All The Reasons Why IU & Byeon Woo Seok’s “Perfect Crown” COLLAPSED In Korea & Aftermath

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:22]Lead actors IU and Byeon Woo-seok gave their official apologies. What was supposed to be one of the most anticipated K-drama releases of the year quickly turned into a storm of backlash, controversy, and disappointment. Perfect Crown was supposed to be one of the biggest K-dramas of the year, especially with stars like Byeon Woo-seok and IU attached to the project. Fans were already calling it a guaranteed hit before filming even began. So, what exactly went wrong behind the scenes?

[00:00:51]And how did such a highly anticipated drama suddenly start falling apart?

[00:00:55]Set in a modern-day Korea where the royal family still exists [music] under a constitutional monarchy, Perfect Crown follows two people from completely different worlds. IU plays Seong Hui-ju, a chaebol heiress who has wealth, power, and influence. But despite having everything money can buy, she's still considered a commoner in royal society.

[00:01:16]On the other side is Grand Prince Eun, [music] played by Byeon Woo-seok, a prince born into royalty, but someone who actually has very little freedom or power of his own.

[00:01:26]The drama was already rising fast on the charts, and there's no doubt that viewers were loving the chemistry between IU and Byeon Woo-seok. The hype became [music] so massive that Perfect Crown even opened a special pop-up store in Seoul under the theme The Last Duty of the Royal Family, running from May 19th to May 28th, 2026. [music] Advance tickets for the event sold out within minutes. At one point, Perfect Crown [music] even became one of Disney Plus's most-watched Korean titles worldwide. But despite the drama's success, >> [music] >> things became so controversial that the cast eventually had to bow an apology to viewers and fans. Ironically, this happened even though Perfect Crown ended on a happy note for Sungjae and Grand Prince Yi An and recorded its highest nationwide rating yet at 13.8%. [music] The biggest issue came from episode 11 during a major coronation scene. [music] In the ceremony, court officials shouted the phrase "Chunse", which means "Long live the king for 1,000 years".

[00:02:32]At first, international viewers were confused about why such a small detail caused so much backlash. But in Korea, the phrase carried a much deeper historical meaning.

[00:02:43]To understand the controversy, you have [music] to understand the old East Asian royal hierarchy. Centuries ago, countries like Korea and China followed a strict system when it came to rulers and titles. An emperor was considered the supreme ruler above everyone else, while a king ranked below an emperor.

[00:03:00]Because of that, [music] even the phrases used to praise rulers were different depending on status. The phrase "Manse", meaning "Live for 10,000 years", was traditionally reserved only for emperors because it symbolized the highest authority possible. [music] Meanwhile, "Chunse", meaning "Live for 1,000 years", was used for kings or rulers considered beneath an emperor.

[00:03:23]>> [music] >> So when Perfect Crown used Chunse during the crowning scene, it meant for some Korean viewers interpreted it as Korea being placed under that old hierarchy again, even if the drama may not have intended that. But this wasn't the only issue.

[00:03:36]>> [music] >> Grand Prince Yi An, played by Woo Shi-hyuk, wears a traditional royal crown called a Milyu Gwan, which has hanging bead strings in the front and back. While international viewers may see it as just a beautiful historical accessory, in [music] ancient East Asian history, the number of bead strings actually showed a ruler's rank and authority.

[00:03:55]A supreme emperor was allowed to wear a crown with 12 bead strings. A king or ruler considered lower in status, especially when connected to a larger empire like Imperial China, was usually limited to nine bead strings. In the drama, the Korean ruler is shown wearing a crown with only nine strings. Because of this, some viewers felt the costume unintentionally [music] suggested that the Korean king was not a fully independent ruler, but someone beneath the authority of another empire. Soon, social media was flooded with backlash.

[00:04:27]The very next day, on May 16th, the team released an official apology, saying they took the criticism seriously, especially accusations that the drama had undermined Korea's sovereign status.

