Much to fans’ delight, Omniscient Reader is finally spreading its wings as a multi-franchise in 2025 with Aniplex finally having confirmed an anime adaptation is in production at Anime Expo 2024. That said, with nary an update on the anime since, a live-action film adaptation of singNsong’s beloved series is set to make its way to fans first, eyeing a 2025 release after nearly six years since it was first announced. Given the widespread popularity of the webtoon and the long wait, fans have rightly been fostering high expectations for the film. However, its first-ever trailer has left fans less than thrilled, sparking controversy over significant deviations from the source material.
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After much ado, Lotte Entertainment on February 15th, 2025, which is also Kim Dokja’s birthday, posted the first trailer for Omniscient Reader: The Prophet, finally giving fans a good look at the upcoming live-action adaptation which is set to release in July 2025. Unfortunately, the trailer has received an unfortunate reception from fans mostly due to changes in the weapons used by various characters, including the central character of the series, Yoo Joonghyuk, who is seen wielding a gun instead of a sword, despite being seen holding his iconic longsword in the key visual and trailer thumbnail. Key aspects of the story such as the dokkaebi and the constellations are also wholly absent from the trailer, with not a single system window in sight, much to fans’ concern.
Omniscient Reader Fans Are Not Thrilled About the Upcoming Live-Action Movie
Munpia, the publisher of the original web novel, first announced the live-action adaptation of Omniscient Reader in September 2019, making for quite a long wait. That said, the exciting casting of K-drama and K-pop royalty like Lee Min-ho, Ahn Hye-seop, and Jisoo meant that fans were willing to wait no matter how long it took for a good adaptation only to be met with sheer disappointment at the end of it all.
For starters, the trailer reveals a lack of attention to small yet crucial story details, with Dokja’s phone at the beginning of the trailer displaying the time as being 2:00 PM instead of 7:00 PM. While this may seem like a pedantic detail, the first few chapters of Omniscient Reader make it a point to establish an exact timeline of events. One of the first things readers learn about Dokja is that he reads web novels on the way home from work, and it makes little sense for Dokja to be leaving his corporate job in the afternoon, especially when it clearly appears to be dusk outside.
The story also clearly takes off when Dokja reads the final chapter of Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse at 6:55 PM, giving him exactly 5 minutes till the dokkaebi appears and the first main scenario begins. His knowledge of the exact timeline of events in the first chapter is what guides Dokja throughout this early part of the story by even helping him anticipate Yoo Joonghyuk’s arrival.
Another minor detail that has upset many fans is the non-existent height difference between Joonghyuk and Dokja. In the webtoon, Joonghyuk is noticeably taller than Dokja, which not only adds to his intimidating aura but also visually helps establish Dokja as the underdog in their first encounter. Admittedly, there was little that could be done in this regard given that Lee Min-ho and Ahn Hye-seop are about the same height.
Speaking of Dokja’s first meeting with Joonghyuk, the live-action film also sees Joonghyuk grab Dokja by his flimsy tie instead of grabbing him by his throat as he does in the original webtoon, which is far more aggressive. The same can also be seen in the key visual, though this change is by far the most excusable compared to some of the other changes in the live-action.
Omniscient Reader’s Live-Action Makes Character-Contradicting Weapon Changes
One of the most damning scenes in the trailer that is arguably at the center of the entire controversy is that of Joonghyuk on the bridge, where he pulls out a gun and opens fire. This scene is completely absent in the original webtoon and has upset many, though the film’s producer Won Dong-yun did put out a statement defending this change in a post on his official X account which reads:
“Before making the movie, we showed the entire script to the original author in advance and explained everything that was being adapted, and the author understood and accepted everything,” Won says in his statement, adding, “Yoo Joonghyuk uses both a sword and a gun. All the dokkaebi appear as well. While we haven’t replicated the original work exactly, the message, characters, and worldbuilding remain completely unchanged. We hope for the strong support from fans of the original.”
