Kim Moo-yeol talks about the disciplinary controversy in "Iron Fist Education": Be careful when showing violence

2026/06/16 07:08

[Reporter Zhong Jijun/Comprehensive Report] The Korean drama "Iron Fist Education" has swept the world since its launch. "Na Hwa-jin", the inspector of the Bureau of Religious Rights Protection played by Kim Moo-yeol, was named "the most handsome revenge hero of the year" by a large number of viewers. However, many scenes of strong discipline for problem students in the play have triggered discussions from the outside world. In this regard, Kim Moo Yeol relented for the first time, admitting that the team was very careful from beginning to end, and even deliberately avoided filming the violence too readily.

Kim Moo-yeol (right) always believes that the essence of education is not revenge, but change. (Courtesy of Netflix)

In a recent interview, Kim Moo-yeol said that although many viewers praised "Tekken Education" as a "super stress-relieving drama" after watching it, he believed that the real intention of the work was never the violence itself. "Scenes of students being slapped do exist, but we have always avoided showing them in detail."

Kim Moo-yeol revealed that he kept thinking about the same question when filming each episode: "How should the victim be comforted? Will the perpetrator have a chance to reflect?" Rather than simply punishing, the crew hopes that the audience will see the changes and growth after the incident.

Interestingly, many viewers found that Luo Huazhen's way of beating students was completely different from that of beating gangsters. Kim Moo Yeol laughed and said that this was actually a detail deliberately designed by the team. "When facing students, I mostly only use one hand, even to the point of flicking my forehead. But when I encounter adult criminal groups, I will show no mercy at all."

He explained that Luo Huazhen did this because the character always believed that the essence of education is not revenge, but change. In particular, the character is still burdened with the pain of his fiancée being killed, so he must look at the problem more objectively than anyone else. "Punishment is not the end, but the beginning of change."