A man surnamed Lee, who drew attention online for his resemblance to actor Cha Eun-woo. [Instagram capture]
A man surnamed Lee, who drew attention online for his resemblance to actor Cha Eun-woo. [Instagram capture]

"Let's do Mr. Trot."

A young fish-shaped bread vendor who went viral for his resemblance to actor Cha Eun-woo said he received offers to enter the entertainment industry — and turned them down.

On Thursday, the vendor, identified only by his surname Lee, opened a Threads account from his stall in Cheolsan-dong, Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, introducing himself as "a young man baking fish-shaped bread in Gwangmyeong."

His account gained 4,000 followers in a single day, and his posts racked up 1.2 million views, drawing wide attention online.

[Instagram capture]
[Instagram capture]

Some commenters suggested the social media buzz was a prelude to an entertainment debut. Lee confirmed he had in fact received an offer from TV Chosun's popular singing competition show Mr. Trot, but declined. "I only got the offer," he said. "When would I find time to sing? I have bread to bake."

When one user posted on Threads that the pattern — "fish-shaped bread business, social media launch, entertainment debut" — pointed to an imminent debut, Lee pushed back. "I'm sorry, but I started selling without any thought of debuting," he said.

Lee had already built a following online through word of mouth for his resemblance to actor Cha Eun-woo. Female customers flocked to his stall, forming long queues, and visitor reviews appeared online describing waits of around two hours just to buy his fish-shaped bread.


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