'Grand Duchess' Director to Announce Stance Tomorrow (19th): "Interview Proceeds as Scheduled" [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.

'21st Century Grand Duchess' has faced criticism following its conclusion amid controversy over historical distortion, drawing attention to what stance director Park Jun-hwa will take.

'According to director Park Jun-hwa's side on the 18th, the press interview for the conclusion of MBC's Friday-Saturday drama '21st Century Grand Duchess' will proceed as scheduled on the 19th.

'21st Century Grand Duchess' is a work depicting the fate of a woman who is a chaebol with everything but is frustrated by her commoner status, and a man who is the king's son but is sad because he can possess nothing, set in a 21st-century constitutional monarchy South Korea. It concluded on the 16th after recording a self-recorded peak viewership of 13.8% (based on Nielsen Korea national households), but criticism continues due to historical distortion controversies.

'The drama was engulfed in controversies over historical distortion and the Northeast Project, including scenes where the nine-rank official's hat (guryu myeon-gwan), meaning vassal states, appeared instead of the emperor's ten-rank official's hat (sip-ryeon-gwan), and scenes where characters followed Chinese-style tea ceremonies. The broadcast on the 15th was particularly problematic. On that day, viewers expressed anger over historical research errors when officials in the court used the term 'Cheon-se' (a subordinate expression for vassal states) instead of 'Man-se' (meaning independent state) as a reign title during Prince Lee An's (played by Byun Woo-seok) ascension to the throne.

'In response, lead actors Byun Woo-seok and IU directly apologized, stating, "We feel very heavy-hearted for not showing a responsible image as lead actors," and "We will become actors who approach the work with even more caution and depth."

'Additionally, Lee Jae-won, who plays Seong Tae-ju, the eldest son of Castle Group and IU's character Seong Hee-ju's half-brother, canceled an interview scheduled for the 21st.

'Lee Jae-won's agency explained the cancellation, stating, "We are taking the public opinion and situation surrounding the work very seriously. In this situation, we felt that the actor conducting a personal interview could be cautious and potentially harmful to the entire work and viewers."

'It remains to be seen what story director Park Jun-hwa, who directed the work, will share regarding the controversies surrounding the drama.

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*This content was translated by AI.