Prince Jaejoong Vows to Gift Household Essentials to North Korea Defectors If Ratings Hit 10 Percent

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

On January 6, Kim Jaejoong attended a press conference for new KBS2 drama “Spy,” which was held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Gangnam.

When asked whether he will make any ratings promises, Kim Jaejoong replied, “If viewership ratings in the Seoul capital area surpasses 10 percent, I will gift household appliances to thirty North Korean defectors.”



In “Spy,” Kim Jaejoong will play Kim Sun Woo, a child genius and ace of the National Intelligence Service, who is very cold and principled but also has a warmer and tenderer side. Kim Jaejoong expressed his desire to make sure that this two-sidedness of Kim Sun Woo does not look forced or unnatural.

Meanwhile, “Spy” is a secret intelligence family thriller that is loosely based on popular Israeli drama “Gordin Cell” (also known as “MICE”). The drama follows the story of Kim Sun Woo after he discovers the secret past of his ex-spy mother (Bae Jong Ok) who risked her life in a gamble to save his.

Every week, two new episodes of “Spy” will air back-to-back on Friday from 9:30 p.m. to 11:10 p.m (KST). The first episode of “Spy” will air on January 9.

source: soompi1, soompi2, guardianangeljaejoong

im really hoping it's good. i want jaejoong's last project b4 service to be incredible. and since the work it's adapted from was a hit i have some faith

Comments

[kjesta.livejournal.com]

Hm, I don't know. I'm not saying he's obliged to donate to charity, but I'd rather people just do it rather than making it dependent on TV ratings. It feels cheap to use people's need as leverage to get more viewers for some drama.
Might just be that it's been a bleak day and I'm in a rotten mood.

[velveteenkitten.livejournal.com]

No, I agree with you. Came to this post to say the same thing.
I'm irked.

[audiograms.livejournal.com]

i feel the same, i cringed a bit.

[4minutesluts.livejournal.com]

nah it's fucked up, it makes it completely about the person doing the donating rather than the people receiving it.

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

Actually Jaejoong donates quite frequently and usually doesn't publicize it. Pretty much all actors make promises of things they'll do once ratings hit a certain percent, usually is something like gifting people food/free hugs/etc.

Rather than doing something like that Jaejoong picked to donate to North Korean defectors which is a lovely idea, i'm sure it's something he'd do anyways even if the ratings don't hit 10%

[dokyungsoo.livejournal.com]

lol it's too early in the morning for me, but i agree with you.

i prefer it when actors/actresses say they'll pull something silly, like showing their abs/ doing a weird dance, if the ratings are high.

this, though, doesn't correspond.

[hai-no-souretsu.livejournal.com]

ia. I literally cringed reading this. I know Jaejoong would do it anyway no matter how good or bad rating would be, but still it's so badly worded ide.

bribery?

[audiograms.livejournal.com]

that said i hope it does well.

Re: bribery?

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

I posted this before but I'll post it again

Actually Jaejoong donates quite frequently and usually doesn't publicize it. Pretty much all actors make promises of things they'll do once ratings hit a certain percent, usually is something like gifting people food/free hugs/etc.

Rather than doing something like that Jaejoong picked to donate to North Korean defectors which is a lovely idea, i'm sure it's something he'd do anyways even if the ratings don't hit 10%

[uledy.livejournal.com]

If viewership ratings in the Seoul capital area surpasses 10 percent, I will gift household appliances to thirty North Korean defectors

(http://imgur.com/Iucqn3X)

[waves-of-light.livejournal.com]

mte, Bobby Hill

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

i posted this before but im posting this again

Actually Jaejoong donates quite frequently and usually doesn't publicize it. Pretty much all actors make promises of things they'll do once ratings hit a certain percent, usually is something like gifting people food/free hugs/etc.

Rather than doing something like that Jaejoong picked to donate to North Korean defectors which is a lovely idea, i'm sure it's something he'd do anyways even if the ratings don't hit 10%

[japataz.livejournal.com]

I'm not going to jump on the blame bandwagon. He donates regularly without publicizing it so I don't have a problem with it.

Also this is kind of a thing in Asian countries - they make all kinds of promises if ratings reach a certain percentage.

[laeryn.livejournal.com]

I love Jaejoong but this irks me too. Though if he really donates regularly without announcing it then well I guess it's okay.

[tempestdance.livejournal.com]

yikes i mean actors make "i will do this if we hit certain ratings" thing all the time and it's not a bad thing at all, but it's in poor taste when it comes to like, doing volunteering or donation, people are just gonna think well why does it have to depend on ratings? maybe announce that you're donating on the side and that if you hit certain ratings you'll hold an event meeting with defectors or host a fanmeet which all proceeds will go to defectors might have been nicer?

also i side eye this whole national intelligence service business in the drama, i know it's originally based on an israeli drama but glamorizing an organization with a history of bad, bad fuck ups... then again i guess america still glamorizes cia and fbi agents despite the history of illegal torture evidences etc.

