K-drama My Dearest writer responds to plagiarism accusations, issues 'deepest apologies'

Scriptwriter Hwang-Jin Young recently dealt with plagiarism allegations surrounding her K-Drama, My Dearest, aired on MBC. Initially rubbishing claims, she asserted the Western classics, including Gone With The Wind and Tess of the d’Urbervilles, inspired her work. Despite the drama's recognition as one of the 10 Best K-Dramas of 2023, accusations persisted, asserting it resembled a Korean remake rather than a unique creation. 

Scriptwriter Hwang-Jin Young's clarification on plagiarism accusations

In a post-finale interview with Sports Chosun, Hwang acknowledged viewers' assertions, admitting that the show leans more towards being a remake than a product of mere inspiration.

Shedding light on the challenges faced by a writer for writing a wartime, scriptwriter Hwang Jin Young said, “When I first thought of writing a ‘wartime romance’ K-Drama set during the times of the Qing invasion of Joseon, I found it difficult to overcome the pressure—more so because of how unsuccessful that war was. I didn’t know if I could create something good enough to be scheduled into the broadcasting schedule. After careful consideration, though, I decided to use Gone With The Wind‘s approach to keeping it lighthearted and romantic.”

Accepting the fact that she never wanted to reveal her inspiration- Gone With The Wind, she adds, "When viewers think about Gone With The Wind, they don’t associate the work with war. They think of the passionate love story between Scarlett and Rhett. So I thought that, as a variation of Gone With The Wind, My Dearest could spark the interest of viewers—even if it’s set during a lost war. Frankly, I never wanted to hide the fact that I was inspired by Gone With The Wind."

Hwang also acknowledged that a few scenes in the previous episodes of My Dearest were, in fact, plagiarised from Gone With The Wind‘s best scenes—like the first encounter of the main characters.

Hwang continues his apology 

"It was intended for some of the scenes in the earlier episodes of the show to be similar to the signature scenes from Gone With The Wind (like Rhett meeting Ashley for the first time or Rhett watching Scarlett pursue Ashley). I purposely had them clustered at the beginning of the show so that even the viewers who weren’t aware of the inspiration would notice, ‘Hey, this show reminds me of Gone With The Wind.’ I hoped that the similarities would make the viewers curious to keep watching and seeing how My Dearest ends up being different from Gone With The Wind. To be honest, I thought it was clever and I almost wanted recognition for how well that was done.

However, some viewers believed that to be plagiarism. It’s constructive criticism that I wholeheartedly accept."

Exclaiming her scriptwriting was “insufficient,” Hwang accepted the fact that the plagiarism controversies surrounding the show.

"Looking back, I wonder if I should’ve revealed from the get-go that the show was based on Gone With The Wind. But I think that would’ve been too ‘spoiling.’

Regardless, I would like to clarify once again that My Dearest is indeed inspired by the great Gone With The Wind. And to the viewers who might have felt offended by the similarities caused by my insufficient ability to story tell, I extend my deepest apologies as the scriptwriter spearheading the content.

That being said, I hope more viewers can watch My Dearest and see how the plot deviates from its inspiration, focusing on My Dearest‘s unique setting, characters, and episodes."

Hwang Jin-young, the South Korean female writer, known for writing The Rebel Hong Gil Dong (2017) and King's Daughter, Soo Baek Hyang (2013), My Dearest.