'Barbie' comes to Korea to promote her movie! But she gets defecated on at an event!

(김다애 디자이너 mnbgn@)

"My mother-in-law wants to do a long dance at the wedding"

The story that baffled the community. The story was about a mother-in-law who couldn't stop herself from performing a group janggu dance at her son's wedding to the tune of "Pong Pong." The story got even more shocking when the "actual video" was posted on social media. It showed a mother-in-law who had turned her son's wedding into her own stage, and it didn't go over well, especially since the wedding party didn't want it.

But then there was another "out-of-place" drum dance, this time with a bigger budget: a Hollywood movie.

Why did you get out of there?

(김다애 디자이너 mnbgn@)

Hollywood actress Margot Robbie made her first visit to Korea to promote the movie "Barbie." The Hollywood actress and creator took off her costume and became "Barbie" herself.

The movie tells the story of Barbie, who lives in "Barbieland," a place where she can be anything she wants, until she discovers a crack in the portal that connects her to the real world, and goes on an unexpected journey with Ken to fix it.

In the movie, Margot Robbie plays the most perfect Barbie, who lives in Barbieland with many other Barbies. Margot Robbie was excited for her first visit to Korea, and from the moment she landed at the airport, she was "Hot Pink Barbie" from head to toe, and she was committed to her schedule.

But something unexpected happened. Margot Robbie's diligence was rewarded with an unexpected event.

The event started off well, with a pink carpet in Times Square in Yeongdeungpo on the second day of the movie "Barbie" instead of the usual red carpet. The stage was also decorated like a dollhouse as if it were a movie set.

As if on cue, Margot Robbie showed up as a more complete Barbie. Her outfit was straight out of the 1985 Barbie movie, complete with a hot pink two-piece, hat, and bag that was even bolder than her airport outfit.... She even walked down the pink carpet with a retro pink phone.

(김다애 디자이너 mnbgn@)

The roar of Margot Robbie's arrival. "Oh my god," Margot Robbie exclaimed as she entered the venue, beaming and signing autographs for fans. But that wasn't all. After serving her fans outside, she headed inside and suddenly disappeared backstage, only to reappear in front of her fans in a different outfit - a cool pink sleeveless dress, which was also one of the outfits for her doll, Barbie.

After showing off both outfits, Margot Robbie's fan service was overflowing, as she moved around the venue trying to sign at least one more autograph. She took selfies with fans and thanked them by placing their letters in her adorable Barbie bag. Margot Robbie was also wished a happy birthday by a fan, which brought a tear to her eye as she didn't expect it.

America Ferrera and head coach Greta Gerwig also took the stage, and Margot Robbie said, "This is my first visit to Korea, including myself. Thank you for giving us such a warm and loud welcome." Margot Robbie was overwhelmed with emotion.

Just when it seemed like the event couldn't get any more perfect, the sequence that took everyone in the room by surprise began.

(김다애 디자이너 mnbgn@)

After asking the three of them a few simple questions, the Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation's Jindo Drum Dance performance suddenly began. It was a moment that had even fans in the audience wondering what Barbie had to do with traditional dance.

You may or may not recognize this reaction.... The dancers, dressed in hanbok, performed a traditional Korean instrumental drum dance, and they did it so hard and for so long that the audience's pupils quivered.

I guess it's a good thing it was traditional music and not "pom-pom" like the community post said. I don't blame the performers at all, but I couldn't help but give them the odd stare. I stared at Margot Robbie on stage, the cast, and even the moderator.

After what seemed like dozens of minutes of traditional drumming, the relief that it was finally over was briefly interrupted by the introduction of the hanbok. The hanbok designer, Park Sul-nyeo, came out and presented the hanbok, with the dreaded comment, "I originally wanted to have you wear a full hanbok, but I didn't have enough time, so I prepared something that you could easily wear." The hanbok was a concession.

While the gift of a hanbok was a nice gesture, it was met with criticism when Park was spotted taking center stage with the actors, posing for photos, and placing his hanbok shop's business card in the hanbok he gave to Margot Robbie. The criticism was that it was a "Barbie" event and why should Korean tradition be a part of it?

Margot Robbie being force-fed Korean traditions at a promotional event. The awkward, uncomfortable, and embarrassing embarrassment was ours to bear. Fans who waited long hours in the hot weather to see Margot Robbie and the Barbie cast were also forced to watch a "Korean tradition lecture" for about 10 minutes of the 30-minute event.

(김다애 디자이너 mnbgn@)

They are questioning the practice of including Korean traditional events in the event of a foreign actor's visit to Korea. It's not what the actor wanted, and it's not even related to the movie, but it's a question of whether or not Korean traditions are necessary when you come to Korea.

It would have been nice to end up with a gift-giving ceremony with a meaningful and simple tradition engraved on it, but unexpected sincerity has led to this situation. In 2013, Amanda Seyfried was seen wearing a full hanbok up and down during her visit to Korea. At the time, fans complained about the unnecessary process, but a decade later, the same thing has happened again.

Shouldn't we be the only ones to enjoy the 'gukpong'? The force-fed 'gookpong' is followed by a plea to please not cross the domestic wall. We can only hope that our small wish to not be embarrassed anymore will be fulfilled next time.

Read the Article

Read the Korean version