[Edaily Starin Choi Hee-jae Reporter] The production team behind the film “The Assassin(s)” has refuted the political controversy surrounding the film, stating, “This film was not produced with any specific political agenda in mind.”

In an official statement released on the 28th, the production team of “Assassins” stated, “‘Assassins’ is a fictional film inspired by a historical event that occurred in 1974, reconstructed by combining cinematic imagination with various records written about the incident at the time,” and “The production team conducted extensive research into publicly available records, materials, books, and documentaries, and while drawing inspiration from actual events and figures, combined them with fictional characters and situations to create a cohesive narrative,” they explained.
They went on to emphasize, “This film was not produced to reaffirm any specific historical conclusion or to deny or distort existing facts.” The production team explained, “Nowhere in the film is a specific individual identified as the mastermind behind the incident, nor are the hypotheses and dramatic settings presented in the film presented as historical facts.”
Regarding criticism from some quarters of the political sphere, they said, “As this is a work based on historical events and real-life figures, there may be various interpretations and criticisms. The production team respects such opinions.”
They added, “However, we would like to clarify that this film was not produced with any specific political agenda beyond its inherent creative intent and nature,” and emphasized, “We ask that you view this work solely as a product of creativity.”
“The Assassin(s),” which opened on the 23rd, depicts the investigation into the suspicions and masterminds behind the First Lady assassination attempt on August 15, 1974, an event that shocked South Korea. The film implies that former President Park Chung-hee, rather than Moon Se-gwang, was the mastermind behind the attack.
Consequently, the conservative camp, including the People Power Party, has leveled criticism, calling it a distortion of history. During a plenary session of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee on the 28th, People Power Party lawmaker Kim Tae-kyu mentioned *The Assassin(s)* to Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwi-young, asking, “Was it really Moon Se-kwang who killed First Lady Yuk Young-soo?”