Holiday Thriller on 1974 First Lady Assassination Sparks Conservative Outcry

Hur Jin-ho’s new movie "The Assassin(s)" became the biggest box-office draw of the Chuseok holiday, selling 1.4 million tickets and beating titles like "Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub" and "The Intern." Set after the August 15, 1974 shooting of First Lady Yuk Young-soo, the plot follows a detective uncovering clues that point to President Park Chung-hee’s own men. The film’s fictionalized conspiracy has provoked fierce criticism from conservative politicians, with Rep. Joo Jin-woo labeling it an "unconscionable crime" and Rep. Na Kyung-won claiming the industry is controlled by leftist forces.

Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok added that the story resembles North Korean propaganda and questioned whether free speech is being used selectively. Distributed by Hive Media Corp., the movie joins a wave of recent Korean films that revisit the nation’s authoritarian past, often using fictional names to avoid legal issues. Director Hur said his aim was to convey the emotional climate of the era rather than uncover hidden truths.