“Battleship Island” was caught in a controversy of mistreating 7000 extras, raising rumors of Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo dating 

The movie was once caught in an accusation of major mistreatment towards the extras.

Speaking of Song Joong Ki’s lifetime projects, “The Battleship Island” is one not to be missed. At the time of its premiere, the action movie gained attention for a jaw-dropping budget of 21 million USD and a high-quality production that lived up to its investment. At the same time, however, it was also caught in a controversy of mistreating the extras. 

 A story of mass forced labour, “The Battleship Island” involves a huge number of extra actors. One told that, while the filming lasted for 12 hours, their payment was less than the average. The cast of extras was also sunburnt because they had to film a winter shot in the middle of summer but were not provided sunscreen. More controversially, the production team mocked and ridiculed the darkened image of the extras, stating that it would increase the historical accuracy of the movie. Nonetheless, only the staff and production team of around 40 people were given ice cream on the shooting day while the extras had none. 

In response to the allegation, the director explained: “Over 7000 people worked on this movie and they all suffered, but there was a scene with a medical examination and everyone willingly took off their shirts to film. I was touched by their work ethic.” He added, “All of them put a lot of work into the film. It would have been better if I could have made things easier for them, and I have a lot of regrets about the parts where I was lacking, but I deeply respect them for making this film a good production.”

Apart from the mistreatment allegation, Song Joong Ki was also suspected of dating Song Hye Kyo in secret when two of them appeared in Bali at the same time. When the rumor surfaced, Blossom Entertainment announced: “Song Joong Ki went to Bali with friends before embarking on promotions for his upcoming film ‘Battleship Island’”.  Song Hye Kyo’s agency UAA also stated: “While it is true that Song Hye Kyo went to Bali, she went to attend a meeting for a different project. We have confirmed that she did not meet with Song Joong Ki.” Later, when the former couple went public, the audience was confirmed that they were, indeed, in Bali together. 

Source: K14