Nam Joo-hyuk of “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo” fame came to visit Manila for a fan convention and understandably, many a fangirl was thrilled.
With him was K-pop star Sandara Park, a.k.a. Dara who traces her showbiz roots to the Philippines.
Thousands of fans filled the Mall of Asia Arena for a chance to see their idols. Among them, 200 lucky fans chosen through an electronic raffle were given meet-and-greet passes.
Some netizens expressed that this portion put a sour note on the event because of how Joo-hyuk was treated.
Videos from the FanCon show a mob of girls shoving to get close to Joo-hyuk, to the point that bouncers had to step in and act as human shields. One over-eager fan even managed to grab his hand and hold it tight.
An initially relaxed Joo-hyuk appears to be flustered and clasped his hands together as girls tugged at his arms, even if the program’s hosts reminded them not to hold him.
https://twitter.com/YgStanxxi/status/1023523371135320070
“Some fans from the M&G [meet and greet] just really don’t have manners and discipline,” lamented one fan Angela Lara (@xoxogHeLa21).
She shared a video of the frenzied fans and wrote, “To these people you know who you are go watch yourselves and let’s see if what you did to Joohyuk is something to be proud of.”
“If you’re really a fan you will RESPECT your idols and prioritize their safety, comfort and personal space not your own selfish desires,” she said.
“He couldn’t even smile during the last photo op because people were inappropriately touching/hugging him,” another fan Gia (@oppatheexplorer) observed.
One Anneca (@ishiemaru) shared a series of photos which shows Joo-hyuk’s mood changing during the meet and greet. “I’m still mad/disappointed at what happened yesterday. Dara was pushed aside and Joohyuk was harassed. You can clearly see how much his facial expression has changed.”
A Nam Joo-hyuk fan account has even written an apology to both Dara and Joo-hyuk for the incident.
Help us extend our sincere apologies to Nam Joo Hyuk and Dara through retweeting this tweet. Thank you! 🙏🏻@nam6310@krungy21 #NamJooHyuk#남주혁 #南柱赫 #skawngur #NamJooHyukXPenshoppe #PenshoppeFancon #PenshoppePresentsNamJooHyuk #namjoohyukph pic.twitter.com/ULMvxNGXV1
— NAMJOOHYUK 남주혁 PHILIPPINES 🇵🇭 (@NJHPhilippines) July 30, 2018
“In behalf of all the fans from the Philippines, we, the NJHph would like to extend our sincerest apologies to Nam Joo Hyuk as well as to Dara for what happened last night during the Penshoppe Fan Con Meet and Greet Photo Opportunity. We know many are disappointed [at] how some fans showed their excitement upon seeing him [up-close] on stage. Nevertheless, we ask for forgiveness on what had transpired,” the fan group appealed. JB
RELATED STORIES:
4 adorable times Nam Joo-hyuk showed his love for basketball
Nam Joo Hyuk is the newest face of Penshoppe
Sandara Park indulges 2NE1 fans with special performance