Actor Lee Dong Gun has been plagued by controversy from appearing on programs after his divorce to the closure of his Jeju cafe.
Lee Dong Gun married Jo Yoon-hee, whom he met through the drama 'Wolgye-su tailor shop gentlemen', in September 2017 and had one daughter, but they divorced in May 2020. After the divorce he attracted attention with dating rumors involving actress Kang Hae-rim, but he remained tight-lipped, calling it "private life."
Having become single, Lee Dong Gun opened a cafe in Aewol-eup, Jeju City. From the first day of opening it drew attention with opening-day runs and waiting lines, but nearby merchants criticized Lee Dong Gun's side for lacking consideration and frowned, and ultimately announced a suspension of operations from July 9, saying "we will take time to reorganize."
Lee Dong Gun is reported to have taken out a loan in the 200 million won range to open this cafe. The problem came after the suspension of operations. A YouTuber released a video titled 'Lee Dong Gun also failed and left. Don't even dream of harsh life in Jeju' and revealed that the cafe was not 'reorganized' after the suspension but 'abandoned.'
Seeing the pond full of green algae, he said, "When they hatched the eggs, there were crawling insects everywhere," and added, "Although a fatal flaw is that the sea cannot be seen, I thought his name recognition would overcome it, but he abandoned everything in this good location and left. The fixtures are such a waste." Netizens, presumed to be nearby residents, left protest comments such as, "They left it abandoned and because of the hatched insects the families living next door who run the cafe are suffering greatly. If you went bankrupt, you should at least clean up after yourself."
Lee Dong Gun, who is being criticized for abandoning the cafe, recently joined 'Divorce reflection camp,' but his qualification for the position has been questioned. Among the original MCs Seo Jang-hoon, Park Haseon and Zin Taihyun, Zin Taehyun left during the program's reorganization and Lee Dong Gun took his place, which caused controversy.
Many viewers were not persuaded by the explanation of Zin Taihyun's departure process, and many were angered by the fact that Zin Taihyun heard about his departure from his manager rather than the production team. In particular, critics said Lee Dong Gun lacked credibility as a successor to Zin Taihyun, who has been overcoming the pain of miscarriage while continuing his love with Park Si-eun, given that Lee Dong Gun divorced Jo Yoon-hee after three years.
Among various reactions, Lee Dong Gun began appearing from episode 93, which aired on July 30. But ratings fell to 27% (episode 93), 2.6% (episode 94), 2.5% (episode 95), 2.4% (episode 96) and 2.0% (episode 97). It rebounded to 3.0% in episode 98, which aired on the 3rd, but fell again to 2.8% in the broadcast on the 10th.
Lee Dong Gun, who has been beset by various controversies after his divorce. It remains to be seen whether the rebound of 'Divorce reflection camp,' on which he appears, and the cafe reorganization can produce a dramatic turnaround.
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