'Amid fallout from allegations of ties to organized crime, Cho Sae-ho voluntarily left the entertainment shows he was appearing on, drawing attention to the future direction of You Quiz on the Block.
On the 9th, tvN's You Quiz on the Block told OSEN, "You Quiz on the Block respects Mr. Cho Sae-ho's decision to step down after careful consideration, and from future recordings Mr. Cho Sae-ho will not participate in the production of this program," saying "the two weeks of episodes for which recording has already been completed will air as scheduled, and this week's recording is difficult to cancel because it is committed to guests who were already scheduled to appear, so it will proceed without Mr. Cho Sae-ho."
On that day, Cho Sae-ho's agency A2Z Entertainment issued an official statement announcing that Cho Sae-ho had voluntarily left tvN's You Quiz on the Block and KBS2's 2 Days & 1 Night. Cho Sae-ho has been embroiled in allegations that he was close friends with Choi, a powerful organized crime figure suspected of operating an illegal gambling site and laundering money. One netizen, A, posted photos showing close interactions between Cho Sae-ho and Choi, claiming that Cho Sae-ho received expensive gifts from Choi, drank with him, and promoted a franchise operated by a member of the organized crime group.
In response, Cho Sae-ho's agency rebutted that because he meets many people through various events and broadcasting activities, Choi was merely an acquaintance met in that process and "there were no transactional gifts or inappropriate relationship." But as calls grew for Cho Sae-ho to leave entertainment shows, he ultimately said he wanted "the production staff who pour their sweat into making the program not to bear the burden of public attention directed at me," and voluntarily left his regular appearances on You Quiz on the Block and 2 Days & 1 Night.
After Cho Sae-ho's departure, 2 Days & 1 Night issued an official statement saying, "Except for footage already filmed, we inform you that from subsequent recordings Mr. Cho Sae-ho will not participate in the program." It also said regarding adding members, "(After Cho Sae-ho's departure) there is currently no plan to add members. For now we plan to proceed with five members."
In particular, because You Quiz on the Block has been run as a two-MC format with Yoo Jae-seok and Cho Sae-ho, there is growing interest in whether Yoo Jae-seok will continue the program alone or a new MC will be brought in. The You Quiz on the Block team said the two weeks of episodes already recorded will be broadcast as is, and that this week's scheduled recording will proceed with Yoo Jae-seok alone without Cho Sae-ho.
Meanwhile, on the 9th Cho Sae-ho posted a lengthy message and directly addressed the "allegations of ties to organized crime." He said, "Having attended many local events over the years, I met various people I hadn't known before. Each time, as someone who stands in front of the public, I should have been more careful about my relationships with people around me, but when I was younger I did not handle all those connections maturely. I deeply reflect on that," while also explaining, "I want to say that the allegations raised because of those connections are not true at all, despite many people's concerns."
Below is the full official statement from the You Quiz on the Block production team.
This is the production team of You Quiz on the Block.
Our production team has been watching the recent matter concerning Mr. Cho Sae-ho carefully. You Quiz on the Block respects Mr. Cho Sae-ho's decision to step down after careful consideration, and from future recordings Mr. Cho Sae-ho will not participate in the production of this program.
The two weeks of episodes for which recording has already been completed will air as scheduled, and this week's recording is difficult to cancel because it is committed to guests who were already scheduled to appear, so it will proceed without Mr. Cho Sae-ho.
You Quiz on the Block will continue to do its best to produce good programming. [Photo] OSEN DB [OSEN]