On September 1, 2026, Netflix issued a statement confirming that actress Ha Young has left the cast of the second season of the series «The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call» (The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call, 중증외상센터).

The medical drama revolves around the unorthodox exploits of a surgical genius who stops at nothing to save lives. The first season premiered last year to both critical and popular acclaim. It spent five weeks in Netflix’s global Top 10 and racked up 184.5 million viewing hours. By its second week on the platform, it had climbed to No. 1 worldwide. For the first half of 2025, the show ranked #20 on Netflix’s list of most-watched titles.

Buoyed by this success, the production team announced plans for at least two additional seasons. Filming for season two had originally been slated to begin in October 2026.

Ha Young gained widespread recognition for her portrayal of Jeong Jang Mi, a nurse in the trauma unit, and was expected to reprise the role alongside Joo Ji Hoon and Choo Yeong Woo in the upcoming installment.

But last month, controversy erupted over the pro-Japanese activities of her great-grandfather, Ahn Sang Ho, a doctor who died in 1927. During a variety show appearance, the actress made remarks about her ancestor in a positive and admiring light. That prompted online sleuths to dig into her family background, leading to accusations that her lineage is tied to collaborators who betrayed the Korean people.

Ha Young has since issued a public apology, saying she had only a partial understanding of her great-grandfather’s life and now regrets having portrayed him as a source of family pride. Still, it seems she may struggle to sustain an active career in the immediate future — all the more so as the South Korean president has pledged to intensify asset seizures from descendants of Japanese collaborators, with a review period extending back to 1904.

Read more:
Ha Young Apologizes for Her Great-Grandfather
South Korean President Vows Confiscation of Property from Pro-Japanese Collaborators' Descendants

Sources 1, 2, 3