The production team behind the MBC television drama “Perfect Crown” apologized on Saturday over accusations that the series did not accurately depict a royal coronation ceremony.

“We sincerely apologize to viewers who have supported the drama with love for causing concern over issues related to the series’ fictional setting and historical accuracy,” the team said in a statement posted on the official homepage of the drama, which stars IU and Byeon Woo-seok.


The controversy followed the second to last episode of the series, which aired on Friday and featured the coronation of Prince I-an, played by Byeon.

In the scene, the character wears a guryu myeollyugwan, a ceremonial crown adorned with nine strings of beads hanging from the front and back that was traditionally used in the royal court of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). Court officials are also heard chanting, “Cheonse,” which literally translates to “1,000 years” and refers to their wish for the prince to have a long reign.

Viewers argued that the officials should have been saying “Manse,” meaning “10,000 years,” an expression historically associated with imperial authority.

By contrast, “cheonse” was traditionally used for kings or rulers of lower rank, including monarchs of states — such as Joseon, Korea’s name at the time — that paid tribute to China under the premodern Sinocentric order.

Joseon rulers ceased paying tribute to China after losing the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895. Shortly after, King Gojong declared Korea an independent empire.

Viewers also said that Byeon’s character should have worn a sibi myeollyugwan, a ceremonial crown featuring 12 strings of beads, during the coronation, as the series takes place in a sovereign monarchy.

“We take viewers’ criticism seriously regarding the coronation scenes, in which the king wears a guryu myeollyugwan while officials chant, ‘Cheonse,’ which many pointed out undermines Korea’s sovereign status,” the production team said.

“The production team failed to carefully examine how Joseon court protocols changed over the course of history,” the production team continued. “As ‘Perfect Crown’ is both a romance and an alternate-history drama, we should have been much more cautious and considerate when approaching the points at which the fictional world intersects with real history, but we fell short in refining the world-building and reviewing the details more thoroughly.”

The team also said it “humbly accepts criticism from viewers and will revise the relevant audio and subtitles as quickly as possible for future rebroadcasts, VOD [video-on-demand] and streaming services,” adding that it will “move forward with an even greater sense of responsibility and do our utmost to create works that repay the viewers’ trust.”

“Perfect Crown” concluded on Saturday. Set in an alternate Korea where a constitutional monarchy exists, the show centers on IU’s Seong Hee-ju, a commoner from a wealthy conglomerate family who has everything but status, and Byeon’s Prince I-an, the king’s second son, whose royal status constrains him from acting in accordance with his own desires.


This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM EUN-BIN [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]