According to Hankyung, the controversy over the adaptation of the movie "Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint" based on the popular novel of the same name seems to be getting fiercer, after the new character poster and trailer were released on May 12.
In the February trailer, Jisoo (Blackpink) plays Lee Ji Hye, appearing with a gun, and in the new poster, she also attracts attention with a gun-holding image.
Omniscient Readers Viewpoint is a fantasy action film about a novel that has been published in many editions for more than 10 years. The day it ends, the world in the novel becomes a reality.
The story follows Kim Dok Ja (Ahn Hyo Seop), the novel's sole reader, as he collides with the story's main character Yoo Jung Hyuk (Lee Min Ho) and other companions to survive in the post-apoc golden world.
With a huge production budget of 30 billion won, the film is expected to be a big blockbuster of the summer.
In Omniscient Readers Viewpoint, each character is given special abilities by a star cluster, a type of guardian angel in the sky, giving them unique abilities.
However, concerns have arisen since the trailer was released, showing Jisoo using a gun instead of a symbolic sword associated with the character Yi Sun Shin.
These concerns are further raised by previous cases, when sensitive historical references have been changed or eliminated in works distributed globally.
A notable example is the webtoon version Omniscient Readers Viewpoint released in Japan, in which an initial line referring to Korean independence activist Yu Gwan Sun has been changed to refer to a the am master of conflicts - a character originating from ancient Japanese mystery culture andism.
In addition, it is reported that a star cluster representing Ahn Jung Geun, another Korean independence hero, has been deleted. Such changes have led to criticism that the work is trying too hard to appease Japanese audiences.
Controversy has increased as the film has received global attention, especially with the participation of top Hallyu stars such as Jisoo, Lee Min Ho and Ahn Hyo Seop.
Responding to the backlash, CEO of Realies Pictures explained, "The film adaptation definitely requires creative adjustment. When we made Along with the Gods, we freely created a lot of content, but both the original author Joo Ho Min and the fans understood it after watching the film. I still maintain a good relationship with the author.
Won Dong Yeon further explained that the original webtoon author was informed of the changes in the script and accepted.
However, no additional explanation has been given regarding Jisoo's character Lee Ji Hye.
Omniscient Readers Viewpoint is scheduled to premiere in July.
