'Assassin(s)' Controversy Surrounds End of Yoo Hae-jin Ad Campaign... KIWOOM Securities: "It Was Part of the Planned Schedule"

[Financial News]  KIWOOM Securities has ended the advertising campaign featuring actor Yoo Hae-jin as its model and begun preparing a new campaign. Although the timing coincided with controversy surrounding the film 'Assassin(s),' industry observers have suggested a connection. KIWOOM Securities, however, said the campaign ended according to the schedule originally planned.

According to sources in the financial investment industry on the 3rd, KIWOOM Securities recently concluded an advertising campaign featuring Yoo Hae-jin and is preparing a new one. The company signed Yoo Hae-jin to a one-year advertising contract last April and has featured him in advertisements for major financial products, including retirement pensions. Comments are currently disabled on YouTube advertisements featuring Yoo Hae-jin.
The industry is paying attention to the fact that the campaign ended around the time debate over 'Assassin(s)' intensified. Following the film's release, protest comments continued to appear on the social media accounts and YouTube channels of companies whose advertising models included cast members, prompting speculation that the campaign may have ended early. KIWOOM Securities offered a different explanation, saying the advertisement was discontinued according to the schedule set in advance.
Meanwhile, 'Assassin(s)' is a film about detectives and reporters tracing the people behind the 1974 shooting of Yuk Young-soo.

As the film presents alternative possibilities surrounding the incident as dramatic hypotheses, some politicians and viewers criticized it as historical distortion. The production team has maintained that the film does not designate a specific person as being behind the incident or present a hypothesis as historical fact.


[email protected] Han Seung-gon Reporter