Ryan Reynolds recalls ‘horrible’ memories of ‘Masked Singer’ appearance in Korea

Actor Ryan Reynolds described his experience of appearing in the Korean TV show “The King of Masked Singer” back in 2018 as “being in actual hell,” during a recent interview.

Reynolds appeared on NBC's Today show on Monday to promote his upcoming movie “Spirited” with Will Ferrell and Octavia Spencer, during which he talked about why he appeared on the Korean show.

"Masked Singer," which is still airing on South Korea's MBC TV, has masked celebrities sing in front of an audience and a panel of stars who try to guess who is behind the mask.

At the time, Reynolds was on an international tour to promote “Deadpool 2.”

“I’ve been doing this job a long time, and when you go on these international tours, you start to say, ‘What’s the weirdest show you can do?” the Marvel star said. Upon hearing the concept of the show, he was adamant on making an appearance.

On the May 15, 2018, episode of the “Masked Singer,” Reynolds appeared with a unicorn mask on his face and sang “Tomorrow” from the musical “Annie,” after which he said “Hello, everybody. I’m so sorry about that song.”

The show was a major hit, and a legitimate surprise for the Korean audience, as no Hollywood star had ever appeared on the program at the time. But the experience was not entirely pleasant for Reynolds, apparently.

“What’s crazy is I was in actual hell,” he said. “When I was there, I was like, ‘Why did I sign up to do this? This is horrible! This is truly horrible! I don’t know this song. I don’t know how to do this’.”

Buoyed by its popularity, the MBC program was transformed into an international franchise, including the ongoing US version “The Masked Singer” that premiered on Fox in January 2019.