Jung Woo-sung and model Moon Gabi's son's biological father...What's your next move?

■ Host: Anchor Jeong Jin-hyung and anchor Lee Eun-sol
■ Starring: Kim Heon-sik, cultural critic

* The text below may differ from the actual broadcast content, so please check the broadcast for more accurate information. Please specify [YTN New Square 8PM] when quoting.

[Anchor]
As public opinion about actor Jung Woo-sung's extramarital affairs is heating up, Jung's past remarks are also being re-examined. Let's take a closer look at the news related to this issue with cultural critic Kim Heon-sik. Please come in. That's really unexpected news. It's been a hot topic all day today, but Jung Woo-sung, please first introduce the inside story of how this came to be known.

[Kim Heon-sik]
First of all, Moon Gabi hasn't been active for two years. Then, on the 22nd, he said he gave birth to a child. But I didn't give birth now, but it's known that I gave birth in March of this year.

[Anchor]
The Instagram screen is coming out right now. Moon Gabi's SNS screen.

[Kim Heon-sik]
So, I became a mother of one child and left a message to convey from the perspective of my family. I posted it from a family perspective. However, there is no information about the biological father. So there was no question of who the father was. However, two days later, a media outlet immediately revealed that Jung Woo-sung was his biological father, and he was very quick in his attitude at the agency. It was officially recognized when he immediately admitted that the child's father was Jung Woo-sung.

[Anchor]
Jung's agency officially acknowledged it. He also mentioned that he is discussing parenting in the best direction and that he will do his best as a father. In what sense should I look at this?

[Kim Heon-sik]
First of all, according to media reports, it is based on the premise that the two met, but they did not date on the premise of marriage. So, he said that he will continue to marry and officially act as a parent in his own place, not as a father and mother, that is, as a father and mother. That's why Jung Woo-sung expressed his position that he would play his role as a biological father. So, it was revealed that it will contribute to necessary parts such as child support in the future. You can see it like this. However, it is a situation where Jung Woo-sung's side has not specifically mentioned that it continues to be controversial in this regard because Korea's emotions do not accept these things.

[Anchor]
In fact, Jung Woo-sung had a strong image of working for the United Nations Refugee Agency. As a result, there were also criticisms such as whether it was a behavior that contradicted the existing remarks.

[Kim Heon-sik]
That's right. I've been active for about 10 years. So we formed a relationship in 2014 and have been a goodwill ambassador since 2015. In fact, Jung Woo-sung has mentioned a lot so far that if we ask to express it, we should accept refugees, and he even wrote an essay. However, what we usually talk about on the Internet is whether our child will not receive it, but the important thing is that Jung Woo-sung has been speaking about social issues. That's why he has established his position as a conscious actor, and in the spring of Seoul, his position has become more solid as he plays a very righteous general. Some point out that he is trying to take responsibility for his child compared to his social remarks and activities, and some point out that he is still controversial and contradictory because of his appearance.

[Anchor]
What do you think, critic?

[Kim Heon-sik]
In fact, social activities in those areas make your conviction look brighter and more meaningful when combined with your personal life and personal activities. However, if those parts do not fit, public opinion will no longer be formed in the undesirable direction in the case of goodwill ambassador activities or individual movie appearances, which can be seen as the general evaluation of actors and celebrities.

[Anchor]
In fact, some people say that they prepared for it in advance. Because the spring in Seoul you mentioned was also listed in the 10 million movie. However, these facts were revealed that they did not shoot a new advertisement. He also resigned as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency. So how do you evaluate this part?

[Kim Heon-sik]
Since I gave birth in March of this year, there is a possibility that I already recognized it last year. So last year, it rose to stardom with the spring of Seoul. Isn't it true that it caused a stir? If it causes a stir, there are many cases of celebrities in front of us.It's the distribution industry that can expect the most damage. Therefore, the distribution industry is an advertisement, but if it causes a stir, it can be up to 10 billion won, so it can be a problem if you shoot multiple advertisements, but as you said, Jung Woo-sung did not shoot an advertisement. Moreover, the advertising industry said that the amount of advertisements appeared was very high because of the spring in Seoul. Nevertheless, since he didn't appear on the show, I think it's possible to guess whether he did self-management in advance. And last July, I didn't do the refugee goodwill ambassador activity that I did for almost 10 years. However, the reason for this is that I've been actively engaged in activities so far, but I've been attacked a lot about whether I'm working with a different intention. Even though I had no political intentions or ambitions, I was suffering from malicious comments, so I quit in July saying I would go back to being an actor, but looking at the current situation, I thought I did this to manage myself in various ways. In fact, on the other hand, I suddenly stopped working as a Goodwill Ambassador. Because in broadcasting, for example, in 2022, I said I would continue until I was told to quit, but afterwards, I can guess that there were various reasons.

[Anchor]
To think about it backwards, we don't have to do a commercial after doing a very popular piece. Then, in light of this fact, are there any celebrities who are this similar? After doing a very popular piece, you don't shoot any commercials?

[Kim Heon-sik]
There's no such case. This is because there are many cases where it suddenly bursts, but the difference between Jung Woo-sung and other cases is that other celebrities often raise issues provocatively, saying that this child is your child. However, in the case of Jung Woo-sung, I think he had some time to prepare because the two have already been talked about and agreed on their biological father in advance. If you don't have time to prepare, you didn't even have time to review advertisements or goodwill ambassadors in advance, so there wouldn't have been much conflict between the two, and I can guess that there may be fewer obstacles for Jung Woo-sung in the future.

