Can artists return after a big scandal?
The dramatic development of Kim Seon-ho’s case is one of a kind. The controversy over actor Kim Seon-ho’s private life seems to take people on a roller coaster. At first, he was thought to be a terrible person, but soon after, evidence on his defense spread, and again, a fierce exposing war continued, and Kim Seon-ho is making his comeback.
In this era of 5G, the collapse of the top big stars in the second half of this year is quite different from the controversy of previous top celebrities. It is no exaggeration to say that Kim Seon-ho’s controversy is drawing a line dividing celebrities’ scandals into before and after.
Now, is it right for us to apply different standards to the criminal acts of stars and controversy over their privacy? What is the weight of fame? Let’s look at the development of Kim Seon-ho’s scandal, which is 180 degrees different from previous scandals in the industry, in the current situation that has left numerous stories to discuss.
▶ Kim Seon-ho setting a new comeback record
It was a comeback that no one expected. Just 15 days after the revelation of his ex-girlfriend A, Kim Seon-ho officially announced the resumption of his activities with the movie “Sad Tropics.”
“Sad Tropics” is a new film directed by Park Hoon-jung, the Chungmuro master of film noir, who directed “New World,” “The Witch” and “Night in Paradise.” It depicts what happens when a boxer-wannabe boy with a Korean father and a Filipino mother comes to Korea in search of his father who left him and meets bad guys.
In fact, rumors spread among entertainment officials that director Park Hoon-jung had reserved the decision for Kim Seon-ho’s departure for two weeks. The final decision on whether to keep him or not was made based on the trend of public opinion.
As many celebrities involved in scandals have disappeared helplessly, many thought that director Park Hoon-jung would not be able to go against the trend. However, Kim Seon-ho’s case was clearly different from before, so director Park Hoon-jung made a bold move to keep the original cast.
Many people in the entertainment industry found this unexpected. The scandal was supposed to end after Kim Seon-ho issued his apology, but everything went back to square one due to the sudden appearance of the seaweed soup issue. As Dispatch reported the text conversation between Kim Seon-ho and his junior, advocacy for the actor seemed to lose strength a little. Regarding the claim saying Kim Seon-ho cooked seaweed soup for his ex after her abortion and the ‘evidence’ which is said to be Kim Seon-ho’s remark about seaweed soup on an entertainment program, netizens poured out criticisms, saying, “Do you really want to mention something that would remind you of the abortion on a variety show?”
After that, while many staff who worked with Kim Seon-ho gave testimonies to prove the actor’s good personality, some did refute it. This is because the Youtuber who dug up A’s past issues also appeared and initiated this battle.
How many years will it take Kim Seon-ho to ‘pay for his wrongdoing’? Cool entertainment industry vs. enthusiastic fans
The one that is most sensitive to scandals is the advertising industry, and they are showing their reactions in the coolest way. As of November 1st, Kim Seon-ho’s ads for the mask and e-commerce companies have been revived. When the scandal broke out, the advertisers were the first to take down the actor’s images. An official from the advertising industry analyzed, “It seems like the private life issues, especially relationship between a man and a woman, have been considered to a greater extent.”
However, the controversy has not yet cooled down. Kim Seon-ho is now not holding the key to this case, which has been buzzing online and offline for nearly two weeks. His ex-girlfriend – A, and her legal representative Choi Sun law firm also remained silent. The people who were directly involved in the scandal are nowhere to be seen, but the confusion is still continuing.
According to previous cases, the scandal normally ended with an apology or announcement of withdrawal from the actor. Now, it seems like fans are the ones who decide on how this continuing will spread and end. Recently, Kim Seon-ho’s fans made posts to protest against the shopping mall run by A and even signed a petition to the KBS Viewers’ Rights Center to demand the suspension of a broadcast of KBS2’s “Entertainment Company Live” that discussed Kim Seon-ho’s scandal.
However, the most important point here is that “the right to make things be forgotten”. No matter how unfair it may be to an actor, who earns a living by his image, there’s no good in being caught up in negative issues. After becoming the center of attention due to a scandal, the best way for the actor to quickly solve the case is to forget about it himself.
An official in the entertainment industry said, “If people want to help Kim Seon-ho, it’s better to not create any more news. The faster the time for a perfect silence to come, the sooner Kim Seon-ho will rise to fame and receive recognition again.”