That said, Joonghyuk’s use of a gun isn’t the only weapon change made in the live-action Omniscient Reader adaptation. The trailer also sees Yoo Sangah, who is played by Cha Soo-bin, using what appears to be a sword in one frame instead of her twin daggers. That said, it is likely this is the bone weapon used during the initial monster hunting expedition the group sets out on early in the story as the subterranean ground rats can be spotted in the background.
By far, the most egregious weapon change seen in the trailer is with Lee Jihye, played by BLACKPINK’s Jisoo, who is seen wielding a sniper rifle despite her entire character being centered around her swordsmanship and close combat. Jihye’s character is supposed to be sponsored by the Constellation Maritime War God or Yi Sun-sin, who was a Korean admiral and military general from the Joseon era with especially close ties to Jihye.
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More importantly, Yi Sun-sin’s sponsorship grants Jihye a “stigmata” or ability known as Song of the Sword, which allows her to temporarily imbue her sword with a special power based on a verse from Yi Sun-sin’s diary. This stigmata can only be used by someone like Jihye who wields a sword, and considering Yi Sun-sin historically died from a gunshot, giving Jihye a gun, especially a rifle, completely undermines the story and contradicts Jihye’s character as well as her abilities.
Omniscient Reader: The Prophet‘s First Trailer is Missing Key Characters and Story Aspects
Besides weapon swaps, the trailer is also missing many key components of the story, like the dokkaebi, the system windows, and supporting cast members like Han Myung-oh. The latter of these is by far the most concerning as the trailer includes several shots of Dokja and the survivors from cabin 3807 crossing the bridge, except for Han Myung-oh, played by Choi Young-joon, who is nowhere to be seen. The original webtoon explicitly states that there were five survivors from cabin 3807, including Dokja and Myung-oh, all of whom attempt to cross the bridge together after the first main scenario ends.
Han Myung-oh is quite an important supporting character during this particular part of the story as he takes Sangah and crosses the Deus Ex Machina, thus leaving Dokja behind to face Joonghyuk and the zombies. Myung-oh’s absence on the bridge would create a huge plothole by making Dokja’s group even-numbered and allowing them to cross the Deus Ex Machina without any issues. That said, it is possible that the trailer simply included clips wherein Myung-oh is out of the frame, unlikely as that may sound.
Another concerning absence in the trailer is that of Bihyung and the story’s game UI-like system, which is a huge part of Omniscient Reader’s appeal, much like Solo Leveling, other manhwa, and even many isekai anime. Bihyung, despite his central role in the story, does not appear even for a single frame in the trailer, which raises concerns about whether the quality of the CGI will be up to par in the movie. Admittedly, an ichthyosaur does make a momentary appearance in the trailer while Dokja and the rest are crossing the bridge, and the CGI doesn’t appear to be too bad. Still, the dokkaebi and the status windows are a part of nearly every scene, making them far more challenging to render, which is precisely why fans are worried about whether the live-action film will be able to nail these post-production elements even though producer Won Dong-yun has assured fans the dokkaebi are still very much present in the movie.
Omniscient Reader’s Live-Action Producer Has Addressed the Changes
Overall, in response to all the criticism, a subsequent post on X by Won Dong-yun has since attempted to justify the changes, stating “cinematic modifications” are necessary when adapting a work into a film. In the post, Producer Won tries to reassure fans, quoting how many changes were similarly made in a previous 2017 webtoon-turned-live-action film named Along with the Gods, which ended up being well-received by both fans of the webtoon as well as its original author, with whom they still maintain a good relationship. The post reads:
“When adapting an original work into a film, cinematic modifications are always necessary,” Won says in his statement, finishing with, “For Along with the Gods, we made significant adaptations, but both the author and fans understood after watching the movie. Even now, we have a good relationship with the author.”
Won Dong-yun further reassures fans of Omniscient Reader stating, “Fans who love Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint will understand what I mean once they see the movie. We truly love the original work.” Nonetheless, it’s safe to say the jury’s still out about Omniscient Reader’s upcoming live-action film and only time will tell whether fans will truly warm up to the adaptation or whether it will remain an unfortunate page in the beloved series’ history.
Source: lotteent on YouTube, Shywdy on X.