[Anchor]
Of course, there's only circumstantial evidence right now.You organized it well, and I think Jung Woo-sung's past remarks are being highlighted again. For example, if I become a father, I want to be a father like a friend. There were comments like this, and they also said that marriage is not something you can't do.

[Kim Heon-sik]
That's right. So, what I said in the entertainment program is being talked about again. I filmed a movie called Dung Dog in the past where I wanted to be a dad like a friend. It's a movie about the connection and emotions between father and son, and he said he wanted to contain parts that he couldn't directly communicate with his father. So, in my childhood, I wish my father was a friend-like father, and I wish I had more sympathy, but because I couldn't, I want to be a friend-like father when I get married and have children. And I said that I don't get stuck in the frame of being a father, so I want to treat my son or daughter as a person and be equal. That's why I talked about this part, so regardless of whether you will be a friend-like father regardless of the marriage system you run with Moon Gabi, or when it comes to respecting your personality as much as possible and having a horizontal relationship, many of the public will see it like this. And when it comes to the statement that marriage is not something that you can't do, you were actually a very handsome actor in the past. And there were aspects of various scandals that didn't exist in the past, so there was a public curiosity about why they didn't get married. So, for example, isn't the ideal spouse image not real? There were actually these comments, and then there were many questions about being picky or being a romantic rather than a marriage, so I said that I couldn't get married, but the question of whether these remarks are credible in this case is rising again.

[Anchor]
In fact, I'll be faithful to my father's role without being married, and this statement itself seems to be a very unfamiliar concept that does not fit Korean sentiment. What about this in light of the United States and other places?

[Kim Heon-sik]
In fact, isn't France one of the countries that are worried about low birth rates? However, many experts commonly say that the reason why France's birth rate has risen is because the institutional maintenance of out-of-wedlock children has been done well. Therefore, under married parents, children are supported systematically and out-of-wedlock children are equally supported. In this regard, our society should also look at out-of-wedlock children flexibly in that the birth rate will be raised because there is no discrimination in the process of going to school and growing up. So, of course, we can say this from an alternative point of view, but there is a paradox in our society that requires more responsibility because it is still difficult for children outside of marriage to live. In that respect, I think it will be a mechanism in our society that we should discuss again with Jung Woo-sung's case.

[Anchor]
You explained it in the light of overseas cases. In the midst of this, there was a rather shocking report today that Jung Woo-sung already had a non-celebrity woman who was dating, but the agency didn't officially admit it like this, right?

[Kim Heon-sik]
That's right. An actor who appeared in a drama with him was in trouble when he was talked about. Recently, it was reported through a media outlet that he is dating a non-celebrity to some extent. There are media reports saying that they even enjoy a double date with Lee Jung-jae's couple, but this is not what the agency or Jung Woo-sung himself revealed. However, the problem is that photos and videos circulating on the Internet are a problem. So photos and videos of women touching Jung Woo-sung are being released, and since this is an infringement of privacy, it can be seen as an act in distribution, so indiscriminate sharing should be banned. Anyway, I hope there are no victims of injustice in good faith.

[Anchor] When you go to
, rumors continue to be made, but you're curious about Jung Woo-sung's position, right? He was scheduled to attend the Blue Dragon Film Festival on the 29th, but he will attend as scheduled. Attention is focusing on whether he will express his position on this issue at this meeting. How do you see it?

[Kim Heon-sik]
That's right. My agency wants to participate in the Blue Dragon Film Festival. That's what I said. But what's important is why you're here. That's why I was nominated for the Best Actor Award because of the spring in Seoul. Everyone is predicting that Jung Woo-sung will win the Best Actor Award in a way, given that the number of viewers has exceeded 10 million and both his work and popularity have been recognized. Then when we get an award, we'll make an acceptance speech. Then, the acceptance speech expresses gratitude, but it also reveals parts related to recent updates. That's why it's a hot issue right now, and only when you express your position can you calm down various suspicions and controversies, so I predict that you can speak for a longer time while making comments like this, if not for a long time, but I think it's not easy to turn a blind eye this time because you've been making statements that are a bit convincing and conscious. Anyway, since the reason is attributable to you, I think that in light of your usual words and actions, you are in a position to express your feelings or position to some extent.

[Anchor]
As it is the first public appearance since the controversy, attention is focused on how to say it. I think celebration and criticism coexist online because it's true that I became a father. I wonder how these things will affect Jung Woo-sung's future actions.

[Kim Heon-sik]
As I said many times earlier, there are still controversies in our society regarding out-of-wedlock children, and there are stricter standards, especially when it comes to celebrities and celebrities. For example, it is being compared with the case of Kim Hyun-joong. In the case of Kim Hyun-joong, it is similar as an out-of-wedlock child, but it cannot be compared mechanically because the texture is very different. Because he was in denial at first, and he had a lot of disputes with the child's mother, so Kim Hyun-joong's image was damaged a lot in terms of personality. So in that regard, it is most important to maintain such a situation where there is no damage. Then, it can be seen that the task left before Jung Woo-sung is the most important thing to clarify the extent to which he is responsible. Jung Woo Sung has been doing a lot of social activities, right? Therefore, what I said earlier, that is, there are parts that our society needs to systematically reorganize in relation to out-of-wedlock children, and experts from government-affiliated organizations related to childbirth are also talking about that. Therefore, if we engage in social activities while practicing what kind of system or perception our society should change systematically, legally, and educationally for out-of-wedlock children, Jung Woo-sung's image and brand value will not be damaged, but if those parts are not done well, I think carefully that it will inevitably hurt his work and social activities.

[Anchor]
Let's stop here. So far, we've talked with cultural critic Kim Heon-sik about Jung Woo-sung's topic. Thank you for talking today.