[Newsmaker] Star lecturer Seol takes responsibility for misinformation

Star lecturer Seol Min-seok said he would take sole responsibility for the controversy surrounding misinformation during the second episode of popular tvN entertainment show “Seol Min-seok’s Naked World History.” The apology posted on YouTube on Tuesday followed the announcement the producers made on the program website the previous day, apologizing for the misinformation in the second episode on Saturday. Archaeologist Kwack Min-soo, one of the advisers for the program, poi

Dec. 23, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘Sweet Home’ actor Song Kang rises to Netflix stardom

As the first season of webtoon-based drama “Sweet Home” premiered Friday, lead actor Song Kang gained fans throughout the world. Although Song earlier this year starred in another webtoon-based Netflix drama -- “Love Alarm,” as one of the lead actors -- the attention he is receiving with “Sweet Home” is unparalleled. The 10-episode Netflix original series with a budget over 30 billion won ($27 million) was the most popular drama series in over 10 countries

Dec. 23, 2020

tvN’s ‘Seol Min-seok’s Naked World History’ apologizes for misinformation

Producers of tvN‘s “Seol Min-seok’s Naked World History” apologized for inaccuracies after an archaeologist, who served as an adviser to the show, criticized the program for inaccuracies. “Naked World History” is hosted by popular lecturer Seol Min-seok, who approaches world history in an entertaining way. Seol gained fame as one of the first internet lecturers in the early 2000s, specializing in Korean history. Seol has remained silent on the criticism rai

Dec. 22, 2020

[Herald Interview] ‘I almost became a monster’

Megahit director Lee Eung-bok made his Netflix debut with the webtoon-based, monster-packed drama series “Sweet Home” on Friday, opening a new door for K-drama. Lee, who has directed numerous local hit series including “Descendants of the Sun,” “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God” and “Mr. Sunshine,” returns with “Sweet Home,” which is void of the romantic stories for which Lee is known. Instead, residents of apartment complex Green H

Dec. 22, 2020

BTS' 'Dynamite' rebounds to top 10 on Billboard Hot 100 with drop of holiday remix

K-pop superstar BTS' megahit song "Dynamite" has resurged to the top 10 on Billboard's main singles chart this week. "Dynamite" ranked No. 9 on the Hot 100 chart to be refreshed Tuesday (US local time), up 15 notches from No. 24 last week, Billboard said Monday. The rebound came following the release of the song's holiday remix on Dec. 11. The song's sales jumped 227 percent to 40,000, while streams were up 7 percent to 8.5 million, it added. The holiday remix of the song

Dec. 22, 2020

'Minari' captures US critics’ heart

  “Minari” is showing that winning two awards from the Boston Society of Film Critics was only the start of its journey to capture the hearts of critic groups across the US. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association on Monday announced that Youn Yuh-jung had won for best supporting actress for playing Soon-ja, an elderly woman who comes to America to live with son Jacob’s family, in “Minari.” The movie revolves around the story of a first-generation South K

Dec. 21, 2020

Oscar-winning director Bong Joon-ho praises 'Minari'

Oscar-winning director Bong Joon-ho on Friday praised “Minari” in his talk with the film’s director Lee Isaac Chung, held during Variety’s inaugural FYC Fest. “I think it takes a lot of courage to shoot a film about yourself or your family, since it’s autobiographical,” Bong was quoted as saying in Variety. “But what I appreciated more about this film is that it doesn’t wallow in nostalgia. It follows the perspective of multiple characters

Dec. 18, 2020

Spotify to launch in Korea in first half of 2021

The world’s largest music streaming platform Spotify on Friday announced that it would officially launch its service in South Korea in the first half of 2021. “We are excited about our upcoming launch in South Korea, a market recognized as an epicenter for music, culture and tech innovation,” Alex Norstrom, chief freemium business officer of Spotify, said in a statement. According to Spotify, South Korea -- the sixth-largest music market globally -- is an important market

Dec. 18, 2020

'Dynamite' becomes 6th BTS music video to hit 700m YouTube views

The music video of "Dynamite," K-pop superstar BTS' 2020 megahit song, has racked up 700 million views on YouTube, its agency said Friday. The video surpassed the mark at around 9:41 p.m. Thursday, just four months after its release, according to Big Hit Entertainment. BTS now has six music videos that have more than 700 million views on the global video-sharing website, including "DNA," "Boy with Luv," "Fake Love," "MIC Drop (Steve Aoki Remix)&quo

Dec. 18, 2020

S. Korean box office plunges more than 80% on-year in Nov.

The number of South Korean moviegoers nose-dived more than 80 percent on-year in November as the third wave of the novel coronavirus pandemic hit the country, data showed Thursday. A total of 3.59 million people went to theaters last month, down 80.7 percent from 18.6 million tallied a year ago, according to the monthly data by the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). From a month earlier, the November tally fell 22.4 percent from 4.63 million. The revenue plunged 79.3 percent on-year to 32.1 billion

