The ‘Squid Game‘ actor has been nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama for his performance in the hit Korean show. This is not only the first time that the Korean actor has been nominated for the award but ‘Squid Game’ made history as the first non-English series to be nominated for Best Television Series – Drama. Veteran actor O Yeong Su is also nominated for Best Supporting Actor – Television.
On January 5, Lee Jung Jae’s agency issued a statement announcing the star’s decision to skip the ceremony. According to Soompi, the Artist Company said in a statement, “Lee Jung Jae is immensely grateful to have been nominated in the Best Actor category at the Golden Globes, but he has decided not to attend the ceremony. He recognizes that Netflix is not participating in the Golden Globes, as has been widely reported around the world. He also made the decision considering other factors like the COVID-19 situation and the quarantine requirements.”
This update comes shortly after reports confirmed that the Golden Globes will go ahead with no celebrity presenters, audience or media, owing to the boycott over ethical lapses by its organizers.
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association — which votes on the Globes — has been accused of racism, sexism, bullying and corruption, with television rights-holder NBC last year pulling the plug on its annual awards broadcast.
Nonetheless, honours in film and television will be announced from the Globes’ usual Beverly Hills hotel venue, in a program the organization said was set to highlight “the long-established philanthropy work of the HFPA.”
Allegations of racism in the Golden Globes were also brought up when ‘Minari’ won the Best Foreign Language Film category last year despite being produced by an American production company, written and directed by a Korean-American, and centred around the Korean-American experience. At the time, the Golden Globes said that the film had been nominated in that category because more than half of the film was “not in English.”
Lee Jung Jae who is a favourite this awards season was scheduled to attend the Critics Choice Awards, which will be held around the same time as the Golden Globes, but cancelled his U.S. visit due to the COVID-19 situation.
