My Dearest

From Joseon to Courtroom: The Messy, Glorious Off-Screen Drama of My Dearest

When a melodrama this intense takes over your screen, you know there’s chaos brewing off-camera. While Lee Jang-hyun and Yoo Gil-chae were tearing our hearts apart on MBC, the real world around My Dearest was serving lawsuits, plagiarism outrage, pregnancy-on-set nerves, and romance rumors hotter than any sageuk kiss.

Buckle up: here’s the juiciest real-life gossip orbiting My Dearest.

Scandals & Controversies: The Writer at the Eye of the Storm

The “Gone With the Wind… a Bit Too Literally” Scandal

• Viewers started pointing out that My Dearest looked suspiciously like a Joseon-flavored Gone With the Wind—not just vibes, but specific moments and set‑ups.
• Screenwriter Hwang Jin-young didn’t just admit inspiration—she confessed she intentionally modeled key early scenes after iconic Gone With the Wind moments, even clustering them so viewers would notice the resemblance and think, “Hey, this reminds me of Gone With the Wind” .
• She said she thought this was “clever” and almost wanted credit for how well she mimicked it… which went down like cold soup with Korean netizens, many of whom blasted her for what they saw as straight-up plagiarism rather than homage ^[1].

“I Should’ve Said It Was Based on GWTW” – The Walk-Back

• Under fire, Hwang publicly apologized for the “plagiarism controversies,” admitting that viewers had a point in calling it more of a remake than a loose inspiration .
• She even mused that maybe she should have said from the start that the show was based on Gone With the Wind, but claimed that would have been “too spoiling” ^[1][2].
• She ultimately begged viewers to focus on how My Dearest diverges from the original and apologized for the similarities caused by her “insufficient ability” as a storyteller ^[1][2]. Ouch.

The Background Actor Bombshell

• In the wider orbit of My Dearest–related production, MBC cut ties with an external company supplying background actors after it was discovered one extra had a prior sexual assault conviction from 2004. This decision was highlighted in coverage of My Dearest as an example of the team trying to keep their set clean amid broader industry controversies .

Lawsuits & Legal Drama: When the Pen Meets the Judge

Screenwriter vs. Production Company: The 350 Million Won Problem

• Away from the plagiarism uproar, Hwang Jin-young was hit with another headache: a court-ordered repayment of 350 million won (≈ $254,000) over a different writing contract .
• Back in 2017, she signed a deal to write a 20‑episode drama for 35 million won per episode, receiving 350 million won up front ^[4].
• The court found she didn’t deliver the agreed scripts or revise them after negative feedback, and ruled she had not fulfilled her obligations. Result: repay the entire advance ^[4].
• Hwang appealed, so the saga isn’t fully over—but yes, while My Dearest was winning hearts, its writer was fighting for her wallet in court.

Romance Rumors: Chemistry vs. “False News”

Namkoong Min & Ahn Eun-jin: From OTP to Scandal Clickbait

• The leads’ chemistry was so lethal that some YouTube channels started pushing “insider” claims they’d become real‑life lovers. Problem: Namkoong Min is married.
• Ahn Eun-jin finally addressed it, saying she had “become a scapegoat to false news on YouTube,” and specifically calling out a video that insisted she and Namkoong Min were dating off-screen .
• She said she was “fascinated” how anyone could spin that when his marital status is public knowledge, shutting the door firmly on the shipper fantasy and labeling it flat-out false ^[3].

On-Set Drama (The Wholesome Kind): Pregnancy, Security & Professionalism

Filming with a Pregnant Co-Star

• Actress Lee Da-in was pregnant during part of the shoot, a fact that added a layer of tension behind the scenes.
• Ahn Eun-jin revealed that Lee Da-in told the cast about the pregnancy before the news went public, and that she worried about her co-star enduring long, freezing outdoor shoots: “What should I do for her, it’s so cold?” .
• Despite the conditions, Lee Da-in “came to the scene bravely and finished filming without any problems,” according to Ahn, who said it was a “relief” everything went smoothly ^[5]. Professionalism level: Joseon iron-willed.

Security Lockdown for the Finale

• Even as a pre-produced drama, filming stretched right up to the wire; the team was still shooting close to the final broadcast date. For the finale, the production reportedly implemented strict on-site security measures to prevent spoilers and manage crowds while the show’s popularity and buzz were peaking ^[6].
• At location shoots like Danyang Ondal Tourist Site, staff politely asked passers-by for cooperation and even thanked them afterward—earning praise for being considerate in an industry notorious for disruptive film crews ^[6].

Leaks, Cuts & Fan Detective Work

The Case of the Missing Extended Finale

• Fans noticed that an extended version of episode 21—the finale—wasn’t available on several OTT platforms.
• On social media, viewers shared that this extended cut contained extra emotional beats in the middle of the episode, including more dialogue clarifying certain character decisions, and that these were being circulated in clips for those who missed them .
• The result: a mini fandom schism between those who saw the extended version and those who felt the ending was oddly abrupt—only to discover later that some platforms had simply not aired all the scenes ^[7].

Wild Theories & Fandom Meltdowns

From Inspiration to “Is This a Secret Remake?”

• Once Hwang openly admitted she had deliberately built early episodes to echo Gone With the Wind, online discourse exploded: was My Dearest a stealth remake? A half-confessed adaptation? A plagiarism case waiting to happen?
• TikTok explainers and drama commentary channels walked viewers through the similarity debate and the writer’s apology, turning behind‑the‑scenes writing decisions into full-blown fandom drama .
• While there’s no legal plagiarism ruling, the court of public opinion remains… divided, to put it politely.