'Assassination' Controversy Fallout? Lee Min-ho's Busan Film Festival Event Suddenly Canceled

'Actors House' Proceeding NO... "Unavoidable Circumstances"The 31st Busan International Film Festival announced that 'Actors House: Lee Min-ho,' scheduled to take place at 6:50 PM on the 7th, has been canceled due to unavoidable circumstances. The photo shows him posing at the press preview and press conference for the movie 'Assassination(s)' held at Megabox COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on September 8th. /Reporter Seo Ye-won[THE FACT|Reporter Park Ji-yoon] Actor Lee Min-ho's official schedule for the 31st Busan International Film Festival has been canceled.The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) Secretariat announced on its official social media (SNS) on the 1st, "The 'Actors House: Lee Min-ho' event, scheduled to take place at 6:50 PM on the 7th, has been canceled due to unavoidable circumstances."It added, "Pre-purchased tickets will be automatically canceled and refunded without separate refund requests or fees, and individual notification messages will be sent regarding this matter. We ask for the audience's understanding."'Actors House' is a special talk program where representative actors of the era, who possess both acting skills and star power, look back on their filmographies and share their acting philosophies and untold behind-the-scenes stories honestly and in-depth.Lee Min-ho, who has been at the center of the Hallyu wave since the drama 'Boys Over Flowers' aired in 2009, has proven his wide acting spectrum by appearing in dramas such as 'The Legend of the Blue Sea' and 'The King: Eternal Monarch,' and the movie 'Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.' He was scheduled to look back on his challenges and transformations through 'Actors House' and discuss his future direction and concerns as an actor, but unfortunately, this will not be possible.Although the specific reason for the cancellation has not been revealed, it appears to be due to the controversy surrounding the movie 'Assassination(s)' (directed by Hur Jin-ho), which was released on the 23rd of last month.The film traces the suspicions and behind-the-scenes of the assassination attempt that shocked South Korea on August 15, 1974, adding cinematic imagination to the remaining records and unanswered questions to this day. Director Hur Jin-ho, who has delicately explored characters and events through films like 'The Last Princess' and 'Christmas in August,' took the megaphone.Previously, 'Assassination(s)' had a successful start, attracting 134,460 viewers on its opening day and ranking first at the box office. It surpassed 1 million viewers in just 4 days, becoming the winner of the Chuseok holiday movie season.However, some viewers who watched the movie raised suspicions of historical distortion regarding scenes that suggested the possibility of former President Park Chung-hee's side or the Korean Central Intelligence Agency's involvement in the incident, and it became the center of various controversies, including allegations of Chinese capital.In response, the production company Hive Media Corp. stated, "This is a fictional film reconstructed with cinematic imagination based on various records related to the historical event that occurred in 1974. The film does not designate any specific individual as the mastermind of the incident. It also does not present hypotheses and dramatic settings within the film as historical facts." However, the controversy surrounding the film has not subsided.Meanwhile, the 31st Busan International Film Festival will be held from the 6th to the 15th at the Busan Cinema Center and various locations in Busan.jiyoon-1031@tf.co.kr[Entertainment Desk | ssent@tf.co.kr]