Crowds Gather Again During Celebrity Departures
Some Citizens Complain About Blocked Passageways and Inconvenience
As fans flocked to the airport to catch a glimpse of an idol group departing, causing passageways to be blocked, airport users strongly protested, sparking renewed controversy over celebrities causing inconvenience at airports. On the 31st of last month, several online communities posted videos showing Sion, a member of the NCT Wish group, departing for Shanghai, China via Incheon International Airport on the 29th for an overseas fan signing event. The video showed a swarm of fans following Sion all the way to the departure duty-free zone, taking photos like a cloud of people.
SM Entertainment's rookie girl group 'Hearts to Hearts' departing for Japan through Gimpo Airport. Reporters and fans are gathered in a huge crowd. Online community
In the midst of this, Sion’s bodyguard, with an annoyed tone, said "Please come out," clearing the way. At that moment, a passing airport user loudly shouted, "What makes you think you can yell at passengers and speak informally? Do you think people don’t know how to yell just because they don’t?" Besides Sion, on the same day, the 8-member rookie group Hearts2Hearts from SM Entertainment, who departed through Gimpo International Airport for a schedule in Japan, experienced a similar situation. At the airport, fans and reporters followed Hearts2Hearts toward the departure gate, taking photos, while bodyguards tried to protect the members’ safety.
The video posted online at the time showed fans crowding around Hearts2Hearts, holding large cameras known as 'daepo' and mobile phone cameras. Additionally, a citizen shouted in anger, saying a child was almost hurt, and expressed displeasure with the words, "We also have to depart, you ×××."
As these videos continued to surface, netizens’ opinions on celebrities’ airport use became divided online. Many netizens commented, "They must have been so frustrated to curse," "Honestly, celebrities are causing inconvenience. I understand the person who shouted," "What if they block people who are in a hurry and cause them to miss their flights?" "Are celebrities really some kind of nobility?" On the other hand, some netizens responded, "What wrong did the celebrities do? It’s the agency’s fault for not controlling the scene," "They tried to create exclusive entrances because of incidents like this, but everyone criticized it as special treatment," and so on. Meanwhile, one netizen pointed to the culture of excessive attention to celebrities during arrivals and departures, including sponsorship of their outfits, as a cause.
Some celebrities appear at the airport wearing outfits sponsored by major fashion brands when departing overseas. To facilitate this, agencies share the departure schedule with reporters to take 'airport fashion' photos. Because of this, not only reporters but also fans become aware of the schedule and flock to the airport. Although celebrity-related disturbances at airports are not new, no solution has yet been found. After the controversy over actor Byun Woo-seok’s excessive security at Incheon Airport in July last year, the airport authorities announced plans to establish procedures allowing celebrities to use separate entrances when departing. However, after criticism that this was 'excessive special treatment,' the plan was ultimately withdrawn.
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