MBC's star-studded variety program Good Day, hosted by BIGBANG's G-Dragon, has come to an end with underwhelming viewership numbers, and Korean media outlets are pointing to actor Kim Soo Hyun's controversy as a key factor in the show's decline.
The show premiered on Feb. 16 with high expectations thanks to its cast lineup of prominent 1988-born celebrities, including Jung Hae In, Im Siwan, Lee Soo Hyuk, and Kwanghee. Despite the buzz surrounding G-Dragon's return to variety television and a promising start, the program wrapped up with its lowest recorded rating — just 2.7 percent.
According to Korean media outlet, Wikitree, the controversy involving Kim Soo Hyun "was the biggest reason behind the show's rating slump." The actor had been a guest star on the program during the time when allegations surfaced about his alleged romantic relationship with the late actress Kim Sae Ron.
Wikitree reported, "The biggest reason behind the show's rating slump was the controversy involving Kim Soo Hyun," referring to accusations that he had dated Kim Sae Ron beginning in 2015 when she was allegedly only 15 years old. The relationship was said to have lasted until July 2021.
Although Kim Soo Hyun continued filming after the allegations became public, viewer backlash escalated. The production team eventually announced, "We will cut as much of Kim Soo Hyun's appearance as possible and will not air the individual recording session from the 13th," referring to a session taped after the controversy broke.
Another outlet, News1, described how the program was "unexpectedly caught up in controversy" when the allegations surrounding Kim gained attention. In response, producers edited out all of his scenes, beginning with Episode 6.
Celuv Media echoed this assessment, writing, "Despite its star-studded cast, the show recorded disappointing ratings — and to make matters worse, it was hit with controversy surrounding one of its cast members, actor Kim Soo Hyun." The outlet noted that viewers "flooded Good Day's message boards demanding Kim Soo Hyun's removal from the show."
JobPost confirmed that while Kim briefly appeared in a wide shot during Episode 5, "his scenes were entirely removed from Episodes 6 through 8" due to continued viewer backlash.
Despite efforts to salvage the show by removing his scenes and skipping a week of broadcast, the controversy overshadowed Good Day's entertainment value. Media consensus indicates the scandal severely undercut the show's momentum, which otherwise had the potential to be a major hit.
Neither Kim Soo Hyun nor MBC has released an official statement directly addressing the media's attribution of the decline in the ratings of the show.
Originally published on Kdrama Stars
