SBS has pulled “The Long Shot Trial” from its 2027 lineup, shelving the completed legal comedy starring Ha Young and Lee Je-hoon amid a deepening controversy over the actress’s great-grandfather’s alleged collaboration with Japan during its colonial rule of Korea. The broadcaster confirmed on October 19 that the drama’s broadcast schedule had been adjusted, with no new air date set.
The controversy began in August, after Ha Young said on a televised talk show that her family had produced doctors for four generations, starting with her great-grandfather Ahn Sang-ho (1874–1927), who she said studied Western medicine in Japan and treated Emperor Gojong. Online users pointed to a 1916 record listing him as a councilor of a pro-Japanese business group, and the Maeil Shinbo — the colonial government’s official publication — described him as an icon of Ilseon Donghwa, the assimilation of Koreans and Japanese, according to Allkpop.
Apology and fallout
Ha Young issued a handwritten apology, writing that she had spoken about her great-grandfather “with pride out of ignorance” and adding, “As his descendant, I offer my sincere apologies.” She subsequently withdrew from the second and third seasons of Netflix’s The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call and suspended her acting activities, as reported by Soompi. The production team has said it is “taking the issues related to the cast very seriously” and is holding discussions with the production company on various options.
The shelving is particularly painful because filming had nearly wrapped. Based on TV Asahi’s Legal V: Ex-Lawyer Shoko Takanashi, the lighthearted legal comedy follows Kwon Baek (Lee Je-hoon), a disbarred former lawyer turned office manager, and rookie lawyer Yeo Shim-hee (Ha Young) as their ragtime firm takes on impossible cases. “As this is a production created by countless staff members and cast members, we are carefully considering various options,” SBS said. The network plans to fill the slot with “Full Count,” a baseball drama starring Kim Rae-won and Park Hoon, per K-popit.
A finished drama in limbo
The delay lands at an awkward moment for SBS’s Friday-Saturday lineup, which has been performing strongly. Agent Kim Reactivated, starring So Ji-sub, ended in July with a 23.1 percent rating, and its follow-up Flex x Cop Season 2 peaked at 11.8 percent, according to K-popit. The network is currently airing “Doctor X: Mafia in White,” with Good Partner 2 and Excitatio lined up after it — leaving “The Long Shot Trial,” originally slated for next February, without a home for now.
