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BLACKPINK’s Jisoo's fans took to social media after Newsen published an interview with Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint director Kim Byung-woo on July 17, 2025. In the interview, he responded to criticism surrounding the singer-actress and her casting in the upcoming action-fantasy film.
The backlash started with fans who might not have been familiar with the source material. They complained that the production misled audiences by marketing Jisoo as a main character despite her limited screen time.
The director explained that the K-pop idol's character, Lee Ji-hye, appears only halfway through the film. He noted that, although the character was important in the original novel, the film’s structure made it hard to introduce her earlier.
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To ensure the character left an impression, he cast someone with strong public recognition. He stated that without Jisoo's fame, the role might have been overlooked entirely. As per the Newsen report, he said,
"Lee Ji-hye' appears in the middle of the movie, so I thought that someone who the public would be familiar with should appear so that they would be able to ask, 'Who is she?""
He emphasized that no parts of her appearance were cut, and what was filmed matched the original script. Fans were quick to express frustration. Many accused the production of using BLACKPINK’s global popularity to attract attention to the film, calling it deceptive. An X user, @meirixitu, wrote,
"If the first film's plot didn't even include the naval war, and a cameo with barely five minutes of screen time gets promoted overseas as the female lead — exploiting Jisoo to hype your movie is disgusting."
Some pointed out that promotional material heavily featured her despite the character being more of a cameo. A few also criticized the director’s comments. They claimed that they came across as dismissive or even humiliating.
"I am literally shocked like how he promoted her since it was announced using her picture in his header. Like I wasn't expecting something huge but 5 minutes ??? Like that's a cameo at this point and they used every bit of her influence all those sooyas who bought tickets just," a fan mentioned.
"Just nasty, nasty people. Hope she never work or even in contact with this director and production team anymore," an X user wrote.
"Only use jisoo's name and fame and make unnecessary changes that made Jisoo got a lot of hates just because that fucking role who only appears less than 5 minutes! You're the worst! @Shywdy. I hope you will not meet nasty people like him in the future @officialBLISSOO," a netizen added.
"he really said jihye only stands out because of ji soo's fame... like??? not because jisoo can act??? the disrespect is unreal," another one said.
Social media was flooded with remarks denouncing how the singer was seemingly used for publicity. Fans voiced their disappointment in the casting decisions and marketing choices.
"Jisoo loved the original work of ORV and agreed to the project, even took up action classes. Just for the director to change her character's appearance and weapon, "unsure" of how to utilise her throughout the movie, and she appears for 5 minutes at the latter part...," an X user wrote.
"i said what i said when i say i'm not watching this shit, not even a single retweet. I really want to support her hardwork but the director pissed me off everytime he talk abt ji soo/ her role," a fan remarked.
"Knowing all these, yet using her as the face of your promotion posters so her fans can hype your movie is so disgusting. May Jisoo be kept far away from directors like this in the future," a netizen added.
More about the film, Jisoo’s character, and recent solo activities
Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint is based on the popular web novel of the same name. The story follows Kim Dok-ja (played by Ahn Hyo-seop), who is the only reader of a fictional universe that suddenly becomes real. With the original novel’s protagonist Yoo Jung-hyuk (Lee Min-ho), Dok-ja must survive a collapsing world filled with deadly scenarios.
Other cast members include Chae Soo-bin, Shin Seung-ho, and Nana. Jisoo plays Lee Ji-hye, a high school student and skilled fighter. She follows Yoo Jung-hyuk and believes that survival justifies any means. While fans of the novel expected the character’s iconic sword style to carry over into the film, the adaptation showed her using a gun instead.
The director said this choice was made to make her stand out visually and diversify the film’s action. However, it sparked additional backlash from fans of the original story. They felt the change undermined the character's essence.
Outside of acting, Jisoo has kept busy. Earlier this year, she released her solo EP Amortage on Valentine’s Day, featuring the title track Earthquake.
She also starred in the K-drama Newtopia and is currently touring with BLACKPINK for their 2025 world tour, DEADLINE, which began on July 5 in Seoul.
