PD Kim Min-jong. Provided by Wavve.
Kim Min-jong, PD of the Wavve survival variety show ‘Betting on Fact’, which drew attention for Jang Dong-min and his ‘overwhelming play’, spoke out about some reactions calling it a ‘board tailored for Jang Dong-min’.
At a joint interview held on the 12th at the Content Wavve headquarters in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, PD Kim Min-jong said, “It was absolutely not a board rigged for Jang Dong-min.”
In the finale released on the 8th, Jang Dong-min took the win, setting a record of ‘five consecutive survival victories’. As a result, online there were also reactions that his very participation, known as a survival powerhouse, was a “balance collapse (balbung)”.
On this, PD Kim explained, “In retrospect it may look that way, but at the planning stage we were curious what picture would emerge if players with news expertise went up against players strong in gameplay.” He added, “Even the production team did not expect Jang Dong-min to infer as if possessed to that degree. It really is a retrospective remark.”
Regarding reactions that the performances of the other cast members were relatively weak, he said, “It is that Jang Dong-min showed such an outstanding performance,” and evaluated, “Rather than other players doing poorly, the know-how of Jang Dong-min was so exceptional that he could reverse-engineer the intentions of the production team.”
In particular, as he watched the play of Jang Dong-min, PD Kim said, “It was to the point of wondering whether he was really a shaman,” expressing astonishment. He recalled, “From the monitoring room, we watched every moment in admiration as we proceeded with filming and editing.”
He continued, “Even early on, we did not anticipate a victory by Jang Dong-min,” and added, “Seeing him win by turning even the topic of news into gameplay filled me with awe.”
Meanwhile, the Wavve Original ‘Betting on Fact’ is a reality news game show in which, in an era awash with fake news, contestants gathered in a space isolated from the outside world distinguish true news from fake news. Helmouse, Jin Jung-kwon, Lee Yong-jin, Ye-won, Kang Jeon-ae, and Park Seong-min appeared.
