Dispatch has revealed that Lee Jung Jae campaigned heavily to have T.O.P included in the cast of Squid Game 2.
According to an exclusive report from Dispatch, Lee Jung Jae was heavily involved in the recruitment of T.O.P into the cast of Squid Game 2. Dispatch actually shared that when Lee Jung Jae and Im Se Ryung were dating way back in 2014, their date location was at T.O.P’s apartment. Lee Jung Jae and T.O.P are well known friends in the entertainment industry, sharing common hobbies such as art, visiting an art festival in Hong Kong together and enjoying wine at Im Se Ryung’s restaurant.
Dispatch has stated that Lee Jung Jae is helping “save” T.O.P by casting him in Squid Game 2. Lee Jung Jae has actually attempted to recruit T.O.P to his acting projects in the past, but each time, it failed. However, this time was different.
As the face of the Squid Game series, Lee Jung Jae has already been guaranteed 1 million USD per episode of Squid Game, with 13 episodes expected. From Netflix’s point of view, Lee Jung Jae’s demands couldn’t be ignored due to his standing within the Squid Game series as well as how well the first season did, raking in over 900 million USD in series-related revenue.
However, the casting of T.O.P led to some thinking Netflix is holding double standards. T.O.P had been charged with smoking marijuana and had hinted he would be quitting the entertainment industry. He also has not acted in seven years, with his last acting job being in 2016. Recently, Netflix had actors who became embroiled in controversy removed, such as Yoo Ah In being removed from Hellbound and the delay of the release of The Match, where he also stars. Kim Sae Ron was also partially edited out of Bloodhounds following her DUI.
Dispatch asked T.O.P’s representatives if he auditioned for the role, and were told that nothing could be stated. Netflix also did not respond to Dispatch’s request for a statement.
We cannot say anything other than the official statement from Netflix.
— T.O.P’s representative
Following Dispatch’s report, both Lee Jung Jae’s agency Artist Company and Netflix have told MBC they are looking into Dispatch’s report.
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