“Queen of Tears” Actor Park Sung Hoon Faces Backlash Over Latest Brand Endorsement
Park Sung Hoon recently announced his collaboration with the fast-food chain Burger King, and many fans are not thrilled.
The actor made the announcement through an Instagram video with the caption “Coming Soon.” The few-seconds long video showed him flexing his acting muscles as he teased the collaboration with a clever play on the word “Ragu.”
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While many were smitten by Park’s deep voice and incredible acting in the video, a significant number of fans also expressed their disappointment in this collaboration, as Burger King has been named as one of the brands targeted by the BDS boycott list in support of Palestine.
The fast-food chain is one of the four explicitly mentioned organic target brands in the Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions movement. According to reports, the chain’s Israeli franchise provides free meals to the Israeli military as they lead a deadly onslaught on civilian life in the Gaza Strip of Palestine.
As a result, Park’s announcement video was inundated with comments from disappointed fans who urged him to honor the boycott for the cause.
The criticism spread to other social media platforms as well. Many felt that these brands on the boycott list were specifically targeting the Korean entertainment industry to weaponize the stars’ massive global following without being confronted with any controversy.
lowkey stems from the fact how kpop stans are gullible and would blindly support anything just because their fave's face is plastered on it https://t.co/6wdOBwaZZL pic.twitter.com/9uPRgbeLDm
— masonline (@kf1lm) July 2, 2024
a lot of these brands that are being boycotted are spending overtime promoting in east asia. It says a lot about how their marketing team is thinking. https://t.co/0e9o9P5yWK
— melodyy 🌼 (@chuuyeoseul) July 2, 2024
western stars clocked it became a PR disaster but k-stars don't care bc y'all go to war to defend their ignorance every time https://t.co/06p58RERSV
— l'autre (@kaurismarxist) July 2, 2024
the k-industry knows the majority of its public are made by the dumbest community of people out there who consume/sold out anything if they see their favorite actors, idols or gp or easily forgive their behavior if its not related with them being in a romantic relationship lmao https://t.co/o7C3PxYnp8
— anjo. (@muochizo) July 2, 2024
Because K-pop fans truly don't care. They say that they stand up for something, but the minute their faves are advertising for the company, it's out of the window and buying up the product. They don't care. It's them saying that shit to look good. Kpop fans are mad performative. https://t.co/c8Z4ECGsO7
— ♓ ⁶VIXX CONTINUUM⁶♓️ HONGBIN'S LOSER PHASE🌱 (@ae_abercrombie) July 2, 2024
the brands know kpop fans are spineless and would never call out their faves for partnering with these brands the way western fans would https://t.co/PfYuTRDXLg
— ۟ (@wonnnwoo) July 2, 2024
Previously, aespa also faced intense backlash over their collaboration with McDonald’s. You can read more about it here.