Assassin(s) film row: Lee Min-ho's Busan event cancelled, protest filing against Yoo Hae-jin alleged

Centre · 2Assassin(s), directed by Hur Jin-ho and starring Yoo Hae-jin, Park Hae-il and Lee Min-ho, opened on September 23 and led the box office over the Chuseok holiday, selling more than a million tickets in its first four days. 1 2 Centre · 2The film is based on the 1974 attempt to shoot then-President Park Chung-hee at a Liberation Day ceremony. The shooter, Mun Se-gwang, missed and killed first lady Yuk Young-soo. The film does not name accomplices but raises the possibility that people in the presidential office or intelligence authorities were involved. 2 1 Centre · 1Park loyalists and conservative politicians say the film distorts history and defames Park. Park's son, Park Ji-man, asked the President Park Chung Hee Memorial Foundation to demand that screenings be halted. The foundation issued a joint statement calling on the production company to apologise formally and pull the film from theatres. 2

Centre · 2Lee Jong-bae, a former People Power Party member of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, filed a police complaint against Hur and the producers on September 29. It accuses them of criminal defamation and of spreading false information by implying Park was involved in his wife's death. Some lawmakers have called for screenings to be halted and for a boycott, and letters have reportedly gone to regional education offices asking about school group viewings. 1 2 Centre · 1The production team denied political intent. It said the film used cinematic imagination rather than trying to "prove a new historical conclusion". 2 Centre · 1On October 1, the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) announced that 'Actors House: Lee Min-ho', set for October 7, was cancelled for "unavoidable circumstances". Ticket holders will get automatic refunds. The 31st BIFF opens on October 6, and Lee's was the only Actors House session dropped. His agency, MYM Entertainment, confirmed he would not attend and apologised to fans. 1

Centre · 2Neither BIFF nor the agency has said the controversy was the reason. Many online commenters have linked the two, and some called it censorship. Reports, including from AllKpop and Zapzee, say a planned citywide public screening of the film in Busan has also been called off. The South China Morning Post describes Lee as having "abruptly called off" the appearance. 1 2 Centre · 2Several actors have cancelled audience greetings. Gulf News reports that three supporting actors withdrew from second-week stage greetings in Seoul and Gyeonggi, while Hur, Yoo, Park Hae-il and Lee remain listed. Cast members and stars who praised the film, including Lee Young-ae, Kim Go-eun and Park Byung-eun, have received thousands of critical comments. Advertisements featuring cast members have also been targeted. 1 2 Centre · 1On October 1, a post spread on Korean online communities claiming someone had filed to hold a protest outside Yoo Hae-jin's home. According to AllKpop, the rally was titled as a condemnation of Yoo and the production company, listed 20 participants and ran from October 3 to October 30. Neither the filing nor the form's details have been independently verified. 1

Centre · 1The South China Morning Post places the row in a long-running dispute over Park's legacy. Park came to power in a 1961 coup, and his rule combined rapid industrialisation with political repression. It reports that cast and crew have been labelled "communists" and "North Korean sympathisers". Past cases are cited: courts upheld the filmmakers' freedom of expression over Silmido, and allowed The President's Last Bang with three documentary-footage scenes removed. 2 Centre · 1Academics quoted by the SCMP say the dispute is about interpreting history rather than facts. Park Hye-eun, chief editor of The Screen, criticises a major party leader for singling out the film and filing criminal complaints, calling it political power intervening in culture. Viewers quoted take differing positions: one says the film resembles North Korean propaganda, and another says it is being used for political purposes. 2