In the wake of the fallout from SBS’s historical drama “Joseon Exorcist” due to Historical inaccuracies and the use of Chinese props, a new unreleased drama is already under fire for similar concerns.
The criticism is also connected to the recent political and cultural friction between Korea and China after China claimed Kimchi to be Chinese, not Korean.
The highly anticipated JTBC drama “Snowdrop” is yet to air but was already getting backlash by netizens and it all comes down to the plot outline.
To put it into perspective, “Snowdrop” plot centers around the love story of a man named Im Soo Ho (to be played by Jung Hae In) who jumps into a women’s dormitory in 1987 covered in blood one day, a female student named Eun Young Cho (Jisoo) hides and heals him.
The year its set in is very important in Korean history as it marks the year that led to the establishment of the present-day republic. The NIS (The Agency for National Security Planning) was part of the authoritarian regime at the time and killed and tortured students who participated in the movement.
The issue with “Snowdrop” took a turn for the worse when parts of the synopsis of the drama began to circulate online and caused speculations that the drama might be trying to distort history. According to the online leaks, a male lead is a spy who infiltrate the activist movement and another male character is a team leader at the Agency for National Security Planning (NSP) but is described as being straightforward and fair.
Due to this, some companies already began to pull their ads from the drama.
On March 26, JTBC released an official statement. In their statement, they clarify that “Snowdrop” doesn’t disparages the pro-democracy movement or glamorizes being a spy or working for the NSP but is instead a black comedy that satirizes the presidential elections taking place in the 1980s under a military regime during the North-South tension on the Korean peninsula.
The drama was also described as a melodrama about the young men and women who were victims of that situation.
JTBC added,
“In particular claims like ‘North Korean spies lead the democracy movement’, ‘turning real student activists into characters,’ ‘glamorizing the Agency of National Security Planning‘ are not only different from the contents of “Snowdrop” but also completely unrelated to the production staff intentions.
JTBC clarifies that the current controversy has nothing to do with the content and production intention of “Snowdrop.” In addition, we ask you to refrain from reckless criticism of a drama that has not even been revealed.”
“Snowdrop” is led by Jung Hae In, BLACKPINK Jisoo, Jang Seung Jo, Yoon Se Ah, Kim Hye Yoon and Jung Yoo Jin.
Source: (A)
Comments