'Pachinko' star Jin Ha apologizes for inappropriate blog posts
Jin Ha poses during an interview with Korean media outlets, in Los Angeles, March 17 (local time). Courtesy of Apple TV+
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Korean-American actor Jin Ha, who plays Solomon Baek in Apple TV+'s “Pachinko,” has apologized for his Tumblr blog featuring photos of Korean middle-aged and older women, taken without their consent, along with sexually suggestive captions.
Ha posted 90 photos of Korean women on his “Korean Flowers in Bloom” Tumbler account from July 2010 to September 2011. Most of the photos were taken on subways or streets, and the women's faces were not pixelated.
He left sexually harassing comments in the captions of some photos, saying “Working with such a provocative model, I found it hard to keep myself and my concupiscence under control,” and, “Now we have an excuse to stare directly at her right nipple.”
The actor's decade-old account drew attention after Ha's latest series, “Pachinko,” premiered on March 25. The multilingual show stars Korean actors Youn Yuh-jung, Lee Min-ho and Kim Min-ha.
Ha admitted that he was at fault, and apologized for his demeaning behavior and language toward the women.
“My 'Korean Flowers in Bloom' Tumblr account from 2011 should not have been made at all. It was a breach of privacy for the elder women, and many of my captions were inappropriate. I deeply regret my actions, and I apologize for them,” he wrote in a statement on his personal website, Saturday.
Ha said he requested Tumblr to delete his account, which was done immediately.
He added: “I sincerely apologize to the senior women whom I photographed. I apologize, as well, to the viewers whom I offended with this Tumblr account. I will work diligently to learn from this mistake so that I may never repeat it going forward.”
Ha had roles in TV series “Devs” and the Chicago production of musical “Hamilton.”
Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Min Jin Lee, “Pachinko” tells the story of a Korean immigrant family across four generations, from the perspective of Sunja (Kim Min-ha), the family's matriarch.
The story starts from the early life of Sunja, born to a hard-working family in the southern port city of Busan during the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-45), to the later years of her life, building up a life for her son, slot machine (pachinko) parlor owner Mozasu (Soji Arai) and his son, Wall Street whiz kid Solomon (Ha).