[bunica1990.livejournal.com]

hmm

[viakyusu.livejournal.com]

JYJ STAN for life but even I said, "Ehhhh..." When I read this last night idk it seems very in poor taste. I know JJ and the rest donate frequently to charties so I don't get why he's pulling this stunt.

[anconeous.livejournal.com]

It's sad how 10% ratings is such a benchmark these days.

[hipployta.livejournal.com]

Well it's a KBS2 drama

[sub-divided.livejournal.com]

It wouldn't seem as dodgy if it was bags of rice to a large organization - something more anonymous - but household appliances to defectors is specific enough that it gets you thinking about the individual 30 people who don't have appliances, and then it seems gauche to hold out a promise to help them that you might or might not end up fulfilling.

[hipployta.livejournal.com]

Eh...I didn't have the same reaction everyone else seems to be having because it seems better than the typical, "I'll show abs" or something promise

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

ia, at least he's promising to do something useful.

[chloe1910.livejournal.com]

I know people are gonna call me a Jaejoong stan for saying this.

But I take his pledge in a more positive note. That instead of the normal pledges of showing abs or free hugs or buy a meal for 20 people/ fans which is also cute/nice/funny for fans/ viewers, I don't see why it seems wrong to pledge something more charitable instead? One that could actually help the less fortunate?

Admitably (is there such words?), the way it's pledged is done in rather poor taste but if we look at the ultimate result that 30 people/ family is actually benefiting from it, it's a good thing to me? I guess cause I've seen many other actors and actresses pledging for ratings, so I'm used to seeing rating pledges and am alright with pledges?

But to be honest, I find it sad that so many actors and actresses has to resort to bribery for ratings. But I guess I could understand that all leads would hope and pray that the drama/ movie they are acting in will have favorable ratings. I guess Jaejoong is all the more worried about ratings cause his dramas hasn't been doing that well in ratings, poor guy=.= And I know he's been doing a lot of charity all these years, so it's ok for me.

Anyway, anyone is entitled to their opinion.

[agoongprincess.livejournal.com]

+1000

[alleybetwixt.livejournal.com]

Wow. Hyper-critical up in here.

My reaction is a positive one. I love how practical it is. Seems like an incredibly helpful thing to someone trying to get on their feet in a new world.

Based on how often the JYJ guys do philanthropic stuff without talking about it publicly, I have no doubt he would do it anyway, regardless of ratings. Isn't it always playful when actors make these kinds of gestures? Why is it suddenly taken so seriously in this case? I think his choice of proposal is pretty rad.

[lrao.livejournal.com]

This.

I remember how he donated to ALS before the Ice Bucket challenge, but didn't publicize it.

Jaejoong didn't randomly mention this as a bribe, it was a reply "when asked whether he will make any ratings promises." And tbh, this answer is 100x better than saying he'll show his abs or something like that. If he helps 30 people, then who are we to judge?

I can see why this rubbed some people the wrong way, but I think it's important to take context into account here, and remember that Jaejoong is someone who donates even when it doesn't benefit him.

[whysojaelous.livejournal.com]

I can see why some people are side eye-ing his comment. Tbh, when I read the article, I face palmed cuz that's nagl. I definitely think he could have worded it a lot better. I don't think he meant anything malicious about it considering he's donated before and we don't really know how much he's donating outside of what's publicized. I'm not sure if it's the translation that's making his promise sound sketchy or what but from what's written here, he really could have phrased it better lol.

[ydelianey.livejournal.com]

So basically everyone criticising him for doing something that actually benefits someone would prefer him to do something superficial instead. What about other actors who had pledged to take the whole crew out on a holiday? Is that something that should have been done anyway? Not even mentioning that JJ has previously done this for his production crews.

For references sake this is the relevant snippet from the press con:

Q: Since this is your first KBS drama, please make a promise to viewers in case it surpasses your goal viewers rating.

A: When/If our drama surpasses 10% viewers rating, I will donate home appliances to thirty North Korean defectors. Well, I'm going to squander all my pay again. Haha!

http://princejj.com/2015/01/08/interview-presscon-qa-with-jaejoong-for-kbs-drama-spy/

[kjesta.livejournal.com]

Erm, no? I don't want him to do something superficial, I don't give a hoot if he shows abs or hugs somebody or whatever. I just think that saying "I'll do a good thing! ... but only if I get higher ratings" is in poor taste. Do the good thing and go on to brag about it, whatever makes you happy, but I think it's not nice to the 30 people who really need these things to sit there waiting for the yes or no.
I didn't know he often donates, and I think it's great he does, but I still think making a good deed hinging on viewership is meh. I can criticize sth a person does without denying that there are other great things they do.

[sand-nicky.livejournal.com]

Ok, people here keep saying this sounds tacky etc., but he was asked about what he'd do if the ratings were higher than a certain number, and he answered.

Lack of information creates misunderstandings like this.

OP, is there a way of adding this bit of info?