"My negligence, I am sorry." 'Grand Duchess' writer apologizes late after five days of controversy... Is the organizing MBC silent? [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.

In the controversy over historical distortion in '21st Century Grand Duchess,' the actors, director, and key members of the writing team have sequentially expressed their intention to issue formal apologies. Now, it seems only an apology from the MBC channel remains.

Writer Yoo Ji-won posted an apology on the official website of the MBC Friday-Saturday drama '21st Century Grand Duchess' (hereinafter 'Grand Duchess') on the afternoon of the 19th. Writer Yoo stated, "I sincerely apologize to viewers for the disappointment and concern caused by the historical accuracy controversy surrounding '21st Century Grand Duchess.' I am also sorry that it took time to speak up due to my cautious mind about not causing further inconvenience, which has resulted in causing trouble to more people."

He explained, "'21st Century Grand Duchess' is a romance fantasy drama set in a fictional constitutional monarchy. Under the premise that the Joseon royal family continued firmly into the modern era, we wanted to showcase our traditions and beauty. However, in the process of applying Joseon etiquette to the modern era and depicting a fictional modern royal family, there was a lack of thorough research and historical verification."

He continued, "In particular, the scene depicting the 'Guryu Myeonryugwan' (a type of crown) and the term 'Cheonse' (Long Live) criticized during the coronation ceremony was my negligence in not carefully considering the historical context that should have been taken into account when applying Joseon rituals to the modern era. Apart from this, we are taking all the opinions sent by viewers very seriously."

Along with this, Writer Yoo added, "I offer my deepest apologies once again to all those who were hurt due to the shallowness of my concerns. I will keep the criticisms and points raised by viewers in mind, reflect on my shortcomings as a writer, and repent. I am truly sorry."

Writer Yoo made her debut with '21st Century Grand Duchess,' which won the 2022 MBC script contest. However, her first work was immediately engulfed in controversies over historical distortion and the Northeast Project. While the actors and director had already issued formal apologies to viewers, she remained silent for several days before posting an apology late.

Consequently, many opinions are calling for an apology from the MBC channel. Since 'Grand Duchess' is a work selected through an MBC script contest, it is pointed out that the organizers of the contest cannot escape responsibility for the drama's controversy.

On the morning of this day, Director Park Jun-hwa, who directed 'Grand Duchess,' formally apologized for various problems in the drama through a joint media interview.

Before the interview, Director Park stood before the press and said, "I decided to give an interview after filming this drama. I hoped that those who watched this drama would find it enjoyable and healing, but instead of healing, I created a situation that is sorry, and I believe I bear the greatest responsibility. I apologize to viewers. I feel sorry and apologize to the actors who made this drama together, as it seems I caused them more difficulty than compensation."

Regarding the planning intention of this drama, Director Park said, "The writer had a great love for the country of Joseon. She made efforts to write the royal romance she wanted to within that framework. Looking at our history, there has never been a time without difficult moments such as the Korean War or the Japanese colonial rule, so we started with the setting that there were no such difficult moments. (The writer) wanted to depict a romance between a royal prince and a commoner woman within the setting of the Joseon Dynasty. It seems she wanted to convey the message that ordinary daily life is more joyful than greed. She also wanted to depict a beautiful relationship, which is why she made this drama. However, it seems the production team's information setting for viewers was insufficient; it would have been better if we had provided more friendly information. We made the drama wanting to express the part of pain as a happy period in the early stages, but this turned out to be a shortcoming of the production team."

When asked about the many criticisms regarding setting errors from the beginning of 'Grand Duchess,' he said, "It seems the writer used Prince Lee An as the motif for the drama. When I read the script in the early stages, I was ignorant of such parts (settings). I thought that the existence of a royal family in the 21st century itself was a fantasy romance. I understood that the writer added settings to create more dramatic situations within that framework."

When asked how the historical verification of 'Grand Duchess' was conducted, he replied, "The historical verification also dealt with Joseon Dynasty art, etc., and was adjusted to fit the Joseon Dynasty. I understand that the writer also received continuous historical verification while writing the script. However, within this drama, the setting that the 600th-year history of the Joseon Dynasty is still maintained seems to make the elements of fantasy in the drama appear somewhat different from our current perception."

In particular, when asked if the term 'Cheonse' did not feel awkward during filming despite being an uncommon expression, he said, "The person we consulted was present at the time, but I do not know why it was done then. We tried to express the appearance of the 600th-year Joseon Dynasty, but this was the result. It seems that the form of the Guryu Myeonryugwan, etc., at the coronation ceremony was depicted as a sad history of our country. We wanted to show what form the ceremony took at the Joseon Dynasty coronation, but I wonder if it would have been better to express it as an independent appearance rather than the Joseon Dynasty."

Director Park said, "I am sorry that I caused inconvenience to those who watched the drama for healing," and finally showed tears.

Prior to them, lead actors IU and Byun Woo-seok of 'Grand Duchess' posted formal apology messages on their respective SNSs on the 18th.

IU stated, "I carefully read every single comment left by many viewers over the past few days. As the lead actor of the work, I feel very sorry to you for not showing a responsible image and causing great disappointment. I unconditionally reflect and apologize for not thinking deeply about the various historical accuracy issues pointed out by you and proceeding with the acting."

She continued, "Since this was an important work that aimed to capture the imagination based on our unique history and the traditional beauty of the Republic of Korea, I should have read and studied the script more carefully as an actor, but I am ashamed that I did not do so. I failed to properly grasp the sense of the problem in advance. I am sorry."

Byun Woo-seok stated, "I worried and feared that my words might cause further damage over the weekend. I am posting this message with a heavy heart to those who felt discomfort and concern due to the work. In the process of filming and acting, I lacked sufficient consideration about what the historical context and meaning contained in the work were and how they could be received by viewers. Through the words of viewers, I reflected and repented, and I deeply realized once again that as an actor, I need to look at and consider not only the acting but also the message and context of the work more responsibly. I sincerely offer my apologies."

'Grand Duchess' depicted the fate-breaking, status-destroying romance of Seong Hee-ju (played by IU), a woman who has everything as a chaebol but is merely a commoner and is annoyed, and Crown Prince Lee An (played by Byun Woo-seok), a sad man who is the king's son but can have nothing, set in a 21st-century constitutional monarchy South Korea. The drama concluded with its final episode aired on the 16th, achieving a national viewership rating of 13.8% (based on Nielsen Korea national households), setting a new internal record.

Although the drama ended with good results, the 11th episode aired on the 15th was engulfed in controversies over historical distortion and the Northeast Project. During Crown Prince Lee An's coronation ceremony, the term 'Cheonse' used by vassal states appeared instead of the Guryu Myeonryugwan, and scenes where characters followed Chinese-style tea ceremony methods were shown.

In response, the 'Grand Duchess' production team on the 16th said, "We sincerely bow our heads and apologize to many who watched the drama with affection for causing concern due to world-building settings and historical accuracy issues." They added, "The production team is taking seriously the viewers' criticism that the scene where the king wears 'Guryu Myeonryugwan' and the ministers shout 'Cheonse' at the king's coronation undermines our country's independent status, and posted an apology."

They continued, "This incident occurred because the production team failed to carefully examine how Joseon etiquette changed throughout history. '21st Century Grand Duchess' is a drama that is both a romance and an alternate history, requiring careful and in-depth consideration regarding the intersection of a fictional world and real historical context, but there was a lack of effort to refine the world-building and examine it more meticulously." They announced that they would modify the audio and subtitles of the relevant parts as quickly as possible in future rebroadcasts, VOD, and OTT services.

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*This content was translated by AI.