The PD of the newly returning 'Welcome, First Time in Korea?' explained the reason for selecting comedian Kim Joon-hyun as the reboot MC.
On the afternoon of the 19th, MBC Every1 recorded and broadcast the press conference for the entertainment program 'Welcome, First Time in Korea? (abbreviated Welcome)' online. Present were PD Jeon Min-gyeong, who directed the program, and the two MCs Kim Joon-hyun and DinDin, who talked about the rebooted 'Welcome'.
Kim Joon-hyun is a mainstay who has been with most of 'Welcome, First Time in Korea?', which has been broadcast since 2017. About meeting viewers again as the 'Welcome' MC, he showed strong affection, saying, "Even if they tell me to leave, it's a program I want to cling to like a fallen leaf. It's a program I can't detach my affection from."
He added, "In a way, having done it for nearly 10 years, an enormous affection has grown. There were periods when I wasn't there and someone else sat in, and it was very difficult. I feel like it's my program. Even after the renewal, they called me, so fortunately I was able to participate," expressing strong satisfaction.
Kim Joon-hyun also said, "The expressions of foreigners visiting Korea for the first time are all subtly different. Viewers like seeing those feelings expressed, and because we've done it so far, it felt empty if I didn't do it with them. Hearing that it's being renewed and that people whose names alone you would recognize are coming makes me excited as if starting a new program. I was surprised just seeing Pako's first appearance. It was fascinating to watch. I thought, 'Is that person traveling around Korea?' It felt new to start with a fresh feeling," he said with a laugh.
Regarding this, PD Jeon Min-gyeong said, "I can say this confidently. We talked with the production team for six months, changing the studio and VCR a lot, and when so much has changed, we thought about who among viewers flipping channels would recognize 'Welcome,' and that's who came to mind," expressing confidence in casting Kim Joon-hyun.
Above all, he emphasized, "Because he has been with it for 10 years, he must have his own archive and will point things out more and more meticulously."
'Welcome, First Time in Korea?' is a domestic travel reality program that offers a more diverse Korean travelogue by inviting not only those who had friends familiar with Korea but also those who had no friends to invite, presenting everything from the charms of K-Korea that viewers hadn't known to the fun arising from cultural differences. It will be rebooted and air its first episode today (the 19th) at 8:30 p.m.
[Photo] Provided by MBC Every1.
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