Their September issue featured actor�Kim Byung Ok�kidnapping a woman in the back of the car. The issue became problematic because it seemed to romanticize kidnapping and rape.�

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MAXIM stated, "Hello. This is editor Lee Young Bi of the magazine MAXIM. The male cover of the September issue of MAXIM featured actor Kim Byung Ok, who is the best at playing the antagonist. The editing team aimed to cast him in an antagonistic role in a Noir film. As you will be able to see from the total photoshoot, the theme cast murder and hiding bodies in a Noir mood, but there is nothing about sexual assault. We did not romanticize sexual assault as a sexual fantasy. We would be thankful if you can see the cut of the photo as a shot that shows the flow of the photoshoot in a condensed manner as scenes in movies do."

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