Yoo Hae-jin has a 'North Korean face,' Ju Jin-woo has a 'traitor's face'? physiognomy politics grip the Assembly

A political dispute over the film "The Assassin" has taken an unexpected turn into what critics are calling "physiognomy politics." People Power Party lawmaker Ju Jin-woo sparked the row by commenting that actor Yoo Hae-jin had a "North Korean face," prompting Democratic Party of Korea supreme council member Choi Min-hee to fire back that Ju himself had a "nanggo face" — a classical Chinese expression associated with betrayal and treachery.

The controversy began when Ju left a comment reading "North Korean face" on an online post mentioning Yoo. Despite criticism that the remark amounted to an attack on the actor's appearance, Ju refused to back down.

On Wednesday, Ju said on his YouTube channel: "Is it a problem for me to talk about Yoo Hae-jin's face? Don't I have freedom of expression? If I think someone looks like they have a North Korean face, can't I say so?" He went on to say, "Why does he take North Korea's side? The fact that he sides with North Korea shows on his face." The remarks extended the political attack beyond the film's content to the actor's appearance, linking both to perceived ideological leanings.

Ju also said he had "no interest" in Yoo but claimed he had given him "mirror treatment." He criticized "The Assassin" as "a movie that sides with North Korea."

The Democratic Party hit back immediately. At a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly on Friday, Choi Min-hee called Ju's description of Yoo as having a "North Korean face" a "grotesque attack." She then said, "In my view, Ju has a 'nanggo face.'"

The term "nanggo" comes from a classical Chinese expression written with the characters for "wolf" and "look back." It refers to a wolf that turns only its head — not its body — to look behind it, and has long been used to suggest betrayal or treachery. In political circles, the remark was widely interpreted as calling Ju someone whose face marks him as destined to betray or turn against others.

The Democratic Party leadership pressed further. Supreme council member Jeon Yong-gi told Ju to "stop doing Ilbe things like judging an actor's face just because you don't like him." Jeon added, "Was freedom of expression for a lawmaker ever the right to insult others by rating their faces? If that's acceptable, I have plenty to say about some faces myself."

Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Deuk-gu also joined in. "Is judging a person's ideology by their looks freedom of expression?" he said, demanding that Ju apologize to Yoo and to the public. "Can casually commenting on someone else's appearance really be packaged as freedom?" he added. "Criticism of a film is entirely fair. If you find the way it handles history uncomfortable, criticize that. That is democracy."

"The Assassin" depicts the shooting of first lady Yuk Young-soo at a Liberation Day ceremony on Aug. 15, 1974. It is based on a screenplay that won a competition more than a decade ago, with director Heo Jin-ho at the helm.