On the morning of the 12th, an interview with Chevik took place at a hotel in Jongno-gu, Seoul.
During the interview, Chevik addressed the controversy that arose on the 28th of last month, questioning, "Is this really such a big issue?" and expressing a sense of bewilderment.
Chevik described Ock Joo-hyun as "an actress who was part of the original production," and added, "I am not fully aware of the internal circumstances, but it seems the public is not viewing Ock Joo-hyun objectively. Various past information surrounding her seems to be amplifying this controversy."
Chevik continued, "I have heard about the performance distribution controversy, but it was not a decision made by an individual. It was a situation agreed upon by the actors," and added, "I feel the controversy might be exaggerated. It's easy to throw stones, but why do we throw them?"
Previously, 'Anna Karenina' faced a casting controversy when it was revealed that Ock Joo-hyun would perform in 23 shows, while her co-stars Lee Ji-hye and Kim So-hyang would perform in 8 and 7 shows, respectively, despite all being triple-cast for the role of Anna.
In response, the production company of 'Anna Karenina' stated the day after the controversy, "Casting and performance schedules are the exclusive rights of the production company and the original creators," explaining that "due to various factors such as negotiations with the licensor, reduction of total performance numbers, and actors' schedules, the schedule was difficult to finalize."
Meanwhile, 'Anna Karenina' is based on the novel of the same name by Tolstoy. The production delves deeply into issues of love, marriage, and family against the backdrop of 19th-century Russian aristocratic society. It is set to open on the 20th.