Dec. 17, 2020

Star K-drama director Lee Eung-bok brings ‘Sweet Home’ to life

The highly anticipated Netflix original series “Sweet Home” will kick off its first season Friday, bringing the celebrated webtoon to life. “Sweet Home” is about teenager Hyun-soo, played by Song Kang, who moves into a new apartment after losing his family. In the apartment, monsters that reflect human desires appear, which Hyun-soo and his neighbors have to fight off as they solve the mystery behind the apartment. The original webtoon that was serialized on portal site

Dec. 16, 2020

TWICE ranks No. 72 on Billboard 200 with its latest full-length album

K-pop girl group TWICE ranked No. 72 on the Billboard main albums chart this week, renewing its highest record on the US music publisher's ranking. "Eyes Wide Open," the group's second full-length album, took 72nd place on the Billboard 200 chart refreshed Tuesday (US time), seven weeks after its release in October. It is the second time that the nine-member group's album has landed on the chart since its ninth EP, "More & More," entered the chart at No. 200 in June. T

Dec. 16, 2020

BTS' 'Dynamite' makes top 5 on Billboard's Pop Songs radio chart

K-pop superstar BTS has hit the top five on a Billboard radio airplay chart for the first time with its mega-hit single "Dynamite." The band's first English-language song rose one notch to rank fifth this week on the Pop Songs radio chart updated Tuesday (US time), according to Billboard. The chart is one of the main radio airplay charts of Billboard, measuring total weekly plays of the top 40 songs on around 160 mainstream radio stations. It is the first time that BTS has made it t

Dec. 16, 2020

Celebrate New Year with Europe’s finest orchestras at local cinemas

Though the COVID-19 pandemic limits us from going to New Year celebration concerts, local cinema franchise Megabox will screen the recordings of the New Year celebration concerts by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, according to its announcement Tuesday. The 90-minute recording of the Berlin Philarmonicker, one of the most prestigious orchestras in the world, holding its New Year’s Eve concert under the baton of chief conductor Kirill Petrenko, will be

Dec. 15, 2020

Will ‘Minari’ make it to Oscars?

Veteran actor Youn Yuh-jung and her movie “Minari,” directed by Lee Isaac Chung, appear set for smooth sailing to the 2021 Academy Awards. Local movie distributor Pan Cinema announced Monday that Youn won an award for best supporting actress from the Boston Society of Film Critics for her role in “Minari.” Composer Emile Mosseri also won an award for best original score for his music in Lee’s movie. Since the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Ja

Dec. 15, 2020

SPO comes up with 4-month plan for 2021

Though it is customary for an orchestra to release the upcoming year’s program in December, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra shared its schedule for only the first four months of 2021 in concern of possible interruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The SPO, which went through a difficult year like many other art troupes and institutions around the world, is looking forward to a better 2021 with a total of 13 performances, consisting of 11 orchestral music presentations and two chamb

Dec. 14, 2020

Third wave of coronavirus sweeps stages

Though the performing arts scene is at its year-end peak season, the outlook is gloomy as the third and so far worst wave of COVID-19 is underway. Local authorities have announced the Level 2.5 social distancing measures here, requiring performing arts venues to leave two-thirds of their seats empty. State- and city-funded art troupes based in Seoul have completely halted their operations under governmental orders. The Korea National Ballet canceled its year-end signature performances of &l

Dec. 14, 2020

Dismissal of KNB’s ballet dancer caught in legal dispute

The Korea National Ballet’s firing of a member earlier this year for traveling abroad during the home-quarantine period has come to the center of a legal dispute, as the state labor committee viewed it to be an “unfair dismissal.” According to the performing arts scene on Monday, the National Labor Relations Commission officially acknowledged that the national ballet troupe’s dismissal of Na in March was unfair. The labor committee viewed that Na had the responsibili

Dec. 14, 2020

Box office sales expected to drop 73.3% in 2020: KOFIC

The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) said Monday that cinema ticket sales this year are expected to drop 73.3 percent on-year to 510 billion won ($467.54 million), influenced by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Local movie theaters’ sales tumbled by 71.2 percent to 498 billion won for the January to November period, from 1.72 trillion won during the same period last year. It is unlikely that sales will pick up in December, KOFIC said, as the COVID-19 crisis is worsening here with 7,0

Dec. 14, 2020

Korean movie industry stays quiet after filmmaker Kim Ki-duk’s death

The South Korean movie industry did not have much to say about director Kim Ki-duk’s death on Friday in Latvia from COVID-19 complications. None of the local movie associations released an official statement about the matter, and only a few of Kim’s acquaintances from the local film industry sent short social media messages mourning his loss. “You left lonely. We had makgeolli in Insadong and it became the last time we met. Goodbye, Ki-duk,” Won Dong-yeon, CEO of Rea

Dec. 13, 2020