Risks Behind Scandal-Involved Actor Yoo Ah In's Film Release

Netflix’s sci-fi drama “Goodbye Earth” will officially premiere on April 26. However, all eyes are now on how Yoo Ah In, the main actor, will appear in the 12-episode series.

In the trailer released on April 12, Yoo Ah In did not have any scenes. Instead, the 2-minute trailer focused on introducing the story of Se Kyung (Ahn Eun Jin) - a high school teacher - and also the lover of Yoon Sang (Yoo Ah In).

In addition, Yoo Ah In's name is also not on the list of actors provided by the producer to the media.

However, on Korean social networks, many opinions say that it is too early to see Yoo Ah In on screen because the 37-year-old actor is being tried for illegal drug use.

Speaking about this, a Netflix representative said that the scenes featuring Yoo Ah In were edited after discussions between the director and staff to avoid affecting the overall plot.

“A film's release schedule is synchronized with other dubbing and subtitling schedules, so we typically don't pause a film,” a Netflix representative added.

The movie “Goodbye Earth” was released even though the male lead was on trial. Photo: Producer — The movie “Goodbye Earth” was released while the male lead was still on trial. Photo: Producer

In fact, this isn't the first time Netflix has stood firm on releasing a work starring an actor embroiled in controversy.

Previously, in 2023, the action movie “Bloodhounds” had to rewrite the last two episodes after actress Kim Sae Ron was fined for drunk driving.

Although it took more effort, time, and money from the director, actors, and crew, fortunately when it was released, the film topped the Netflix charts in 22 countries and entered the top 10 in 88 countries and territories.

Korea Herald commented that the achievements of “Bloodhounds” show that global fans do not know or care about Kim Sae Ron's scandals.

However, with Yoo Ah In's "Goodbye Earth," culture critic Kim Hern Sik said that this is not a good time to release the film, even though Korean content is thriving on online platforms.

But since Netflix has already incurred a lot of costs due to the film's delay, releasing it before it's too late is the only option.

Critic Kim added that it is still too early to say whether Yoo Ah In's controversy will affect global audience reception.

But “Goodbye Earth” is still considered a lucky work because it was shown online and could be released.

Meanwhile, “Hi.5” and “The Match” - 2 films starring Yoo Ah In are still facing difficulties, unable to determine their release date.

“Korean audiences love to watch movies through word of mouth, which means the reputation of actors and directors is very important in the local market.

Especially at a time when people only go to the theater for a special purpose, the possibility of Yoo Ah In's movie being released in theaters is very unlikely" - Kim Hern Sik added.

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