"My Fault"... '21st Century Great Military Queen' Writer Also Apologizes Amid Historical Distortion Controversy

Controversy Over Historical Distortion in "21st Century Great Military Queen" Continues
Writer Issues Apology Following IU and Byun Woo-seok

Amid ongoing controversy over historical distortion in the recently concluded MBC drama "21st Century Great Military Queen," scriptwriter Yoo Ji-won has also issued an apology.

"Failed to Carefully Consider the Historical Context"

On the 6th of last month, the cast posed at the MBC drama '21st Century Grand Madam' production presentation held at Chosun Palace Hotel in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

On May 19, through the official website of the drama, writer Yoo stated, "I sincerely apologize for disappointing and causing concern to viewers due to the controversy over the historical accuracy in '21st Century Great Military Queen.'" She continued, "In the process of applying Joseon's etiquette to the modern era and depicting a fictional contemporary royal family, there was a lack of thorough research and verification." She further admitted, "In particular, the scene in the enthronement ceremony where the character wears a 'guryumyeonryugwan' and shouts 'cheonse' is a result of my failure to carefully consider the historical context that should have been addressed when adapting Joseon rituals to modern times."

Yoo explained, "Out of concern that I might cause even greater discomfort, it took me some time to make this statement, and as a result, I inconvenienced even more people." She added, "I once again offer my deepest apologies to everyone who was hurt by my lack of careful consideration." She also said, "I will keep in mind the criticism and feedback from viewers, reflect on myself as a writer, and take this opportunity to learn and improve."

The Production Team and Lead Actors Also Issue Apologies

'21st Century Great Military Mother' Poster. MBC

"21st Century Great Military Queen" is the winning entry of the 2022 MBC script contest and marks writer Yoo's debut. Set in a fictional Republic of Korea where constitutional monarchy remains, it portrays the romance between Seong Hee-joo, a self-made conglomerate heiress (played by IU), and Grand Prince Ian, the king's second son (played by Byun Woo-seok).

However, contrary to high expectations prior to its broadcast, the drama became embroiled in controversy over historical distortion following its airing. In particular, in episode 11, which aired on May 15, controversy arose when Grand Prince Ian wore a 'guryumyeonryugwan'—a coronet used by vassal states—instead of the 'sibimyeonryugwan' typically used by emperors of sovereign states, during the enthronement ceremony.

Additionally, criticism was raised as the vassals shouted 'cheonse'—used in vassal states—instead of 'manse,' which is symbolic of a sovereign state, thereby fueling concerns that the drama provided grounds for the Northeast Project. Moreover, there was strong backlash from viewers when characters in the drama were shown practicing Chinese tea ceremony rather than Korean traditional tea rituals.

As the controversy grew, the production team also issued an official apology, stating, "We sincerely apologize for causing concern due to issues with the world-building and historical accuracy," and promised, "We will correct the audio and subtitles for the relevant scenes in reruns, video-on-demand (VOD), and online video service (OTT) content as quickly as possible." The lead actors, IU and Byun Woo-seok, also posted individual apologies on their respective social networking services (SNS) on May 18.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.