Former Big Bang T.O.P couldn‘t resist bragging about his Netflix gifts... Showing off his “Squid Game 2” [Comprehensive]
He may have missed out on the promotions, but he couldn’t resist bragging about his gifts. Former Big Bang member T.O.P (Choi Seung-hyun) quietly left a post about “Squid Game 2” and chose a strategy of burying the issue.
On the 25th, T.O.P posted several photos on his Instagram with the caption, “D-1 #SquidGame2.” The photos show the Netflix gifts T.O.P received as a cast member of “Squid Game 2.” The various collaboration items related to the program made us realize the hot interest and popularity toward “Squid Game 2.”
Despite bragging about his gifts, T.O.P is currently completely excluded from the promotions for “Squid Game 2.” In July 2017, T.O.P was sentenced to 10 months in prison and 2 years of probation for smoking marijuana. He had been kicked out of the group Big Bang due to his drug conviction and had declared that he had no intention of returning, but public criticism has grown over his return with ‘Squid Game 2’. Whether it was his own choice or his persuasion, T.O.P did not attend any of the official events previously scheduled and did not participate in any interviews scheduled after the film‘s release.
Director Hwang Dong-hyuk, who wrote and directed the script for ‘Squid Game 2’, said at a press conference held in August regarding T.O.P’s casting, “I didn‘t know it would become this controversial. It happened a long time ago, and quite some time has passed. The sentence was already handed down and the probation period is over. There have been celebrities who have stirred up controversy in society, but I’ve seen people who returned after marijuana incidents, so I thought that if time had passed, it would be time to start doing something like this again. However, many more people expressed their concerns than I thought, so I thought maybe I was short-sighted and might have made a mistake,” he confessed.
However, Director Hwang publicly defended T.O.P. He said, “We did a lot of verification, and Choi Seung-hyun himself showed strong determination. I watched the audition myself. I sent him a video of Choi Seung-hyun working hard on his acting, and when I verified him because I was anxious during the script reading, he showed a lot of effort and talent.”
He continued about T.O.P, saying, “Personally, he was an actor I had my eye on. I can’t go into detail about his character in Season 2 of ‘Squid Game,’ but it was a role that required courage for Choi Seung-hyun. I decided because I thought he was the most suitable actor.” He explained, “It became controversial, but I concluded that since I had been through a lot with the actor, we had no choice but to show through the results why we had to do this project with this actor. That’s why we didn’t back out and went ahead with it.” He continued, ”You may not understand why I insisted on it, but I had my own circumstances. If you watch the drama, you will know that it was not an easy decision, and that it was not easy for Choi Seung-hyun himself to do this drama. I hope you will wait a little longer and make a re-evaluation once the drama comes out,“ and asked for understanding.
As Director Hwang Dong-hyeok said, attention is focused on whether public opinion toward TOP will change after watching the drama, or whether the situation will only get worse.
Meanwhile, Season 2 of ‘Squid Game’ follows Season 1, in which participants in a mysterious survival show with a prize of 45.6 billion won risk their lives to become the ultimate winner, and the story begins with ‘Ki-hoon’ (Lee Jung-jae) returning after giving up on going to the United States with his own purpose. The cast includes Lee Jung-jae, Lee Byung-hun, Wi Ha-joon, and Gong Yoo, who returned from Season 1, and Im Si-wan, Kang Ha-neul, Park Gyu-young, Lee Jin-wook, Park Sung-hoon, Yang Dong-geun, Kang Ae-sim, Lee David, Choi Seung-hyun (former Big Bang T.O.P), Noh Jae-won, Jo Yu-ri, and Won Ji-an. Scheduled to be released on Netflix on the 26th.
Reporter Jeong Hee-yeon, Donga.com shine2562@donga.com