Sports Chosun reported on September 12 that the Seoul District Court (South Korea) accepted the application to confiscate MBC's assets from the production companies of "Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born" (tentative translation: Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born) namely Studio N, NPIO Entertainment and Management mmm. The decision was made on September 10.
“We filed for asset forfeiture based on the issue of ‘unfair competition due to unauthorized use of work products and breach of contract negotiations.’ The court found our complaint to be well-founded and fully approved the forfeiture on September 10,” MBC said.
“Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born” was originally planned to air on MBC. Director Jung Ji In is also from MBC, however conflicts over production costs arose between MBC and the production companies.
After many lengthy negotiations, MBC set the production cost at more than 2 billion won (36.6 billion VND) for each episode.
However, Studio N and other units accepted a higher price of 2.8 billion won (51.2 billion VND) per episode, a total of 33.6 billion won (615 billion VND) from production company Studio Dragon under CJ ENM, leading to the drama being transferred to tvN.
According to MBC, they were heavily involved in the pre-production process, including location scouting, casting, and research, but suffered significant losses when the drama changed broadcasting stations.
“Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born” is set in the 1950s and follows Jeong Nyeon (Kim Tae Ri), a young vocal prodigy who dreams of becoming a top traditional theater actress.
The drama explores Jeong Nyeon's journey through competition, teamwork, and self-development amidst the poverty and romance of the times.
“Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born” was scheduled to premiere on the evening of October 12, but MBC’s legal dispute with its current agencies has significantly affected the future of the work.
Especially when this is the project that marks Kim Tae Ri's return to the historical genre - as well as after the success of the movie "Devil" which helped her win the Daesang award at the 2023 SBS Drama Awards.
