Were the producers of the drama too greedy with wanting their production to succeed?

SBS drama "Five Fingers" started off with noise marketing and began to skyrocket from there.

Yesterday, the SBS production team announced T-ARA Eunjung's removal from the drama. Eunjung was not notified of this situation and had been practicing her lines just up until the day before the announcement. It seems that the production team will be hearing some criticism for their sudden decision.

Eunjung's removal was already planned?

There have been suspicions that Eunjung's removal was part of the plan for their noise marketing strategy. 

After announcing Eunjung's removal yesterday, the production team announced that they had already found their replacement for her role. This seems suspicious in that they had just revealed that Eunjung would be replaced. It made it seem like they already had their replacement arranged and that they were just waiting for the right time to release their decision.

They have chosen actress Jin Sae Yeon who is currently working on another drama called "Bridal Mask."

Why did they decide to remove Eunjung now?

It has been rumored that Eunjung would eventually be removed from the drama due to the 'T-ARA crisis.' Eunjung was chosen for this drama and June and exactly a month after, the 'T-ARA crisis' occurred. Many internet users demanded they take out Eunjung, Hyomin and Soyeon from their dramas.

Another official commented, "It seems like the staff were in a dilemma due to the 'T-ARA crisis' that has been going on. However, the staff did state that they would not remove Eunjung from the drama. Eunjung had even attended the press conference. The production staff then suddenly announced that they would be removing her from the drama one day before filming was to begin."

This had many wondering whether or not the staff really was using Eunjung as a way to market their drama and gain attention through the 'T-ARA crisis.' 

Opinions on Reason for Removal of Eunjung from drama

There have been many opinions and rumors as to why she had been removed. Many officials believe that it could be due to the PPL that they have chosen to go with another actress. Due to the 'T-ARA crisis', using Eunjung could affect their drama and so the production crew might have wanted to go with another rookie actress that would gain more viewers to the drama.

One official commented, "About 1-2 weeks before the airing of a drama, the crew undergoes a series of brand marketing for the drama. They could have thought that using a new actress could help with bringing up the views for the drama."

Another official commented, "Eunjung was just not at the right place at the right time. The production crew could have been debating a long time before deciding to remove her from the drama."

Public opinion changed?

Although the majority of the public has asked for Eunjung, Hyomin and Soyeon to be removed from their dramas, some are wondering if this is going a bit too overboard. Some believe that it is not right to take someone out of their role right before beginning to film without giving a solid reason.

The public were not happy with their wishy-washy answer of "We have been debating a long time before choosing to remove Eunjung from the drama." There was no clear reason as to why she had to be replaced. This only caused more speculation from the public. It could hurt the drama because the new replacement actress could not be ready emotionally to take on a new character role right after finishing her current drama. 

One internet users commented, "Is it really necessary to switch actresses' right before beginning? The new actress probably won't be ready to take on a new role so well with such short notice."

An official stated, "Although the 'T-ARA crisis' may be a part of their decision, it is a bit disappointing to see the production staff take out someone who has even attended the press conference. If it was someone from my agency, we would have gone to court for this matter."