Production Team Says "We Explained the Concept to the Bereaved Family"
Disney Plus entertainment show 'Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' has come under fire for using the cause of death of a firefighter who died in the line of duty as the basis for a mission, prompting the production team to issue a statement.
On February 18, the 'Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' production team released a statement saying, "The personal stories featured in this program were provided based on prior consultation and explanation with the individuals themselves or their families or other representatives, and were offered with their understanding and consent." They continued, "In this process, we informed them of the planning intent and format of the show as a survival program featuring fortune-tellers, and we also obtained consent for the provision of related information and the use of portraits." They went on to stress, "Fully recognizing the sensitivity of the matter, we carefully reviewed the relevant content throughout the entire production process when making the program."
'Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' is a survival variety show in which 49 fate experts, including shamans, Four Pillars of Destiny experts, and tarot readers, gather and test their fate through various missions. The controversial scene appears in the second episode, released on February 11, in a mission titled "Guess the Cause of Death of the Deceased." At the time, the production team presented the photo of a deceased person, along with the time of birth and the time of death, as clues, and the shamans tried to infer the cause of death based on this information.
The deceased person featured in the broadcast was Fire Sergeant Kim Cheolhong, who died in the line of duty at a fire scene in Hongje-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, in 2001. Some cast members, using fortune-telling based on the Four Pillars of Destiny, mentioned possibilities such as fire, collapse, and death by crushing. However, after the broadcast, the scene spread through social networking services (SNS), leading to continued criticism that "this is disrespectful to the deceased."
In particular, one online user who claimed to be the nephew of the deceased pointed out that "although the bereaved family agreed to the broadcast, this was not what they had agreed to." He said, "I listened to the recorded phone call between the ('Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' side) writer and my aunt, and while they did say a shaman would appear, they explained that through the Four Pillars they would look at what kind of person this righteous hero was and honor his noble sacrifice," adding, "But when I watched the show, the shamans were guessing how my uncle died, and the cast members were amazed and laughing. I have absolutely no idea how this is supposed to honor my uncle's sacrifice."
Previously, 'Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' also drew controversy when comedian Park Narae, who had halted her activities following allegations of illegal medical procedures and abuse of power toward her manager, appeared in the show without any edits. Regarding this, Park Narae's side stated, "'Unmyeong Jeonjaeng 49' is a program whose filming and production were completed a long time ago, and it is only being released according to the previously scheduled release date," adding, "No decision has been made regarding her future activities."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
