The ratings for the reality show "We Got Married" fell after a leaked video clip showed a heated exchange of words between actress Lee Tae Im and former Jewelry singer Yewon.
The words were exchanged when Yewon and Lee Tae Im appeared on the program "Tutoring Across Generations" in February. Although it was previously rumored that Lee Tae Im picked a fight with Yewon, the clips showed that Yewon, 25, acted in a disrespectful manner by speaking informally to the 28-year-old Lee Tae Im. In Korea younger people are expected to use honorifics when addressing anyone older.
After the "Tutoring Across Generations" incident took place, Lee Tae Im's agency said that the actress was upset by the way Yewon spoke to her but Yewon's agency Star Empire said that she never spoke informally to her.
According to Korea's media outlet Joongang Daily, the incident prompted Lee Tae Im to leave the show. And negative publicity surrounding the event prompted her to drop out of "My Heart Shines," the drama she appeared in with co-stars Bae Soo Bin and Nam Bo Ra. She cited health reasons for leaving the drama's cast and her character was written out of the story.
On March 27, a video clip of the "Tutoring Across Generations" exchange was leaked out. The clip showed Yewon cursing and yelling at Lee Tae Im. Netizens commenting in My Daily said that after viewing the leaked clip it looked as if Yewon did provoke Lee Tae Im by speaking informally and that she should not be playing the victim.
Netizens expressed their disappointment in Yewon by leaving comments on the "We Got Married" page. Some commenters asked that Yewon be removed and that her virtual husband SuperJunior M's Henry be matched with a better candidate. Some called for a boycott of the show.
And that did have an effect on the next episode's ratings. Although the program's previous episode earned ratings of 4.8, the ratings dropped to 3.9 percent on March 28. Those ratings are low for "We Got Married. Episodes of the show with other stars have enjoyed ratings as high as 7.8 percent.
According to TV Report, Yewon did not even appear in the most recent segment of "We Got Married" as her virtual husband Henry had other commitments and could not take part in filming.
When asked about Yewon continuing with the program, the show's producers say that nothing has been decided yet.