Teo Yoo wore a turtle pin to the 96th Academy Awards red carpet, and he revealed the layers of meaning behind it.
Yoo plays Hae Sung in the Oscar-nominated film "Past Lives." When asked about his pin, he said that it symbolizes his late tortoise, Momo.
"My pet tortoise passed away last year, and I had him for 10 years. And it's called Momo after the book by Michael Ende," Yoo told Variety.
In the film, Yoo plays a Korean man who reconnects with his childhood crush, Nora (Greta Lee), who moved to Canada and is now married in New York.
The two decide to meet when Hae Sung takes a trip to New York, and the film chronicles a beautiful look at how complicated rekindled relationships are and the uncomfortable dynamics that can take place.
Yoo also said that he has a fan club in South Korea called Momos. He hasn't gotten a new pet yet and said he will be grieving for a while longer.
"I was in tears for about three days," Yoo said. "I was so dramatic. It's like that moment you have with your pet where you're like, 'Oh, my God, life is over.' And then you remove yourself at the same time as an actor, and you look at the situation and you think, 'Oh, my God, it's so dramatic and comical.'" While Yoo did not receive an Oscar nod, “Past Lives” is up for best picture and best original screenplay.
