Drunk Driving Kwak Do-won & Bae Sung-woo, Drug Use Choi Seung-hyun
Firefighter, Lighting Store, Squid Game 2 Released in December
(From left) Actors Kwak Do-won, Bae Sung-woo, Choi Seung-hyun [Photo by Yonhap News, Asia Economy DB]
Films starring actors who had taken a hiatus due to charges of drunk driving and drug use are set to be released one after another next month.
Actor Kwak Do-won is making his return to the screen two years after causing controversy for drunk driving. Distributor By4M Studio announced that the film Firefighter, starring Kwak Do-won, will be released in December. Directed by Kwak Kyung-taek, who made the film Friend (2001), this work is based on a real arson case that occurred in a house in Hongje-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul in 2001. It depicts the story of firefighters who were deployed with the goal of rescuing everyone. Kwak Do-won plays the role of a firefighter in the film.
Firefighter completed filming in 2020 but had difficulty setting a release date due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, in September 2022, Kwak Do-won was caught drunk driving in Jeju City. At the time of the incident, his blood alcohol concentration was 0.158%, more than twice the license cancellation limit of 0.08%. After this became public, the film's release was indefinitely postponed.
Kwak Do-won is not participating in the film's promotional schedule. His exclusive contract with his agency, Mada Entertainment, has expired. The OTT original series Villains, in which he appeared, faced a broadcast ban injunction lawsuit, and KBS temporarily suspended his appearances.
Actor Bae Sung-woo was caught in a drunk driving crackdown in November 2020 after drinking in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. His blood alcohol concentration at the time was above 0.08%, the level for license cancellation. He stepped down from ongoing projects and took a hiatus but returned with the global OTT Netflix series The Eight Show. The film Boston 1947, which he had filmed before the drunk driving incident, was also released, but he did not participate in promotional activities.
Later, he was cast in the new series Lighting Shop, produced by OTT Disney+ and directed by actor Kim Hee-won. The work is adapted from the webtoon of the same name by writer Kang Full. It tells the story of suspicious customers visiting a lighting shop and will be released on the 4th of next month.
The sequel to Squid Game (2021), which caused a worldwide sensation, will be released next month. Director Hwang Dong-hyuk returns to direct the second installment. The casting lineup was announced during the early production stage, and when Choi Seung-hyun (T.O.P), a former member of the group Big Bang, was included, a boycott movement arose online.
Choi Seung-hyun was sentenced to 10 months in prison with a two-year probation after it was revealed during his military service in 2017 that he had smoked marijuana four times?twice with a heated tobacco device and twice with a liquid form?at his home in October 2016. Facing heavy criticism, Choi announced on his social media comments that he was leaving Big Bang. He even hinted at retirement by saying he would not make a comeback in Korea. Despite the backlash following news of his return, Netflix and director Hwang remained silent on the matter and continued filming, with the release scheduled for December.
The news that films featuring actors caught for drunk driving and drug charges will be released one after another next month is being viewed unfavorably by many. There is a prevailing reaction that audiences and viewers find it difficult to fully immerse themselves in works starring actors who have caused social controversy. As resentment grows toward actors who return easily after a short period of self-reflection, there is a consensus forming to actively avoid consuming content featuring these actors.
In the past five years, there have been a total of 75,950 traffic accidents caused by drunk driving. Notably, there were 1,161 deaths and 122,566 injuries, resulting in a casualty rate of 163% relative to the number of accidents. Meanwhile, drug-related crimes are also on the rise. Some express concern that if it becomes easier for actors who have been on hiatus due to drunk driving or drug charges to return, it could lead to moral laxity.
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