Actor Ha-young has shown no position regarding stepping down from her next project despite confirmation of her great-grandfather's pro-Japanese actions. As filming for The Long Shot Trial is winding down, she will also appear in season 2 and season 3 of The Trauma Code: Heroes on call.
After gaining attention for her role in the Netflix original The Trauma Code: Heroes on call and winning great love through Boyfriend on Demand, Bloodhounds 2, Teach You a Lesson and Our Sticky Love, Ha-young faced the biggest crisis of her career when her great-grandfather's pro-Japanese actions were confirmed.
On a variety show she said she came from a "fourth-generation medical family," but her great-grandfather was revealed to be Ahn Sang-ho, whose name appears on the 1916 list of council members of the Daejeong Friendly Association. Her agency dismissed the allegation as baseless, saying it was untrue, but a day later it apologized, saying, "We hastily responded without sufficient verification and sincerely apologize for causing confusion," and Ha-young also bowed her head, saying, "I reflect on having lightly mentioned family history without properly understanding the painful time in our country under Japanese colonial rule."
Public opinion was cold. Because it occurred around the time leading up to Liberation Day, criticisms that she lacked historical awareness and was reckless could not be avoided. After being heavily criticized, Ha-young canceled an interview for Our Sticky Love that had been scheduled for the day before Liberation Day. Even so, Ha-young continued filming the new SBS Friday-Saturday drama The Long Shot Trial; during filming she cried and was unable to compose herself, causing filming to be halted, and later she rested for about a week with the production team's consideration to regain her composure.
The Long Shot Trial is scheduled to finish filming in September. With most filming completed, it is not easy to decide on Ha-young's departure, and they said, "We are continuing internal discussions," adding, "Considering the practical conditions that require minimizing harm to numerous staff and cast, we are coordinating essential remaining schedules in various ways, and we ask for your broad understanding that it is difficult to provide specific confirmation on detailed filming matters."
Meanwhile, a filming schedule for season 2 of The Trauma Code: Heroes on call, which is expected to be Ha-young's next project, has also emerged. Original creator Lee Nak-jun told the Malja Show, "The preproduction work for season 2 is finished, so we are searching for locations. Filming will probably start in October."
With Netflix saying sequel production is under discussion and that it is difficult to confirm filming timing or casting, attention focused on whether Ha-young, who rose to fame through this work, would join season 2 as the character Cheon Jang-mi.
Ha-young will appear not only in season 2 but also in season 3 of The Trauma Code: Heroes on call. OSEN reporting found that Netflix is preparing season 3 following season 2 of The Trauma Code: Heroes on call, and Ha-young is also expected to appear in the series without stepping down.
On this, Netflix reiterated its previous position that "sequel production is still under discussion, and we cannot confirm the start of filming or casting."
Although Ha-young, who faced the risk of being driven out of the entertainment industry after her great-grandfather's pro-Japanese actions were revealed and she recklessly boasted about her family, seems to hold a solid position within the industry. Public opinion remains cold and calls for her to step down are loud, and attention is on what decisions The Long Shot Trial and The Trauma Code: Heroes on call will make.
[OSEN]