Second Signal Delay & Juvenile Offender Law Impact on Retirement

Actor Cho Jin-woong acknowledged the suspicion of being a juvenile offender and announced his retirement on the 6th. It has been one day since Dispatch reported that Cho Jin-woong was involved in serious crimes such as car theft and sexual assault when he was in high school and was sent to a juvenile detention center. As he was an actor with great influence both cinematically and socially, appearing in over 10 million movies such as and and publicly criticizing former President Yoon Seok-yeol‘s illegal martial law, the impact has not subsided.

In a statement released through his agency Saram Entertainment, Cho Jin-woong said, “I apologize for disappointing those who believed in and supported me due to an unpleasant incident in the past. I will humbly accept all reprimands and stop all activities as of today. I will put an end to my path as an actor.”

He continued, “I think this is my rightful responsibility and duty for my past mistakes,” and “I will do my best to reflect so that I can stand on my own as a human being in the future.” He said, “Once again, I sincerely apologize,” and added, “I am grateful to everyone who loves and respects me.” The day before, Saram Entertainment said, “After checking with the actor, we confirmed that he committed wrongdoing when he was a minor,” and added, “However, we would like to clearly state that this has nothing to do with acts related to sexual assault.”

Dispatch reported on the 5th, using informants, that Cho Jin-woong was involved in car theft and sexual assault when he was attending high school in Seoul, was put on criminal trial, and was sent to a juvenile detention center. It was reported that Cho Jin-woong was fined for beating up a member of a theater company when he was an unknown actor, and that he had his license revoked for drunk driving while filming the movie . The media speculated that the reason Cho Jin-woong worked under his father’s name ‘Cho Jin-woong’ rather than his real name ‘Cho Won-jun’ was to erase the past.

Actor Cho Jin-woong. Provided by Content Wave Co., Ltd.

Cho Jin-woong, who began his career as an actor by joining the theater company Dongnyeo in 1996, entered the film industry in 2004 through . He appeared in several films: , , , , , , , , and . He also expressed his convictions on social issues. In September 2021, Hong Beom-do participated as a national special envoy in the repatriation of General Hong Beom-do’s remains, and posted a video on social media during the illegal martial law of former President Yoon last year, publicly criticizing President Yoon, saying, “President Yoon destroyed democracy by heinously imposing emergency martial law against the people.” At this year’s Liberation Day celebration, the pledge to the national flag was read by a representative.

When Cho Jin-woong admitted to the crime and announced his retirement, the works he participated in took a direct hit. It has become unclear whether the tvN drama , starring Cho Jin-woong, will be broadcast. is the sequel to , which achieved a peak viewership rating of 15% when it aired in 2016. Not only writer Kim Eun-hee, but also writers and actors from previous episodes, including Kim Hye-soo and Lee Je-hoon, all participated, raising expectations. Filming was completed last August and scheduled to air next year, but the future has become uncertain. Production company CJENM said they were “discussing” whether to air it or not.

SBS hastily replaced Cho Jin-woong’s narration for the documentary . This documentary, planned as a total of four episodes, tells the story of a transnational criminal organization that crosses borders and the people who pursue it to the end. Episode 1 was already broadcast on the 30th of last month, and Cho Jin-woong’s voice will be edited from the second part, which will air on the 7th. The VOD video of Episode 1 is also currently closed to the public on the SBS official website. An SBS official said, “We have newly recorded the narration for ,” and “We are also in the process of revising the first part that has already been broadcast.”

A scene from KBS’ “National Special Envoy Cho Jin-woong Brings General Hong Beom-do.” Provided by KBS

KBS made the documentary posted on its YouTube channel private. This documentary, released in August 2021, contains a scene where Cho Jin-woong, who served as the national special envoy for the repatriation of the remains, flew to Kazakhstan and participated in the process of repatriating the remains.