“Perfect Crown” Slammed for Historical Inaccuracies

South Korean drama Perfect Crown starring IU and Byeon Woo Seok reached its highest viewership rating for its finale, the production team and cast skipped out on having a big celebration amid the drama’s controversy over its historical accuracy.

Perfect Crown is set in a fictional modern-day South Korea with a constitutional monarchy, but netizens raised concerns that it misrepresented South Korean history by incorporating symbolism and customs associated with imperial China.

More specifically, netizens criticized the drama for using the term “Cheonse” (“May the King Live a Thousand Years”) in a coronation scene in which Byeon Woo Seok’s character was wearing a nine-beaded crown. Historian explained that “Cheonse” and a nine-beaded crown is used in a tributary state and implies being subordination to the Chinese imperial court. Critics argued that the drama should have used the term “Manse” (“May the King Live Ten-Thousands of Years”) and a twelve-beaded crown, both of which were traditionally associated with emperors of sovereign states and would have better aligned with South Korea’s fictional status in the drama.

In addition, netizens also noted other culturally sensitive scenes including scenes of a Chinese tea ceremony, borrowing Chinese imperial court’s aesthetics and defaming the real historical figure Crown Prince Munhyo.

Apologies from the Cast and Director

As public outcry continued to build, leading stars IU and Byeon Woo Seok took a hit to their image and issued a formal apology on their social media page for being negligent on accuracies. Later director Park Joon Hwa also apologized and broke down in front of the camera.

Park Joon Hwa confirmed that experts were consulted for the drama, “But during filming, I was so focused on presenting Joseon Dynasty’s appearance that I got bogged down in research. This was entirely my fault. If I focused on how to depict an independent nation instead how the coronation would be filmed, would the result be different?”

Regarding the scene with the Chinese tea ceremony, Park Joon Hwa explained that it was a functional choice for visual effect by using a more modern and stylish tea set. Furthermore, IU’s character refused to wear a hanbok was deliberating shown to highlight the character’s contrast to the traditionally conservative Queen. Although experts were consulted during the writing process, Park Joon Hwa admitted that there was a huge gap between the drama’s historical portrayal and the public’s interpretation.

The director also apologized to the cast, “The actors worked together with all their heart and soul and putting in blood, sweat and tears. Instead of receiving praises, they were mired in a public relation controversy due to the crew’s mistakes. I feel incredibly heartbroken and guilty.” The director also emphasized that IU and Byeon Woo Seok’s performance exceed expectations and perfectly portrayed the characters. He hoped that the leading star’s efforts will be recognized by the public.