Goodz Controversy Next..."Sincere Apology, Full Disposal"

[Anchor]

Following historical distortion controversies, the film "The Assassin(s)" is now embroiled in a controversy over promotional merchandise distributed to moviegoers. Amid criticism that the merchandise commercialized a historical tragedy, Megabox released an apology and announced it will discard all remaining quantities.

Reporter Park Seyong has the details.

[Reporter]

The film "The Assassin(s)" has faced historical distortion controversies for dealing with the shooting of First Lady Rhee Yung-soo.

This is the original ticket, a piece of merchandise distributed for free by Megabox to audience members who watched the film.

It consists of a white paper collector's ticket and a transparent plate with six holes.

When overlapping the two, four bullet casings turn into six, reminiscent of the film's promotional tagline, "Four bullets, six gunshots."

In particular, the holes on the transparent plate resemble bullet marks, with one of them overlapping over a figure seated on the podium at the 1974 Liberation Day ceremony.

This spot is the exact location where First Lady Rhee Yung-soo was seated at the time of the shooting.

As political circles criticized the design, saying it seemed to "allow audience members to complete the shooting scene with their own hands," around 50 members of a conservative organization held a rally in front of actor Yoo Hai-jin's home, demanding the suspension of the film's screening.

Megabox, which distributed the merchandise, issued an apology.

The company explained that due to a tight schedule, the staff produced the merchandise without previewing the film, stating, "We failed to deeply comprehend the seriousness and weight of the historical tragedy and gruesome incident."

They also apologized to those who felt discomfort and those who suffered the pain of the incident at the time, adding that all remaining quantities will be entirely discarded.

Amidst the film's historical distortion controversy expanding into political disputes, a rally in front of an actor's home, and the merchandise apology, "The Assassin(s)" has surpassed 2 million moviegoers.

(Photo: Choi Jun-shik, Video Editing: Seeun, Design: Taeyoung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.