in Between Dok-jo and Jae-yi
To enrage Jae-yi, Dok-jo asked Han-ul to kill Bae-soo, Jae-yi’s former colleague. But to stop the duel between the two, Han-ul presented a fake funeral for Bae-soo. In addition, he also asked Jae-yi to back out from the duel.
However, the fake killing of Bae-soo reached Dok-jo. This enraged him and made him angry with Mantis for lying about Bae-soo’s death. Because of this, the duel between Dok-jo and Jae-yi became a three-way battle, including Han-ul.
Although Han-ul tried to form an alliance with Jae-yi, he was surprised to see that Jae-yi was also trying to kill him during their clash.
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Who Won Between Han-ul, Dok-jo, and Jae-yi?
The clash between Han-ul, Dok-jo, and Jae-yi promised an intense scene. Not only with the stunts they pulled or the tools they used in fighting—the three had this eagerness to win. After the hits and wounds they got from each other, the fight became brutal.
Even though Han-ul was severely injured, he managed to show his skills and the reason why he was called “Mantis” in the first place. Han-ul made Dok-jo helpless, but he refused to kill him and just wanted to end the battle. Dok-jo said that this was the problem with him—he always pitied other people.
Hence, Jae-yi stepped in and killed Dok-jo. Their clash ended with Han-ul walking away.
Mantis Ending Explained and Review
After the death of Dok-jo, Jae-yi took over MK Entertainment with the help of Benjamin. However, Jae-yi secretly hired Mantis to kill Benjamin. Possibly, this was her revenge for stirring a fight between her and Dok-jo.
The overall ambiance of the film is really intriguing. With the spice and thrills that Kill Boksoon (2023) brought, I had high expectations for Mantis. And the film did not disappoint—the cast, the stunts, and the scenes were all chef’s kiss.
The ending of the film was satisfying. Personally, Benjamin was an irritating character every time he appeared on screen. Thus, his death was justifiable.
The character that truly made me in awe was Jae-yi—a woman’s rage is something else. Moreover, I believe that proving her worth is something every woman should do. Although I appreciate the goofy personality of Mantis and his top-notch ability, I view him as someone so narcissistic.
If you like to watch a film with a mix of thriller, action, and comedy, then Mantis suits you best. The film is available on Netflix.
You can also watch Kill Boksoon (2023), also available on Netflix.
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Source: Netfix Korea, The Review Geek, Lifestyle Asia
