Song Joong-ki, who has updated his situation after a long time, is making headlines. Song Joong-ki, who shed tears over the poor box office performance of the movie 'Bogotá: The Land of Last Chances', regained his smile after about two months, attracting even more attention.
Earlier, Song Joong-ki shared behind-the-scenes TMI related to his starring role in the movie 'Bogotá: The Land of Last Chances'. The film depicts how Guk-hee (played by Song Joong-ki), who heads to Bogotá, Colombia, with new hope shortly after the IMF crisis, becomes entangled with influential figures in the Korean community in Bogotá, such as Su-young (Lee Hee-joon) and Sergeant Park (Kwon Hae-hyo), while revealing the preparation process for Song Joong-ki's character.
Song Joong-ki noted, "Due to the characteristics of the Guk-hee character, I had to learn about smuggling and drive a big truck, so I obtained a large vehicle license." He revealed the background of obtaining a type 1 large license in Korea before the shoot in Colombia. He added, "I cut my hair to reflect the change over about 15 years. When I got there, I realized that many people had freckles due to the strong sun. I got the idea from that and completed my appearance," sharing the process he went through to portray Guk-hee, who struggles to survive and grow in a foreign land.
However, the box office results were disastrous. In order to promote the film 'Bogotá', Song Joong-ki showed unprecedented enthusiasm, participating in various national broadcasting entertainment programs as well as YouTube content. However, according to the integrated computer network for movie tickets of the Korean Film Council on the morning of January 15, 'Bogotá' reached number 6 at the box office, leaving a disappointing record of about 400,000 cumulative viewers.
Due to the unexpected box office failure, Song Joong-ki also stirred up attention by showing tears. In January, he attended the movie 'Bogotá: The Land of Last Chances' GV held at the Mega Box Seongsu in Seoul, where Lee Sung-min shared his feelings, saying, "Recently, when I entered the parking lot, it was completely empty, and it broke my heart. It seems that there are no people in theaters. There could be various reasons, but it's tough for actors when there are no audiences in the theater. Especially during such times, when a film is released, I truly want to die."
In response, Song Joong-ki also said, "With today's GV, my schedule related to 'Bogotá' is completely over. This is the last one, and like my senior said, the current situation for Korean films is very difficult. I'm grateful that our film is even being shown in theaters right now." He continued, "Because of this, I worked harder on promotion than ever for the film. I wanted to let people know and show it beautifully. Although I'm lacking and I've received criticism, I've tried to make this situation look better. I want to express my gratitude to everyone who came to see the movie."
He particularly said, "The role of actors is to create good content to comfort the audience who are having a hard time living. We will strive to create diverse and interesting works with great care, to become a source of strength for our audience again." After a pause with a trembling voice, he added, "I really appreciate it," in his closing remarks.
In the wake of Song Joong-ki's tears, voices of support emerged alongside sarcastic reactions, but since January, Song Joong-ki has not updated his situation much. Then, about two months later on the 2nd, he announced a surprising update as he became a global ambassador for a brand, sharing a smiling photo on his social media, saying, "I am very happy. Please look forward to many different appearances."
Meanwhile, in December 2022, Song Joong-ki became embroiled in romance rumors with Katie Louise Saunders, a British actress, after three years of divorce. The two developed their relationship after meeting through a mutual acquaintance in 2021, and on January 30, 2023, Song Joong-ki directly announced his marriage registration and pregnancy news with Katie.
In June of the same year, Song Joong-ki, who held his son in his arms, received many congratulations, and afterward, in July of the previous year, it was reported that the couple was expecting their second child just a year after the birth of their son, sharing news that they welcomed their second daughter in November of that year, thus becoming a father of two.
[OSEN = Kim Soo-hyung reporter]