Let's get Park Shin-yang back to work
Actor Park Shin-yang (박신양) is currently a victim of his own success, the current economic climate, and KTDPCA.
A permanent ban, prevents him from working in future TV productions was imposed in late 2008 by the Corea Drama Production Association (where many Korean production companies are a member, sometimes referenced as Korea(n) Television Drama Production Company Association (KTDPCA)).
What prompted this ban? Park Shin-yang was the star of the highly watched 2007 SBS production, "The War of Money" (also known as "Money's Warfare," or 쩐의전쟁). In his role as Geum Nara, a man forced into the money lending business due to circumstances, Park Shin-yang created an unforgettable character and won most of the major dramatic prizes that year, including the 44th Baeksang Awards: Best Actor Award, 2007 SBS Drama Awards: Best Actor Award (DaeSang), 2007 SBS Drama Awards: Netizen Award, and 2007 SBS Drama Awards: Top 10 Stars Award. The drama drew such numbers that SBS wanted it extended and the production company Olive 9 negotiate with the actor for 4 "Bonus Rounds." However, the actor was not paid for those episodes and protested. Instead of being paid the agreed upon fee, the production industry turned on the actor, accusing him of being, in essence, greedy, and putting the industry and the careers of those who work in it in jeopardy. The ban was instituted as a punitive action for his excessive salary request – an action that occurred long after the series ended. Mr. Park was, at the time of this injunction, finishing work on what may be his last drama for some time, "The Painter of the Wind" (바람의 화원). Since this controversy erupted, a number of actors have taken voluntary pay cuts – no one, it seems, wants to not look like a team player.
Granted, in tough economic climates it's essential to re-evaluate salaries and production costs, but to do so retroactively and so punitively seems unlawful and unethical. If his salary request was considered outrageous at the time it was made, the companies involved had an easy option: don't use him. (Spoiler alert: Perhaps as a countermeasure the writer had taken steps that would have made this a real option. The final 3 minutes of the drama obviate the need for Geum Nara in a sequel.) If anything, Mr. Park should be paid his due plus additional compensation for having to act in those 4 additional episodes, a bizarre alternate reality of Geum Nara's world, rather than any sort of logical continuation (but as indicated in the spoiler note, the writer had already painted himself into a corner there.) One might also wonder too if this is a way to "remind" a popular actor that, as he gets older (he was born in 1968) that he's may be seen as less marketable as a leading man and should reset his sights and asking price, or step aside for a younger generation of stars.
Interested netizens are trying to raise interest in this situation and have created a website devoted to trying to persuade others to lend their voices to the protest. For more information, click here.
And, here's a sample of the drama in question, with the theme song from the OST:
