Actor Song Joong-ki made a special appearance in episode 8 of tvN’s drama “Queen of Tears”, which aired on March 31st, as mafia lawyer Vincenzo, his role in the popular 2021 drama “Vincenzo”.
Apart from the conversation that recalled Song Joong-ki’s representative works, such as “A Werewolf Boy” (2012), “Descendants of the Sun” (2016), “Space Sweepers” (2021), “Vincenzo” (2021) and “Reborn Rich” (2022), Song Joong-ki’s line also reminded viewers of his controversial divorce with actress Song Hye-kyo.
In the scene where Vincenzo shows up as Hong Hae-in (Kim Ji-won)’s divorce lawyer and discusses the divorce with her husband Baek Hyun-woo (Kim Soo-hyun), Vincenzo gets angry upon hearing the divorce reason “unable to overcome differences” stated by Baek Hyun-woo’s lawyer and he even swears in Italian. Vincenzo explains that such an excuse would make the public think Hae-in’s husband divorced her due to her bad personality. Later, Vincenzo suggests other reasons, such as “They became estranged due to busy schedules”, “They agree to be good friends”, and “They wish the best things for each other”.
Upon hearing that, Hong Hae-in doesn’t agree with the last sentence. However, Vincenzo says, “To what I see, no one has ever done that. It’s just an excuse”.
In response to the scene, netizens pointed out that Song Joong-ki’s lines about divorce reasons are among the most common excuses made by Korean celebrity couples when they break up or divorce. In fact, when Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo divorced in 2019, Song Hye-kyo’s agency explained that “the two were unable to overcome differences in personalities”, while Song Joong-ki’s side refused to disclose details of the divorce and proceeded with the divorce process privately. Therefore, some even wondered if the actor was mocking his ex-wife with the line in “Queen of Tears”.
However, a lot of people defended Song Joong-ki, saying the lines were written by the writer and the actor had nothing to do with it. In addition, not only Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo but many other Korean star couples also used the same reason for their divorces.
In the meantime, Song Joong-ki’s cameo appearance helped “Queen of Tears” break its highest rating record by reaching 16.1%. The actor also gained favorable reviews for his short but impressive performance after facing various controversies in 2023.
2023 was an eventful year for Song Joong-ki. After remarrying Katy Louise Saunders and welcoming his first child, the actor suffered various rumors and harsh criticism from netizens for a long time. It was because he began dating Katy only a few months after divorcing from Song Hye-kyo. Moreover, he also faced controversies over his personality and attitudes during interviews and press events.
