After several scandals rocking the Korean entertainment industry, South Korea is adopting a new standard contract for artists' television appearances. The aim: to protect both stars and productions, while preventing personal affairs from disrupting the broadcasting of dramas.
This contract, revealed on July 31 by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourismnow provides that :
- Artists are paid as soon as they start shootingeven if their scenes are cut during editing.
- Productions can claim damages if a star causes damage to the series through controversy, whether it's aboutdrug cases, illegal gambling, accusations of school violence or scandals linked to private life.
This reform comes against a backdrop of high-profile cases: Yoo Ah-in involved in illegal drug use, Song Ha-yoon accused of school violence, and Kim Soo-hyunwho has recently been the target of personal (albeit unproven) controversy, resulting in colossal financial losses for his sponsors. These situations had led to discontinuation or modification of broadcasts and considerable losses for chains and producers.
The revamped contract also brings additional guarantees for artists :
- No automatic transfer of image rights to producers.
- Obligation to obtain their consent before distributing images on new platforms or reusing cut scenes.
- Payment of additional fees in the event of future exploitation of modified or unpublished content.
In return, greater responsibility for talent agencies They must inform us of any changes to their exclusive contracts and ensure that their artists respect the clauses, to avoid further costly scandals.
A representative of the Ministry stated that this reform was aimed at reduce conflicts between artists and productions and establish a contractual culture based on mutual respect. This new framework could well be a game-changer in an industry where one star's reputation can impact an entire production.
Our opinion
We have very mixed feelings about the notion of "mutual protection" between artists and productions, since if we take just the example of the Kim Soo-hyun case, Disney+ decided on its own to suspend the broadcast of the series Knock Off, with the losses that this would entail, and continues to keep the series and all its production "on hold" even though the case has settled and is leaning in the actor's favor.
To date, Kim Soo-hyun has been suffering the repercussions of these accusations, still unproven for several months, with breach of contract, series not broadcast and, worst of all, brands turning against him because they chose not to have him represent them, without waiting for the verdict of the courts. The same goes for Song Ha-yoon, who remains in the hot seat and therefore without income: the effects for celebrities of a simple accusation, even if still unproven, are immediate. This type of contract doesn't seem to us to protect them at all, but on the contrary to make them feel worse about this type of situation. And when you consider the number of scandals breaking out in South Korea...
Let's see if this really makes a difference in the months to come. What do you think?
Au final c’est ceux qui ont vécus un enfer qui seront le plus pénalisés !!! KIN SOO HYUN à lui tout seul représente ce qu’il y a de pire dans ce pays !!! Ceux qui ce sont suicidés faute de pouvoir se défendre le seront pour cette population avides de lynchage médiatique !! Oui ils ont pondus une soit disant loi censée les protéger mais qui ne protège vraiment que les sponsors et plates formes de diffusion !! J’en ai la nausée!!! Au final, après de mois de lutte ils obtiennent juste le droit d’obéir et de ne pas bouger une oreille !! J’ai attendu longtemps pour que justice soit vraiment faite , c’était illusoir , j’espère que KSH pourra reprendre une carrière, mais dans ces conditions ce sera un miracle et je n’y crois plus !!
We hope so too!