[Edaily Reporter Kim Min-jung ] Actor Han Jeong-soo has publicly spoken out against calls to suspend the broadcast of the SBS drama "Doctor X," which deals with the May 18 Democratization Movement.

On the 26th, Han Jeong-soo posted a photo related to the SBS Friday-Saturday drama

: The Age

White

on his social media account, along with the caption, “Suspend the broadcast? Are you crazy? Why don’t you just stir up another fuss?”

He went on to express his fondness for the drama, saying, “I don’t usually watch dramas much, but I’ve been really enjoying ‘Doctor X’ lately. Thank you.”

Han Jeong-soo’s remarks appear to be aimed at the recent controversy surrounding the suspension of “Doctor X.”

The controversy began with Episode 6 of “Doctor X,” which aired on the 24th. That episode depicted the story of Oh Sang-beom (played by Ha Sung-kwang), who sustained a head injury from gunfire by martial law troops during the May 18 Democratization Movement in 1980.

Oh Sang-beom is a character who has suffered from severe headaches and hallucinations for 46 years due to bullet fragments remaining in his head. The episode shed light on the pain of that time as surgeon Gye Su-jeong (played by Kim Ji-won) took charge of his surgery.

In the latter half of the episode, a fictional former president named Ji Du-seok—who bears a resemblance to former President Chun Doo-hwan—also made an appearance.

After the broadcast, some viewers raised concerns about the show’s inclusion of historical and political themes in a medical drama. On the other hand, there were also positive reviews praising the show for shedding light on the suffering endured by the victims of the May 18th Uprising over many years.

This even led to a petition being filed with the National Assembly. On the 24th, a petition titled “Petition to Suspend the Broadcast of the SBS Drama ‘Doctor X’” was submitted to the National Assembly’s Public Consent Petition system.

The petitioner stated that it was difficult to understand why content related to the May 18 Democratization Movement appeared in a medical drama and demanded an investigation into the production process and the suspension of the broadcast.

It is reported that the petition met the requirement of 100 signatures—necessary for public disclosure—before its release, and the National Assembly is currently reviewing whether to make it public.

Meanwhile, Han Jeong-soo had previously stated on social media last September that he would refrain from making political remarks. However, on the 1st, amid controversy over historical distortion in the movie “Assassins,” he commented, “Let’s just view the movie as a movie. It’s not a documentary, is it? Why is there so much fuss?”

Regardless of the controversy, “Doctor X” continues to record high viewership ratings. The sixth episode, which aired on the 24th, recorded a 19.5% rating based on Nielsen Korea’s nationwide household ratings, setting a new series high.