Delight turned to outrage on the evening of September 20 when Kingsmen Colin Firth, Tager Egerton and Mark Strong failed to take the stage for a face to face with fans. (Image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 22 (Korea Bizwire) – Delight turned to outrage on the evening of September 20 when Kingsmen Colin Firth, Tager Egerton and Mark Strong failed to take the stage for a face to face with fans.
Everything leading up to that moment seemed like a storybook ending for the visiting British actors after successfully wrapping up the sequel to the wildly popular “Kingsman: The Secret Service” (“Colin Firth” and “Manner Makes Man” have become catchphrases referring to notions of refinement and gentlemanly conduct in this part of the world).
The red-carpet premiere of “Kingsman: The Golden Circle” held at Jamsil’s Lotte World Tower was attended by an estimated 3,000 excited fans, who oohed and aahed when the film stars appeared.
The “Oxfords, not Brogues” trio of Egerton, Firth and Strong all looked and played the part of gentleman to perfection. Though the length of the red carpet was no more than 20 meters long, it took them 50 minutes to traverse the entire path, constantly indulging fans’ requests for signatures, photos and poses.
When finally reaching the entrance, the actors expressed their gratitude at the outpouring of affection. Mark Strong thanked those present by gushing that he had never received such a welcome before.
The “Oxfords, not Brogues” trio of Egerton, Firth and Strong all looked and played the part of gentleman to perfection. (Image: Yonhap)
The actors then strode in to the building for what was expected to be an appearance at a reservation-only event in front of 1,700 fans before the film was to be screened.
To accommodate the night’s proceedings, four Lotte Cinema auditoriums in the Lotte World Tower had been specially set aside. The air was filled with anticipation as the seats were quickly filled by chattering attendees, some of whom had traveled halfway across the country to attend the screening.
Anticipation slowly turned into nervous consternation and gleeful chatter into questioning murmurs as the stage where the actors were supposed to materialize remained empty. The consternation ultimately churned into muted outrage when the audience received an announcement that the scheduled appearance had been canceled, mere minutes before the film screening began.
A select number of the would-be viewers walked out in protest, while others who stayed for the screening later commented online that they were so angry that they “could not concentrate on the movie”.
As the furor over the no-show gained steam on various social media platforms, 20th Century Fox Korea issued a public apology. The production company explained that the Kingsman actors had ultimately returned to their residences due to misunderstandings caused by miscommunication and technical malfunctions from a video call that had been scheduled to take place prior to the pre-screening appearance.
CEO Oh Sang Ho held a press conference the next day, where he told those present that the attendees had been contacted by text message proffering a formal apology and the promise of 4 Lotte Cinema tickets and a wood framed Kingsman poster.
S.B.W. (sbw266@koreabizwire.com)
