Actor Jang Dong-joo, who abruptly announced his retirement, is effectively parting ways with his new agency just two months after signing his contract. The agency expressed strong regret, stating that Jang's retirement announcement was a "unilateral decision made without prior discussion."
Management W, Jang Dong-joo's agency, released an official statement on the 17th, stating, "The recent announcement of actor Jang Dong-joo's retirement, which has been reported through media and social media, was a unilateral decision made by the actor himself without any prior discussion or consultation with our company."
They continued, "We were not informed of this content in advance and only became aware of the situation after the announcement. This is a highly irresponsible act that abandons the responsibility and trust expected of an actor under contract," adding, "We clearly state that the responsibility for the confusion and damage caused by this lies entirely with the actor himself."
Furthermore, Management W added, "We have determined that the trust relationship with actor Jang Dong-joo has reached a point of no return, and we plan to carefully review all matters, including whether to maintain the exclusive contract."
On the 15th, Jang Dong-joo took to his social media to announce his sudden retirement from the entertainment industry, stating, "Starting today, I intend to lay down my life as actor Jang Dong-joo."
Later, in a TikTok live broadcast, Jang revealed his financial difficulties, saying, "Out of about 4 billion KRW in debt, I have paid off over 3 billion KRW, and there is currently about 700 to 800 million KRW remaining." He explained, "I judged that normal acting activities were impossible while feeling the pressure of debt every day," and added, "It's not like acting is the only job in the world, is it?" He also emphasized, "I will pay off my debt to the end without filing for bankruptcy."
However, Jang did not provide any statement regarding the allegations that police were called due to a dispute over a bill at an adult entertainment establishment just before his retirement announcement.
Previously, an exclusive report by SBS Entertainment News revealed that on the night of the 14th, Jang Dong-joo visited an adult entertainment establishment alone in Banpo-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, and police were called after he failed to pay a bill of approximately 3 million KRW and an additional 10 million KRW he had borrowed under the pretext of a pre-payment.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kang Kyung-youn)