Gong Yoo Heads to Cambodia as Special Representative for UNICEF

I enjoy glossy magazine spreads of my favorite actors and actresses as much as anyone out there. But occasionally the overly posed and manufactured nature of packaged entertainment does numb the soul so it’s much appreciated to come across lovely pictures of the wonderful real side of an actor I like so much. Gong Yoo has been absent from K-dramas since Big two years ago and I’ll argue he hasn’t missed out on anything. His last movie The Suspect was a box office hit and his upcoming forbidden romance movie A Man and a Woman with Jeon Do Yeon is primed for critical acclaim. On the accolades front, he was named a top taxpayer (along with Ha Ji Won) by the Korean tax authorities, and followed that up being doing a stint as an ambassador for the agency. He’s also been working with UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) this past year as a special representative, and recently took a week long trip to Cambodia working hands on with the agency to help children in need.

Of course Gong Yoo isn’t going to singlehandedly solve the underprivileged children crises around the world, but he is using his fame for a good cause to raise further awareness of a situation that can always use more financial and manpower support. Plus he made a bunch of kids in Cambodia really happy for the week he was there, it’s the little things he does so warmly which make me like him so much. He joined UNICEF specifically after doing the movie Silenced (The Crucible) and felt firsthand the plight of children who had no one to speak up for their pain and suffering.