Why Jun Ji-Hyun? WHY!?!?

Hello Class. Unfortunately, I have bad news. The pretty actress Jun Ji-Hyun recently announced that she is engaged to an undisclosed man. HA! Just kidding! But seriously, Jun Ji-Hyun has disappointed me by announcing that her on-screen name for English productions will be Gianna Jun. Yeah, the name is exotic, but so is her regular Korean name. It hurts me to hear that such a prominent actress like Jun Ji-Hyun would sell out like this and basically renounce her Korean roots by “Americanizing” what everyone in West will know her by. I guess one could argue that the new name as a form of glocalization to the English audience; however, there are famous stars that retained their Korean names: Kim Yun-jin from “Lost”, Sung Kim from The Fast and the Furious 3: Tokyo Drift. Plus, think of all the Chinese stars that kept their Chinese names like Ziyi Zhang. If you’re going to change your name into something exotic and non-Korean, why keep the last name? By changing her name to some Italian-almost African name, Ji-Hyun is basically denouncing her Korean identity. Where is the Korean pride? Gahhh, somebody please tell me Gianna Jun is a whack name. Whack yo!

	Jun Goes to Hollywood
	By Cathy Rose A. Garcia Staff Reporter Korean actress Jun Ji-hyun advances to Hollywood. Korea, say goodbye for now to Jun Ji-hyun. Hollywood, say hello to Gianna Jun. Jun, one of the top Hallyu stars, is undergoing a name change as she makes her debut in Hollywood. Her management agency SidusHQ recently announced Jun has been cast in the role of a vampire hunter named Saya in the film ``Blood: The Last Vampire.’’ The film is a remake of a Japanese anime film by Oshii Mamoru. For her first Hollywood role, Jun has decided to change her name to Gianna Jun. This move has drawn mixed reactions from her fans. Her agency said Jun will use the Italian-sounding name Gianna for her roles in the United States and other English-speaking countries. Jun will still use her Korean name in Asia, where she is already well known. . Jun’s name change is in contrast to actress Kim Yun-jin, who retained her name when she moved to Hollywood. Kim stars in the hit TV series ``Lost.’’ Although ``Blood: The Last Vampire’’ is still in production and will be released in 2008, Jun’s involvement in the film has attracted a lot of attention. The action-packed film will be shot entirely in English. Jun has reportedly been studying hard to learn English for the past few months. The film will also star Allison Miller, who has appeared in guest roles in ``Desperate Housewives,’’ ``CSI’’ and ``Cold Case.’’ Jun’s move to Hollywood has drawn comparisons to Chinese actress Ziyi Zhang, who attracted Hollywood’s attention with her role in the successful film ``Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.’’ Zhang is known for her marital arts roles in films like ``Hero’’ and ``House of Flying Daggers,’’ but has moved on to roles in English films such as ``Memoirs of a Geisha.’’ She is now considered one of the most well known Asian stars in Hollywood. Jun started her career as a model and debuted as an actress in ``White Valentine’’ in 1999. However, it was her role in ``My Sassy Girl’’ (2001) that undoubtedly made Jun a star. Since then she has not had a hit film. Her films ``The Uninvited’’ (2003), ``Windstruck’’ (2004) and ``Daisy’’ (2006) performed dismally at the Korean box office. Despite this, Jun is still considered one of the top stars when it comes to advertising. She continues to appear in dozens of commercials for cosmetics, beverages and cell phones. Jun may be hoping to leave behind her losing streak at the Korean box office when she goes to Hollywood. Hollywood is already familiar with Jun’s works, such as ``Il Mare,’’ which was remade as ``Lake House’’ starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. The Hollywood remake of ``My Sassy Girl’’ is currently in production. Elisha Cuthbert, who is known for her role as Kimberly Bauer in the TV series ``24,’’ will play Jun’s role. Also starring in the movie is Jesse Bradford, who starred in ``Flags of Our Fathers’’ and ``Bring it On.’’ The film is scheduled to be released later this year. cathy@koreatimes.co.kr 03-20-2007 20:00