Netflix series 'Celebrity' exposes dark side of glitzy social media influencers: director

▲ Kim Cheol-kyu, director of the Netflix series "Celebrity," is seen in this photo provided by Netflix. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

▲ A scene from the Netflix series "Celebrity" is seen in this photo provided by Netflix. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

Netflix series-director

Netflix series 'Celebrity' exposes dark side of glitzy social media influencers: director

By Kim Eun-jung

SEOUL, July 3 (Yonhap) -- The Netflix drama series "Celebrity" follows the meteoric rise and tragic fall of a social media influencer to reveal the secrets behind the extravagant world where hierarchy is defined by the number of followers and rankings, its director said Monday.

Released on Friday, the 12-part show revolves around Seo Ari (played by Park Gyu-young), a cosmetics salesperson who finds herself in the midst of sudden social media stardom.

With the help of millions of her Instagram followers, Ari opens an online shopping mall and then ventures into a new fashion and cosmetics brand. Social media fame, however, puts her in danger as she is bombarded with hateful messages.

Director Kim Cheol-kyu, behind such TV series as "Mother" (2018) and "Flower of Evil" (2020), said he wanted to deal with the good and bad sides of social media use as it has become a mainstream trend in the digitalized society in "Celebrity."

"This drama realistically portrays the extravagant, envious world of top social media influencers while touching on such issues as voyeurism and aggression behind online anonymity," Kim said during a media group interview.

Kim said he hadn't personally used social media before working on the project, but he created a new Instagram account to gain first-hand experience of what he called "hot and hip" trends.

In the show, influencers with millions of followers are described as new mega celebrities. Popular lifestyle and beauty influencers live in luxury apartments with river views, drive supercars and wear luxury clothes, which are shown off through photos and live streaming posts to their followers.

"In this world, the number of followers and rankings define the value and treatment of the influencers," Kim said. "I'm not saying whether that's appropriate or not, but I wanted to show the reality."

While Ari becomes a top influencer with "cheat codes," the instant fame doesn't come without risks.

A mysterious follower with the nickname bbb_famous shares dirty secrets of other influencers with Ari to allow her to weaponize the information against them, but the follower later becomes her worst enemy.

Kim said bbb-famous represents those who exert huge influence in cyberspace but are ordinary individuals in the real world.

"The character is a symbolic figure that represents people's greed, jealousy, voyeurism and aggression behind anonymity in the realm of social networking sites," he said.

Although the drama is focused on the luxury and glitzy world of celebrities and social elites, Kim said he wanted to shed light on major social issues, such as cyberbullying and drug use, to deliver messages to viewers.

"Cyberbullying is a serious crime. It is a violent act that can drive a person to extremes. I wanted to bring attention to the problems that are prevalent in our society," he said. "I also touched on the issue of drugs in order to arouse interest. I find drugs to be extremely terrifying, and I realized that they have infiltrated our surroundings more than I thought. I hope the drama can raise awareness."

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