Actor Hwang Jeong-eum appeared before the public through YouTube one year after the embezzlement controversy.
On the 19th, a video titled "Long time no see | sharing what has happened in the past year" was uploaded to Hwang Jeong-eum's YouTube channel.
Before officially starting YouTube that day, she updated the production team on her recent situation during a meeting. When asked, "It's really been a long time; how have you been?" she said, "Many people know there was a big incident. I was so busy dealing with that. The year felt like a month," she confessed.
Asked whether it had been resolved, she explained, "Yes. Thankfully many people helped, so it was resolved well, and I tried my best to take responsibility so that no one would be harmed because of me. From my side."
At the time of the controversy, Hwang Jeong-eum, who had filmed a commercial with the cast of High Kick Through the Roof, bowed her head and said, "That incident happened as soon as we shot that commercial. So I paid all the penalties for breach of contract, but paying penalties doesn't fix my wrongdoing, and that part is really regrettable and I'm sorry. It was a truly meaningful occasion because many staff members, the director and the High Kick cast reunited after a long time. The hurt is indescribable, but what can I do? It happened because of my mistake."
When told, "You can't blame anyone," she agreed, "Of course. It's the result of my actions," and added, "No matter what you blame, the situation wouldn't change. I worked hard to manage and resolve it and minimize damage, but because I was 'solo' in that sense, the production team suffered, advertisers suffered, and I think the fans who supported me were very shocked, and that saddens me."
Saying she resolved it on her own without anyone's help, Hwang Jeong-eum joked, "Do I have a husband?" and recalled the past year of inactivity, "It was really hard. The only thing I know how to do is act, and I wondered whether I could act again."
The production team asked, "Did you ever think you might not be able to return?", and Hwang Jeong-eum said, "What will I do now? How will I earn money to live? This vague fear and dread. But when I look at our i-dle, they're so pretty. I think I was able to endure because of those kids. My mother and father too. Anyway, I have to live. Because I'm a mother. No matter how hard it is and how much it feels like dying, there are people who help when I go out, and there are so many good people. Thankfully I'm alive," she said with a laugh.
She said, "Luckily my personality is such that a friend of Kang-sik's parents told me that despite so many incidents, I was seen smiling while drinking coffee at a café. People said, 'She's smiling.' I wondered, should I keep crying then? Would that solve anything? People are shocked. Even though so much happened, I was smiling. But when I see Kang-sik, I laugh even if I was crying."
When asked, "Going through this must have changed your life values," Hwang Jeong-eum said, "What I realized is that I want to be ordinary and peaceful. I want it to be quiet. I don't want it to be noisy. I don't want to stand out. Since I was a child I thought, 'I'm special. I'm unique. I was born so pretty. I'm Hwang Jeong-eum. I did dance and was in the Little Angels, and my birthday is Dec. 25, Christmas. The world revolves around me'—I had that kind of foolish thought. I thought I was like that. But I'm actually a worm," she blamed herself.
Regarding the comment, "Some people might feel uncomfortable if you do YouTube during your period of self-reflection," she said, "Of course they'd be uncomfortable. Why are you coming out? I don't want to see it. I think that's natural. I accept all that and must ask for forgiveness for my wrongdoing. I'm an actor. I should work hard at something until many people feel comfortable again."
Meanwhile, Hwang Jeong-eum was indicted without detention in 2022 on charges of embezzling a total of about 4.34 billion won after taking 700 million won in loans under the name of her one-person management agency as provisional payments and investing them in cryptocurrency. This fact first surfaced during the first trial held last May, and Hwang Jeong-eum acknowledged the charges, saying her intention was to grow the company through cryptocurrency investments. Afterward, she repaid the entire embezzled amount, and was ultimately sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for four years.
[Photo] Hwang Jeong-eum YouTube
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