Actress Jun Ji Hyun is reportedly facing an unprecedented boycott in China over her new drama, Tempest.

Chinese media outlet 163 recently reported that Jun Ji Hyun is receiving scathing criticism for her role as some have deemed her new K-Drama of including content offensive to China. Consequently, Chinese netizens have launched a boycott of the actress, demanding she be banned from events and broadcasts in the country.

Her popularity faltering in China has also put pressure on major luxury brands that she represents, such as La Mer, Louis Vuitton, and Piaget. A large number of netizens are rallying behind calls for companies to cut ties with the actress, threatening to boycott the brands themselves if they do not comply. As per reports, the customer service hotlines for some of these brands in China have recently been bombarded with complaints.

The controversy stems from a scene in Tempest, where Jun Ji Hyun's character makes a remark, "Why does China have a preference for war?" Netizens were also left outraged by the misrepresentation of the Chinese city of Dalian in the K-Drama as an area of shabby shanties when, in reality, it is a modern coastal town that looks nothing like what was shown on screen. The actual scenes were shot in Hong Kong.

The frequent use of Chinese by villainous characters and Jun Ji Hyun's wrong reading of Li Bai's poem in one scene have also contributed to the growing outrage.

Due to the severe backlash, Piaget reportedly removed advertisements featuring Jun Ji Hyun from Chinese shopping platforms. Louis Vuitton's Weibo posts featuring the actress were also inundated with negative comments.

Some netizens have defended Jun, arguing that she was simply following the script. However, others countered, stating that as one of the leading K-Drama stars, she had enough influence to correct these misrepresentations of China if she really wanted to.

Despite the fury of netizens, outdoor billboards of the actress are still up in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Nanjing.

As a Korean actress, Jun Ji Hyun has enjoyed immense popularity in China since 2013, when her K-Drama, My Love from the Star, exploded in popularity in the country. Initially, Chinese audiences also enthusiastically supported Jun's return to the K-Drama scene with Tempest after a long break. The first three episodes achieved high viewership, but from episodes 4 and 5, the ratings have suffered due to the calls for a boycott.