The production team of the MBC drama "Perfect Crown" has apologized to the public after sparking controversy over alleged historical distortion in one of its episodes. The criticism arose because several settings and dialogue in the drama were deemed historically inaccurate.
In an official statement posted on their website on May 16, 2026, the MBC production team expressed deep regret for the uproar. "We sincerely bow our heads and apologize for causing concern regarding the world-building setting and the issue of historical verification (historical correction)," the MBC production team wrote.
The controversy began with the broadcast of episode 11 on Friday (May 15, 2026). The episode featured the coronation of the second prince, Grand Prince I-an (played by Byeon Woo Seok), as the new king after overcoming various obstacles. However, several astute onlookers noticed oddities in the coronation ceremony.
First, there was the chanting of the officials. The ministers and royal servants shouted "Chonse" (meaning "long live a thousand years," a call for a vassal state) instead of "Manse" (meaning "long live ten thousand years"), which is symbolic of a sovereign, independent state.
Another issue was the king's crown. The new king was seen wearing the Guryumyeonryugwan (nine-tasseled crown) typically worn by Chinese ministers and officials, instead of the Sibiwonmyeonryugwan (twelve-tasseled crown) typically worn by emperors or kings of independent sovereign states.
This combination of visuals and dialogue immediately sparked harsh criticism from viewers who felt the drama demeaned the nation's history. Responding to the criticism, the production team admitted that there was negligence in conducting in-depth research, considering that this drama carries the alternative historical fiction genre.
"As a romance drama and an alternate history where fictional worlds and real historical contexts intersect, we should have considered this carefully and thoroughly. However, we didn't put enough effort into thoroughly fleshing out the setting of this world," they explained.
MBC stated that it accepted the criticism from viewers with open arms. As a corrective measure, it promised to immediately edit the problematic sections. "We will revise the audio and text (subtitles) in this section as soon as possible for reruns, video on demand (VOD), and streaming platform (OTT) services," concluded the production team.
Post a Comment