Goodbye Earth star Yoo Ah-in removed most of her scenes from the Netflix series following the controversy surrounding the Korean actress.
The dystopian sci-fi drama hit the service on April 26, introducing audiences to the story of Earth just months before an asteroid wipes out all life on the planet.
Yoo Ah-in plays one of the main characters of the Korean series, Yoon Sang-eun, who is the longtime lover of the main character Jin Se-kyung (played by Ahn Eun-jin).
Yoo Ah’s cut from Goodbye Earth
Goodbye Earth Director Kim Jin-min addressed the partial removal of star Yoo Ah-in from the series following the controversy surrounding the South Korean actress.
Yoo was indicted on drug charges in October 2023, which is a big taboo in Korea. This effectively ended his career in Korean TV and movies.
Kim told Korean news magazine Nate shortly after her Netflix series premiered “edited inconvenient parts” included actress Yoon Sang-eun, but couldn’t remove her entirely for story reasons:
“I edited out the uncomfortable parts, but I couldn’t remove him completely because he was a big part of the story.”
By Goodbye Earth director, he “I never suspected that this series (was published)” but I knew Yoo’s drug charges would change the series significantly (via Korea Herald):
“Although there was a lot of time to wait, I never doubted that this series would be revealed. It was destiny to come out into the world and meet the public.”
Fortunately, this happened, as Kim already considered “edit(s) full story:”
“When the problem broke out, I was actually editing the third episode. I just happened to think that I wanted to edit the story again when I realized some new, important parts in the later episodes. So I edited as a whole”
After going on trial in December 2023, Yoo faced another trial in January on charges of habitual drug use and illegal procurement of medical drugs (including 1,100 sleeping pills under the names of 44 other people), according to the Times of India.
She has since lost her role as the lead in the second season of the South Korean drama In hell due to controversy and was pulled from several ad campaigns featuring the actor.
How Yoo Ah-in’s absence effect is Goodbye Earth
Although Yoo Ah-in may have filmed Netflix Goodbye Earth as one of the show’s biggest stars, that’s no longer the case.
Instead, as revealed by director Kim Jin-min, he only appears at critical points in the story that couldn’t be cut, and he’s gone for the rest of the series.
This is hardly the first time a character’s role has been significantly changed in post-production (ie Amber Heard Aquaman 2). Still, it’s a prominent example given Yoo’s status as a rising star in Korean television and film.
This is a young actor who has gained a lot of fame in recent years for his work in Korean titles such as In hell, #Aliveand an international hit Burn.
However, his image has been significantly tarnished. Drug use is highly frowned upon in Korean culture, and being the subject of accusations like Yoo’s can be career-ending.
Should Goodbye Earth given a second season (which seems unlikely given the fiery end to the first season), it’s safe to assume that Yoo won’t be involved in any way, as the show’s creative will decide to either recast or shut her down.
Goodbye Earth now streaming on Netflix.
