'Grand Duchess' Director: "I Wanted to Express Historical Pain Happily Like 'Bridgerton' at the Ball... The Production Team Fell Short" [Interview ①]

*This content was translated by AI.

Director Park Jun-hwa officially apologized for the controversy surrounding '21st Century Grand Duchess,' stating, "I am sorry that the production team was inadequate."

Director Park Jun-hwa met with StarNews at a café on Samcheong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 19th, for an interview on the finale of the MBC Friday-Saturday drama '21st Century Grand Duchess' (hereinafter 'Grand Duchess').

'Grand Duchess' is a drama depicting the fated romance of breaking class barriers between Seong Hee-ju (played by IU), a woman who has everything as a chaebol in a 21st-century constitutional monarchy in Korea but is merely a commoner by status and is frustrated, and Prince Lee An (played by Byun Woo-seok), the king's son who is sad because he cannot possess anything. The final episode recorded a peak viewership rating of 13.8% (based on Nielsen Korea nationwide).

'Grand Duchess' concluded its 12-episode run from April 10 to the 16th. This drama was hailed as MBC's most anticipated work of 2026 due to its massive budget of around 30 billion won and its glamorous casting starring IU and Byun Woo-seok. However, from the first week of broadcast, the lead actors were engulfed in controversies over their acting skills, and in the latter half of the broadcast, several scenes in the drama faced criticism for historical distortion.

In particular, in episode 11 of 'Grand Duchess', it was pointed out that at Prince Lee An's coronation ceremony, the crowd chanted 'Cheonsae' (Long Live the Emperor), which was used by vassal states belonging to an imperial empire, rather than 'Manse' (Long Live), the symbol of an independent nation. Additionally, Prince Lee An was criticized for wearing 'Guryumyeongwan', a hat worn by feudal lords who are subjects of the emperor. Other criticisms included Seong Hee-ju performing a Chinese-style tea ceremony.

In response, the 'Grand Duchess' production team released an official statement: "We are taking seriously the viewers' criticism that the scene where the king wears 'Guryumyeongwan' and the subjects chant 'Cheonsae' at the king's coronation undermines Korea's status as a sovereign nation. This incident occurred because we failed to carefully examine how Joseon's etiquette changed throughout history."

Furthermore, they admitted their mistake, stating, "'21st Century Grand Duchess' is a drama with the characteristics of both a romance and an alternate history. While there was a need for careful and in-depth consideration regarding the parts where the fictional world and real historical context intersect, we lacked the effort to refine the worldview meticulously." The production team announced that they would modify the audio and subtitles of the problematic parts in future reruns, VOD, and OTT services of '21st Century Grand Duchess'.

Just before the interview, Director Park stood before the press and said, "I had planned 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 the viewers. I feel sorry and apologize to the actors who made this drama with me, as it seems I made them feel more difficulty than reward."

-How did 'Grand Duchess' begin?

▶The writer had a great deal of affection for the Joseon dynasty. She made efforts to write a royal romance within that setting. 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 of a world where such moments never happened. (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, I wonder if the production team's information setting for viewers was inadequate; I wish we had provided more friendly information. In the beginning, we wanted to express the part about pain as a happy period, so we made the drama, but this turned out to be a shortcoming of the production team.

-'Grand Duchess' received many criticisms regarding setting errors from the beginning of the drama.

▶It seems the writer used Prince Lee An as a motif for Prince Suyang. 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 was itself a fantasy romance. I understood that the writer added these settings to create more dramatic situations within that context.

-How was the research process for this drama carried out?

▶Since the drama started by depicting the Joseon dynasty, the research also covered Joseon dynasty art, etc., and was adjusted to fit the Korean Empire. I believe the writer also received continuous research while writing the script. However, because this drama is set with the premise that the 600th-year history of the Joseon dynasty is still maintained, it seems that the perception of our current times and the fantasy elements in the drama appeared somewhat different.

-Did you refer to the Japanese royal family? There are also suspicions about this.

▶We did not refer to the Japanese royal family. What this drama wanted to express was something like the American drama 'Bridgerton'. When I read the script, it felt like a shoujo manga, and I wondered if there were many Western settings not found in Korea. Don't European countries also have sadness? I thought the appearance of that and the appearance in this drama were very similar. When I directed the ball scene, I worried it might be 'too Western and cringey', but the filming was focused on femininity to that extent.

-After the controversy arose regarding the drama, what kind of conversation did you have with the writer?

▶Actually, the writer was also very troubled. Regarding the fact that she created this result, I felt the same way and had regretful thoughts like, 'Why did we create a situation that made everyone uncomfortable?'

-After the controversy arose regarding the drama, what kind of conversation did you have with the actors?

▶I only felt sorry towards the actors. The actors filmed brightly because they only wanted to bring joy to the viewers. They filmed too hard and worked together, but it was sorry from my perspective that they had to apologize and get hurt because of my incompetence. At the moment when I could say 'You worked hard' after the last broadcast, I only felt sorry. I am the person with the most seniority in this drama, and I should have thought more deeply and taken care of it more intensely.

-It is said that your participation in the director's work was relatively late during the production period.

▶This drama should have had a long preparation period, but I joined late, so I did not have enough time to prepare. I should have provided persuasiveness to viewers on how a king and a royal family could still exist. For dramas with fantasy settings, every viewer has a different perspective, but I thought this drama required some kind of technology. I tried to reduce the gap by making the person closest to tradition the king in the drama. I wanted to implement scenes such as the Jongmyo Jerye (Royal Ancestral Ritual) well by receiving good consultation and research.

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*This content was translated by AI.