Jung Woo-sung, Who Didn't Film Ads Despite 10 Million Viewers... Was He Preparing for Extramarital Child Controversy?

No Advertising Contracts Last Year and This Year
Resignation from UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Role Held for 9 Years

Actor Jung Woo-sung did not proceed with any advertising contracts last year and this year, raising suspicions that he might have been preemptively aware of the controversy surrounding his child born out of wedlock. On the 25th, Chosun Biz reported that Jung Woo-sung had not signed any new advertising contracts since his last one with NHN Hangame in 2022. Additionally, it was reported that he resigned from his position as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency, a role he had held for nine years, around July.

Actor Jung Woo-sung did not sign any advertising contracts last year and this year, raising suspicions that he might have been aware of the extramarital child controversy in advance. Yonhap News

Jung Woo-sung attracted attention in the advertising industry last year after drawing ten million viewers with the film Seoul Spring. Although he likely received numerous advertising offers, it is known that he personally declined advertising contracts. This contrasts with his close friend Lee Jung-jae, who swept the advertising world with the Netflix drama Squid Game. Consequently, some speculate that after news of Jung Woo-sung’s child born out of wedlock became public, he may have refrained from advertising activities anticipating the possibility of this fact being revealed. This is because if a privacy controversy arises during advertising model activities, there is a risk of having to pay penalties to advertisers. If a celebrity violates the "maintenance of dignity" clause, which requires them to uphold their reputation during advertising contracts, they may be liable for penalties amounting to several times the contract fee.

Jung Woo-sung’s advertising fee is known to be 1.2 billion KRW per commercial (on a yearly basis). According to an external evaluation report disclosed on the 6th by his agency Artist Company for its merger with Artist United, Jung Woo-sung generated sales of about 10 billion KRW through eight advertisements conducted with Lee Jung-jae until last year. Coincidentally, Jung Woo-sung also resigned as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency in July after nine years. At the time, he explained his resignation by saying, "I think that image is becoming fixed in Korea," and added, "Younger new faces and new mainstream generations are emerging, so I thought someone who can communicate with that mainstream generation and has the same understanding as I do could take over, and maybe should."

Previously, Jung Woo-sung’s child born out of wedlock controversy was revealed through a recent Dispatch report. According to the report, Jung Woo-sung first met model Moon Ga-bi at a gathering in 2022. Although the two were not officially dating, they had a child out of wedlock. Moon Ga-bi gave birth to a son in March this year, but it is reported that there are no plans for marriage with Jung Woo-sung. Regarding this, Jung Woo-sung stated through his agency, "I will take full responsibility for the child."

Meanwhile, Jung Woo-sung was also embroiled in dating rumors with a non-celebrity woman. Recently, a video showing Jung Woo-sung giving a back hug and a cheek kiss to a woman was posted on an online community. In response, his agency said, "Since it concerns the actor’s private life, it is difficult to confirm," and requested that excessive speculation be refrained from.