Russian man 'trapped' on a boy band reality show in China finally freed

A Russian man has had his dreams come true and finally been eliminated from a reality TV competition show in China that is trying to create a boy band.

Yes, you read that right, Vladislav Ivanov was absolutely desperate to leave Produce Camp 2021 (CHAUNG 2021) after joining the line up of contestants vying to become a member of a new boyband, apparently by accident.

According to The Guardian, he was voted out on April 24 after viewers ignored his desire to leave the show for months.

Ivanov was originally hired to be a translator, as he is fluent in Mandarin, but the producers managed to convince him to sign up as a contestant after producers wanted him based on his looks.

Unable to leave because of the terms and conditions of his contract, he pleaded for viewers to vote him off but viewers were obsessed with his lacklustre performances, despite having no singing or dancing ability.

Read more:

• Man who claims he is Charles and Camilla’s son shares new photographic ‘evidence’
• American woman accidentally goes viral for her pronunciation of Caffe Nero
• Joe Biden’s first 100 days: How Trump’s early days scandals compare to president’s
• Couple discovers entire hidden bathroom while renovating their house
• Babysitter discovered cameras in her boyfriend’s relative’s house and it sparked a whole debate

The South Morning China Post reported Ivanov saying, “becoming a member of a boy band is not my dream as I can’t sing or dance. I hope the judges won’t support me. While others want to get an A, I want to get an F as it stands for freedom.”

He also expressed this loathing on the show, saying in a YouTube video shared by the show, “Dancing and singing every day... I’m really exhausted and a bit regretful.”

He did have some fun on the show, where he said, “On one hand, I wanted to leave. On one hand, I wanted to stay. It’s nice to have new friends. Still, I wanted to go home.”

Fans nicknamed him “the most miserable wage slave” to really drive home his reluctance.

Ivanov announced his departure on Sunday, writing on Weibo, “I’m finally getting off work.”

The Russian Embassy even got involved, telling him, “Congrats have a good rest.”

It would appear that Ivanov has a history of this.

Ivan Wang, who hired him for the show told a Chinese entertainment blog: “One time, I got him a modelling job in Hong Kong, he sent me a SOS message saying he couldn’t stand it five minutes after arriving on set. He declined repeated participation requests by the director of Produce Camp 2021. He just said yes after getting bored on the island. He thought joining the show might help his introverted personality.”

We guess fame and stardom really isn’t for everyone.