Jisoo acted scared to show comedy, domestic fans reacted violently, should she only be a singer?

" Newtopia " - a zombie -themed movie is attracting attention with the presence of Jisoo (BlackPink). After 2 episodes aired, the female idol's acting and radio were discussed, creating a mixed debate.

Released on February 7, Newtopia is an 8-episode series by Coupang Play, set in a desolate Seoul due to the zombie epidemic, telling the journey of soldier Jae Yoon (played by Park Jung Min) and his girlfriend Young Joo (Jisoo) to find each other.

Jisoo portrays the image of a young girl struggling with work pressure and insecurity when a long-distance relationship is in danger of cracking. Park Jung Min plays a late enlisted soldier, who faces harsh challenges in the army, but is always firm thanks to his deep feelings for his lover.

Newtopia appeared with the ambition to combine zombie elements and romantic comedy (zom-com). However, to make a difference in the already saturated zombie movie market is not easy.

After 2 episodes, the series became the most viewed series on the first day of Coupang Play's premiere and left many mixed reactions. Some viewers feel that the content is too light compared to zombie movies, but for those who like movies that reflect reality, Newtopia can bring a lot of emotions.

The most interesting point in Newtopia is Jisoo's acting. Many viewers think that Jisoo has problems with pronunciation and emotional expression, making it difficult for them to immerse themselves in the character. Some comments also compared the way she spoke with the comedy style of actress Ji Ye Eun in the SNL Korea program.

"I thought Ji Ye Eun was acting", "Her pronunciation is so boring", "The problem is not only in acting, but in the radio, this is very difficult to overcome, it may be like this forever" - Sports Khan newspaper quoted comments from netizens. Some viewers also recalled the controversy from the movie Snowdrop, saying that Jisoo has not improved after the negative feedback.

Before Newtopia was launched, Jisoo was under a lot of pressure from the public. Only through short trailers, she was criticized by the audience for being a radio station, creating a wave of skepticism about her acting ability. According to Sports Khan, Jisoo has made progress in terms of acting, but the problem of radio has not been completely overcome.

At the press conference for the launch of Newtopia, the director shared: "Working with Jisoo is not difficult. Since Snowdrop, she hasn't acted in a movie for a long time, so I was also worried at first about whether she could take on the role."

He emphasized that Jisoo is not an actor who was well-trained from a formal school, so the crew arranged for her to have four sessions a week to read the script and practice acting. The director praised: "Before filming, she prepared everything very well."

Overall, Newtopia is not a groundbreaking zombie movie, but it has its own style when it comes to exploiting different perspectives.

With entertainment as the core, Newtopia owns a simple script, constantly intertwined between drama and humor. The film installs many details reminiscent of a series of recent events in South Korea such as plane crashes, the declaration of martial law, and the character of chef Jung is reminiscent of Ma Dong Seok's role in Train to Busan (2016). However, the comedic and noisy array in the first 2 episodes made the film slip, the characters also became blurry.

Putting aside the debate, according to Korean media, Newtopia recorded a record viewership on the Coupang Play platform. The February "Consumer Insights" report shows that the series starring Jisoo leads in two categories: Identity and Audience Engagement. After the first 2 episodes, Newtopia only aired one episode every week until it ended in early March.

Jisoo learns martial arts, ready to "fight" with the other 3 members of Blackpink JLO21:36:10 08/01/2025On January 7, the Coupang Play platform held a production press conference for the new drama Newtopia, with the participation of director Yoon Sung Hyun and the two main actors Park Jung Min and Jisoo (Blackpink).