Godfrey Gao death: when China’s obsession with Korean reality TV took a deadly turn
- When Taiwanese actor Godfrey Gao died while filming Chinese reality show Chase Me, questions were raised about the intense working culture on set
- China has copied various Korean variety shows – despite criticisms they play fast and loose with the safety of celebrities
He fell and lost consciousness while making the show, after reportedly suffering from the flu and working for 17 hours straight before his death.
He mentioned his experiences while filming the road trip reality show 2 Days & 1 Night, adapted from the South Korean original, during which he could “barely breathe” and “almost died” because the producers told him to climb the 10,000-step Mount Qingcheng twice. Wu added that Koreans were the “originators” of the intense working culture that forces 30 cameras to document every second and angle on set.
Online commenters in South Korea derided Wu as “brainless” for his statements and claimed he followed a “crazy logic”. One person even urged others to “stop spending money in Taiwan”.
Variety shows have been a staple of South Korea’s television industry since the 1990s and include musical performances, talk shows, travel competitions and eating shows known as mukbang.
“The level of struggles that is expected from a celebrity on TV shows is very high these days so it doesn’t make sense for producers to say they didn’t expect any injuries during filming,” culture critic Ha Jae-geun told YTN.