[00:04:39]They also promised to revise the audio tracks and subtitle translations for future TV reruns and streaming versions.

[00:04:46]But even after the statement was released, the criticism didn't slow down. Audiences also questioned how [music] effective those changes would actually be once the controversy had already spread online. As the backlash [music] continued growing, even the lead cast eventually stepped forward to apologize. IU and Byeon Woo-seok both shared handwritten apology letters through Instagram. In her message, IU said that as one of the lead actors of the drama, she felt [music] she had failed to show a responsible attitude and ended up causing great disappointment. [music] She added that her heart still felt very heavy over the situation. IU [music] also stated that she would remember the valuable criticism and opinions sent by viewers >> [music] >> and promised to approach future projects with a much more cautious and thoughtful attitude going forward.

[00:05:32]Byeon Woo-seok also addressed the controversy in his apology letter. He explained that over the weekend, he had been worried that anything he said might cause even more harm. He admitted that while filming and acting in the drama, he had not fully considered the historical context and deeper meaning behind the scenes or how viewers might interpret them. In the end, he sincerely apologized for the disappointment and controversy surrounding the drama.

[00:05:57]Interestingly, many viewers [music] also pointed out that this isn't actually the first time a Korean drama has used royal symbols like this. Back in 2006, the popular drama Princess Hours also featured royal costumes and crowns that included nine dragon heads, similar to the coronation scene in Perfect Crown.

[00:06:15]But at the time, the criticism was nowhere near this intense. A lot of people believe that the reaction is much stronger now because audiences and online culture have changed dramatically over the years. On May 16th, IU celebrated her 33rd birthday by renting out a movie theater in Seoul [music] and spending time with fans in a small fan meeting style event. Although she never directly mentioned the Perfect Crown controversy, many fans felt her words were clearly connected to everything happening [music] around the drama.

[00:07:22]After saying this, she reportedly bowed 90° to the audience, showing how sincerely apologetic and emotional she felt. Meanwhile, Byeon Woo-seok also indirectly addressed [music] the controversy during the press conference for his new variety show, Jae Suk's BNB Rules. When reporters mentioned that after finishing the drama, he would now be meeting global viewers through a variety show, and asked how he felt about it.

[00:08:15]At the same time, IU also faced [music] another wave of criticism online after donating a total of 300 million Korean won on her birthday to support vulnerable and at-risk communities. Some netizens questioned the timing of the donation and accused [music] her of trying to repair her public image amid the Perfect Crown controversy. However, [music] many fans quickly defended her, pointing out that IU has consistently donated large amounts every year for birthdays and special occasions long before this controversy ever happened.

[00:08:46]In fact, on her 32nd birthday, she also donated around 200 million Korean won.

[00:08:52]Because of that, supporters argued that her charitable work was nothing new and felt the backlash against her donation was unfair and overly harsh.

[00:09:01]But even after the apologies, handwritten letters, and official statements, the backlash still hasn't fully died down.

[00:09:08]>> [music] >> The controversy has even started affecting the actors personally. Under Byeon Woo-seok's latest posts, some negative comments and criticism began appearing as the backlash continued online.

[00:09:21]Fans also noticed that both Byeon Woo-seok and IU, who usually shared behind-the-scenes photos and happy moments after every episode, suddenly stopped posting [music] anything once the final two episodes aired. That silence alone made many viewers feel how tense the situation had become behind the scenes. At the same time, a large number of fans defended the actors, arguing that the responsibility [music] for historical and cultural research should fall mainly on the writers and production team, not the cast. Others also pointed out that Perfect Crown [music] is a completely fictional story set in an alternate universe and never claimed to be a historically accurate drama or autobiography, which is why they felt the amount of hate directed [music] toward the actors had become excessive.

[00:10:05]But, what do you think? Did Perfect Crown deserve this level of backlash, or did the controversy spiral far beyond what it should have become?