Controversial Korean drama “Snowdrop,” starring actor Jung Hae-in and BLACKPINK’s Jisoo, will air three episodes this week to clear up opposition from the Korean public.
In South Korea, “Snowdrop” has been the subject of a national petition (342,000 people have signed to stop its airing as of writing) and hundreds of complaints including for violation of Korea’s National Security Act as the Korea public accused it of distorting history, disparaging the pro-democracy movement and beautifying North Korean spies and the former Agency for National Security Planning (ANSP), a government agency that was linked to the torture and killings of activists in the past.
JTBC announced on Dec. 23 that episodes 3 to 5 will air from Dec. 24 to 26. “Snowdrop” is a Saturday-Sunday drama that premiered on JTBC and Disney Plus on Dec. 18.
“The controversy related to ‘Snowdrop’ is still ongoing. We believe that the misunderstandings related to the story are brewing because the viewers cannot simultaneously grasp all the narrative from the beginning. So we decided to pre-air more episodes to quell their worries,” said JTBC, according to Korea JoongAng Daily.
JTBC said the three episodes will reveal the background of North Korean agent Im Soo-ho (played by Jung Hae-in) who is sent to South Korea and unfair power in South Korea, which will reveal the possibility of the initial setting.
It said that in the drama, it is revealed that the ANSP is the one that brings North Korean spies to South Korea and the leaders of South and North Korea begin to conspire for power and money. The upcoming episodes will also reveal the story of young people caught up in secret operations.
“JTBC respects various views and opinions about content. In order to hear the opinions of viewers, we are listening to various voices on the viewers’ bulletin board and real-time chat window on the portal site. This special program is also a choice to resolve the concerns of viewers. We will continue to listen to your opinions and do our best to create good content,” said JTBC.
When the first episode aired, JTBC turned the bulletin board to private, preventing people from viewing the comments of others. It also blocked the real-time chat on Naver.
This is the second time that “Snowdrop” faced a national petition. In March, during the pre-production stage, a national petition was filed to stop the drama after a synopsis was leaked and the public accused it of distorting Korean history.
“Snowdrop” has been likened to glorifying Nazis, according Lee Kyung-ran, director of the Lee Han-yeol Memorial Museum.
A youth group also filed an injunction with the Seoul Western District Court on Dec. 22 to stop the airing of “Snowdrop.”
JTBC will not cancel the airing of "Snowdrop" despite mounting criticisms from the public.