Since its release, the Korean Netflix original series ‘Murderer’ has ranked first in viewing time in many countries around the world.
According to ‘Flix Patrol’, an OTT service ranking site on the 13th, ‘Murderer’ ranked 4th in the Netflix world ranking TV show category as of the 11th.
‘Murderer’ was calculated to have ranked first in 11 countries on this day. Countries that ranked first include Korea, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The work maintained its 4th place in the world rankings the following day, the 12th, but Singapore, which had ranked 1st the day before, was pushed down to 3rd place, making it satisfied with being ranked 1st in 10 countries.
‘Murderer’s Toy,’ which is based on the webtoon of the same name by author Little Bi, was released on Netflix on the 9th. It is a crime thriller about an ordinary man who accidentally commits murder and then gradually transforms into a murderer, starring Choi Woo-sik and Son Seok-gu.
However, after its release, it was embroiled in political controversy in Korea. In the play, Chairman Seong Seong-guk, the head of a construction company, is reminiscent of Lee Jae-myeong, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.
Poster for the Korean Netflix original series ‘Murderer’. Provided by NetflixIn an online community, an assessment was made that Chairman Hyung’s hairstyle with his gray hair slicked back and the way he wore glasses were similar to CEO Lee’s.
In particular, Chairman Hyung wears prisoner number 4421, and netizens are interpreting this as related to the fact that Jeil Construction, which received six blocks of Daejang-dong apartment sites from Seongnam City, earned 442.1 billion won in profits. There are also suspicions that Chairman Hyung’s daughter’s name is ‘Hyung Ji-su’, which may have been aimed at the controversy surrounding CEO Lee’s past abuse of his sister-in-law.
In addition, viewers connected the scene of Chairman Hyung eating sushi delivered from outside in the reception room with the fact that the food delivered was sushi in the case of CEO Lee’s wife, Kim Hye-kyung, who was suspected of misappropriating a corporate card. It is said that the scene of eating food in the reception room and the daughter’s name were not in the original work.
Netflix, however, dismissed this controversy, calling it “completely unfounded” and saying, “The prisoner number of Chairman Seong-guk Hyeong-guk that appears in the work is not a meaningful number and has nothing to do with a specific person.”
Choi Jae-ho,
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.