The South Korean drama "The Heirs," premiering Wednesday on the Seoul Broadcasting System, has faced criticism for appearing to a carbon copy of popular show "Boys Over Flowers," a modern day Cinderella story told through the eyes of a high school girl.

The fact that actor Lee Min Ho, best known for his role on "Boys Over Flowers," appears in the cast of both programs only cemented the similarities in many viewers' minds.

But at a press conference held Monday at Patio 9 in Seoul's Nonhyun-dong neighborhood, "The Heirs" writer Kim Eun Sook, told eNEWS that that the only reason he allowed Lee on the show is because of how different it is from his career-making role.

"It doesn't make me comfortable when the topic of 'Boys Over Flowers' comes up," Kim said.

"If I was going to write a drama that was going to be called an imitation of 'Boys Over Flowers,' I wouldn't have cast Lee Min Ho. It's because I had confidence that this was going to be a completely different and more entertaining story that I asked Lee Min Ho to become a high school student again. That's why I was able to cast Lee Min Ho."

"Once the broadcasts start, comparisons with 'Boys Over Flowers will stop,'" the writer added.

"The Heirs" director Kang Shin Hyo said that he was in favor of Lee Min Ho for the part despite the inevitable "Boys Over Flowers" comparisons, simply because he was so right for the role.

"It's not that I'm unconscious of [the comparisons]," Kang said.

"But the number one person who could pull off that role was Lee Min Ho. We didn't take everything else into consideration really and just chose him."

The director reported that Lee has been delivering top-notch performances playing the part of Kim Tan.

"He's doing better than expected," Kang said. "We were quite surprised at his emotional acting despite being a young actor."