'21st Century Great Lady' Historical Distortion Controversy Raises Possibility of Production Support Fund Recovery

KOCCA “Reviewing the Case”
Up to 2 Billion Won May Need to Be Returned

The controversy over historical distortion in the MBC drama '21st Century Great Madam' has escalated into an issue regarding the recovery of production subsidies.

Cast of MBC drama '21st Century Great Madam.' Photo by Yonhap News.

In the 11th episode, which aired on the 15th, the drama depicted the enthronement ceremony of Grand Prince Ian. Instead of the 'Sip-imyeon-ryugwan,' the twelve-beaded crown symbolizing the emperor of an independent nation, the king wore the 'Gu-ryu-myeon-ryugwan,' a crown of a vassal state. Additionally, the officials shouted 'Cheonse' (a thousand years) instead of 'Manse' (ten thousand years). Criticism erupted, accusing the drama of providing grounds for China's Northeast Project.

Lead actors IU and Byeon Wooseok, as well as director Park Junhwa and writer Yoo Ji-won, have issued successive apologies. The audio and subtitles of the re-broadcast and online video services (OTT) on Wavve and Disney+ were also revised. The repercussions have not stopped there. There is now a possibility that the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) may recover the production subsidy.

'21st Century Great Madam' was the final selection for KOCCA's OTT-specialized content production support project last year. Along with tvN's 'Second Signal,' it was chosen in the drama feature category to receive production funding. Although the exact amount is undisclosed, feature-length dramas are eligible to receive up to 2 billion won.

According to KOCCA, the drama received the full subsidy in two installments. The outcome evaluation, which determines whether the project was successfully executed, will be conducted later this month.

Article 55 of the Content Support Project Management Rules stipulates that if the project fails the outcome evaluation, the entire subsidy and interest must be returned within 30 days. Therefore, if KOCCA determines that '21st Century Great Madam' has failed the evaluation, it may reclaim the production funding.

Following the controversy, KOCCA has been inundated with information disclosure requests demanding the publication of the selection process and evaluation results. A KOCCA official stated, "Nothing has been decided yet," and added, "We are comprehensively reviewing which regulations should be applied."

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