Jo Jin-woong admits part of juvenile detention allegations… renewed attention on reason for name change 'borrowed father's name'
The actor Jo Jin-woong has admitted some facts regarding allegations of involvement in serious crimes as a minor and issued an official apology, and the reason for his name change is receiving renewed attention. It is effectively the real reason he changed his name.
#. Agency: "There were wrongdoings during his minority… the rape allegation is not true"
On the 5th, Jo Jin-woong's agency, Saram Entertainment, said in an official statement, "As confirmed with the actor, we verified that there were wrongdoings during his minority," marking the first official acknowledgment of Dispatch's report.
Earlier, Dispatch reported tips that Jo Jin-woong was involved in vehicle theft and a rape case during high school and was sent to a juvenile detention center, and also claimed he had records of assault and drunk driving in college.
The agency said some of the content was confirmed as true but added, "Because the situation occurred more than 30 years ago, it is difficult to fully ascertain all circumstances, and legal procedures have already been concluded." It emphasized that "the acts are unrelated to sexual assault" and clearly denied those allegations.
It also bowed its head, saying, "Even after becoming an adult, there were moments when inadequate judgment caused concern," and "We deeply apologize to those who suffered harm and injury."
#. "The reason for borrowing my father's name"… revisiting Jo Jin-woong's story of changing his name
After this explanation was released, the true meaning of the name "Jo Jin-woong," which Jo Jin-woong has used as a stage name, is being reconsidered.
Jo Jin-woong's birth name is Jo Won-jun. "Jin-woong" is none other than his father's name. He deeply respected his father from childhood, and after deciding to pursue acting, he is said to have asked first, "I want to borrow my father's name."
This story was introduced in the past on Channel A's Rumor Has It. Jo Jin-woong cherished the meaning so much that he paid his father a "name usage fee" every month, and after borrowing the name he escaped life in a Busan theater troupe and firmly established himself as an actor, hitting it big.
He has often said, "I have never once regretted working under my father's name. I have lived keeping at least the minimal things so as not to disgrace that name."
As his past is being reexamined because of the recent allegations, attention is again focusing on why Jo Jin-woong chose his father's name as his stage name and what sincerity lay behind that choice.<
[Photo] OSEN DB
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