Ryu Si-won signs on as representative of Korean tourism in Japan

Actor Ryu Si-won is set to become the new face of Korean tourism for a Japanese travel agency.

The Hallyu star’s agency, RS Company, stated on Dec. 21 that Ryu has signed a one-year contract cementing the deal with the agency, H.I.S. In his job, the Korean actor will be responsible for the promotion of tourism in Korea to the Japanese public.

“To promote travels to Korea, we selected a candidate who we thought was most popular and effective,” a representative from H.I.S. said.

Ryu has filmed two 15-second commercials so far with the themes “Let’s go to Korea” and “You are the character of your drama” to air on Japanese television from next month. The commercials also include one song from Ryu’s Japanese album, which was released in October, and a new song to be featured in an album that will be launched in March.

“I liked the idea of raising awareness about Korea to the Japanese population. Therefore, I accepted the offer,” Ryu said.

From early November, the actor-turned-singer has been performing in a 16-show concert tour of Japan, stopping in eight different cities. The finale concert will take place on Dec. 21 at Saitama Super Arena.

By Carla Sunwoo [carlasunwoo@joongang.co.kr]