Controversy Over 19+ Use Of “The Queen Who Crowns”: Is It Deepfake Of Actresses? Criticism Persists Despite Clarification
“The Queen Who Crowns”, a joint production by tvN and TVING, has garnered much love for its bold narrative involving characters like Wongyeong and Lee Bang-won.
What sets “The Queen Who Crowns” apart is its differing levels of censorship between the TV broadcast and OTT platform versions. The R-rated OTT version became a hot topic from the very first episode, featuring an intense bed scene between lead actors Cha Joo-young and Lee Hyun-wook. The second episode also included scenes of nudity involving actress Lee Yi-dam.
While the provocative content drew attention, reports surfaced on Jan 16th claiming that the actors only became aware of the high level of nudity during the storyboard discussions prior to filming.
Regarding this, the production team stated, “From the initial planning stage, the differentiation between the tvN and OTT versions was made clear. The OTT version was produced as ‘Restricted for Viewers Under 19’, and this was disclosed during the casting process. It was also made known that there would be scenes involving nudity.”
Additionally, some reports indicated that the actors’ agencies had requested edits to tone down certain explicit scenes prior to the broadcast, but these requests were denied on the grounds that the scenes were deemed necessary.
The production team clarified further, “The degree of nudity was determined based on the characteristics of each character and scene. Discussions were held with both the actors and their agencies throughout the production stages.“
Despite these explanations, criticism persists that the series exploits women’s bodies to drive viewership on TVING.
The controversy deepened when it was revealed on Jan 15th that CG had been used in certain scenes involving nudity. Reports stated that the CG involved combining the body of a double, who performed the nude scenes, with the clothed face of the lead actress.
This revelation has sparked additional backlash online. One netizen wrote, “How is digitally compositing an actress’s face onto a nude body different from deepfake technology?” Others echoed similar sentiments, “In an era where deepfake and AI misuse are highly sensitive issues, this crosses a line” and “Regardless of whether a double was used, treating a body like an object is unacceptable.”
TVING previously drew attention for its explicit depictions in historical dramas, including its original series “Queen Woo”.
With another instance of nudity in “The Queen Who Crowns”, viewers are questioning its necessity. Many argue that the narrative and flow of the dramas would not suffer without such scenes. Some even admitted to deliberately opting for the 15-rated versions to avoid what they perceive as gratuitous content.
The issue goes beyond actor consent. Viewers are questioning why CG composites are deemed acceptable and why explicit content necessitating body doubles and digital edits is being pursued so aggressively.
