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BTS Singer Jimin Hospitalized for Appendicitis, Tests Positive for COVID-19

Jimin tested positive for coronavirus and also underwent surgery for acute appendicitis. (AFP)
Jimin tested positive for coronavirus and also underwent surgery for acute appendicitis. (AFP)
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BTS Singer Jimin Hospitalized for Appendicitis, Tests Positive for COVID-19

Jimin tested positive for coronavirus and also underwent surgery for acute appendicitis. (AFP)
Jimin tested positive for coronavirus and also underwent surgery for acute appendicitis. (AFP)

Jimin, a singer and dancer with the K-pop group BTS, has tested positive for coronavirus and also underwent surgery for acute appendicitis, his management agency Big Hit Music said on Monday.

Jimin, whose full name is Park Ji-min, went to hospital on Sunday after suffering from sudden abdominal pain along with a mild sore throat, Big Hit Music said in a statement.

He tested positive for the coronavirus, and underwent surgery for the appendicitis on Monday, the statement added.

"The surgery was successful and Jimin is currently recuperating after his procedure," Big Hit Music said, adding that he was making a "speedy recovery" from his COVID-19 infection.

The singer was due to receive several days of in-patient treatment for COVID-19 along with postoperative care, the statement said.

Jimin, 26, is at least the fourth member of the seven member group to test positive for the coronavirus.

Rapper RM, vocalist Jin, and rapper Suga tested positive in December, shortly after the group had returned from a series of live shows in the United States.

The concerts in the United States were BTS' first in the country since 2019, when they toured across Asia, Europe and North America.

Since their 2013 debut, BTS have spearheaded a global K-Pop craze with catchy, upbeat music and dances, as well as lyrics and social campaigns aimed at empowering young people.

South Korea has kept overall COVID-19 cases and deaths low with aggressive contact tracing and testing, but the Omicron variant became dominant this month, sending cases to a record daily tally of 17,532 on Sunday.

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Francis Ford Coppola Thinks 'Megalopolis' Outweighs Ordinary Film Ideas

Francis Ford Coppola attends the premiere of "Megalopolis" on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, at AMC Lincoln Square in New York. (AP)
Francis Ford Coppola attends the premiere of "Megalopolis" on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, at AMC Lincoln Square in New York. (AP)
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Francis Ford Coppola Thinks 'Megalopolis' Outweighs Ordinary Film Ideas

Francis Ford Coppola attends the premiere of "Megalopolis" on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, at AMC Lincoln Square in New York. (AP)
Francis Ford Coppola attends the premiere of "Megalopolis" on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, at AMC Lincoln Square in New York. (AP)

Renowned American director Francis Ford Coppola believes his harshly criticized science fiction film “Megalopolis” offers audiences a unique narrative vastly different from what they are accustomed to seeing.

"We're so used to seeing movies that are like other movies because they're financed that way,” Coppola told Reuters during a Zoom interview while he was at the Toronto International Film Festival, where the film was also screened.

"It's [movies like other movies] always something that's already proven that it will make money. It's like a potato chip that you know is habit forming and 'Megalopolis' is new,” he added.

After debuting this year at the Cannes Film Festival, Coppola's $120 million self-funded project is going to be shared with broader audiences when it arrives to US movie theaters on Friday.

While the film will be distributed by Lionsgate, Coppola maintains ownership of the movie.

Adam Driver stars as Cesar Catilina, an architect-scientist who wants to better a fictional version of New York City called New Rome, pitting him against Mayor Franklyn Cicero, played by Giancarlo Esposito, who prizes authority and institutions over change.

Catilina falls in love with the mayor's daughter, Julia, played by "Game of Thrones"' Nathalie Emmanuel, as she helps him work towards his vision and re-ignites his power to stop time.

When asked if “Megalopolis” is an allegory for his film-making journey, the 85-year-old director said, “All of my films are.”

“When I was young and made 'The Godfather,'” I had to be like Michael [Michael Corleone] because I had no power and I had to be very Machiavellian. When I made 'Apocalypse Now,' I was in an absurd situation with helicopters and millions of dollars every week that I was paying for, so I had to become a megalomaniac like Kurtz [Colonel Kurtz]. You know, I have always become the characters in my movies just to survive,” he added.

While the press response to the movie has been poor with a low score of 51% on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Driver believes “Megalopolis” is a film that needs more than one viewing to be truly absorbed.

"I think it does have legs and I think it is something that you want to return to and can return to and mine something else out of it," Driver said. "And it, you know, has a place in people's minds as being one of a kind, which I don't think a lot of films can say that, you know."