“Celebrity” (셀러브리티)

By Jae-Ha Kim
Substack
July 14, 2023

☆☆☆☆
Seo Ah-ri (played by Park Gyu-young)
Han Jun-kyung (played by Kang Min-hyuk)
↑Note: Korean names denote the surname followed by the given name.

A short K-drama just 12 episodes long, running less than an hour each, “Celebrity” tackles the world of South Korea’s influencers, simply dubbed as celebs. When we meet Ah-ri (Park Gyu-young), she’s toiling away as a door-to-door saleswoman selling low-end cosmetics not to the rich women in Gangnam, but to their housekeepers and other staff.

Once the daughter of a wealthy businessman, her family suffered after his death and the failure of his company. The spoiled girl who used to give away her luxury bags to classmates because they had been used a few times is now living in a cramped apartment with her mother. Through a chance meeting with a high school friend, who is now a popular celeb, she gets the opportunity to enter the social media world as a newbie influencer. Due to her beauty and her proximity now to established influencers, Ah-ri begins attracting fans of her own.

And when she gets about 500 followers on Instagram, offers begin to pour in for sponsorship deals. And a marketing rep who deals with moneymaking influencers wants to sign her! Because. She. Has. 500. Followers!!!

I realize this is in South Korea and the population is smaller than in the United States — about 52 million people vs. 332 million, respectively — but that would be the equivalent of someone in the U.S. with 3,200 followers being offered similar lucrative deals.

For a reality check, let me share a bit of the solicitations that I have received. I currently have 9.2k+ followers on Instagram. Adjusting for the population difference, that’s equal to about 1.4k followers in Korea. Do you know what I’m offered on a regular basis? Scams, and lots of them!

I’ve also been asked to model for brands … and I’m sure this was legitimate because what clothing designer wouldn’t want a cranky ajumma wearing their pieces, right? RIGHT?

Anyhow, where was I? Oh yeah, at 10k followers, Ah-ri is gifted with a washing machine and also a slew of luxury items from brands that want to pay her to tout their goods on her IG grid. (To any of you who are on IG and have about 63k followers in the U.S., are you receiving gifts valued at tens of thousands of dollars, too?)

By the 8th episode, Ah-ri has maybe a million followers. To be fair, they’re all real people, not bots she purchased to increase her social media credibility. Her mother and brother (who’s finished his mandatory military duty) move them into an apartment where rent is $16k USD/month. That’s almost $200k in rent annually! But the mother blithely says Ah-ri can afford it.

Mind you, it has only been a few months at most since she started influencing. During that time, she became famous, started a fashion line, moved her business into a pricey new building, relocated to a luxury apartment building, started a cosmetics brand, collaborated with a famous Chinese influencer, and began working with a handsome chaebol heir who, of course, has fallen in love with her (but she’s not interested which makes him pursue her more).

Even if you don’t know anything about South Korea, I think most viewers would be able to guess that rent for a small apartment in the heart of a major metropolitan city would be fricking expensive. Even the Kardashians have bills to pay. Are we to believe that a newbie like Ah-ri is being paid enough to pay for her new lifestyle? How many Hermès Birkin bags would she need to sell to pay for all of this?

With all this said, the ridiculous nature of this show makes it that much more fun to watch. While not quite an over-the-top makjang, it’s close. There is a drug scandal, gigolos, an overdose, possible suicide, and the white truck of death (if you know, you know) — all of which create deliciously messy storylines that are intriguing to watch.

The true parable of this show, though, is that the higher you climb up, the more people there are who are dying to watch you fail. Ah-ri experiences what it’s like being the target of haters on the internet. While it doesn’t reach TaJinYo status, it’s still disturbing.

Airdates: Twelve episodes — ranging from 40- to 53-minutes each — all dropped on Netflix on June 30, 2023.

Spoiler Alert: Ah-ri’s best friend Jeong-sun (played by *Park Ye-ni) turns out to be a member of a I Hate Ah-ri fan club. Jealous and a bit bitter at all the attention her friend is getting, she trash talks Ah-ri online. When caught by the police, she seems truly remorseful. And she later redeems herself by helping Ah-ri catch her primary stalker.

At first, Ah-ri has an anonymous helper (username: bbbfamous) who shares all the ins and outs of her competitors. But the more Ah-ri asks bbbfamous to reveal who they are, the more close-mouthed they get. I will admit that I couldn’t guess who it was and I don’t think you will, either. It’s a massage therapist who records the conversations of her influencer clients. That’s how she knows all their secrets. Since they don’t view those who provide services for them as worthy people, it never occurs to them that their bitching and secrets will be shared by someone beneath them.

Ah-ri fakes her own death so she can ferret out bbbfamous’s true identity. And the handsome chaebol Han Jun-kyung (Kang Min-hyuk) recovers lickety split from a severe car accident that was meant to kill him. (Not even his hair was affected.)

* Sorry, but I’m a Korean mom, so I have to mention that Park Ye-ni has a Master’s Degree from Harvard University.

© 2023 JAE-HA KIM | All Rights Reserved