Cheon Jeong-myeong "My manager of 16 years and my parents were also scammed... Considering retirement"

Cheon Jeong-myeong, inactive since 2019
"I even deceived my parents... Considering retirement"
"I was exhausted and stressed doing things I didn't want to do"

Actor Cheon Jeong-myeong confessed that he was scammed by his manager. SBS 'My Ugly Duckling'

Actor Cheon Jeong-myeong (44) revealed the story behind his suspension of activities after being defrauded by his manager.

Cheon Jeong-myeong appeared on SBS's "My Ugly Duckling" aired on the 8th, where he talked with Super Junior's Kim Hee-chul and former Rula member Lee Sang-min. After stopping his acting career following the 2019 film "The Faceless Boss," he began, "There was a huge incident for me. Five years ago, I was defrauded by a manager I had worked with for 16 years." He continued, "The fraud was significant and the problem escalated. Since I was close to the manager, I trusted him a lot," adding, "I entrusted everything to him, but he even defrauded my parents. As I tried to resolve it, I became exhausted and even considered retiring from the entertainment industry."

Cheon Jeong-myeong recalled, "(The manager) committed forgery of private documents. Suddenly, an executive from the agency called me urgently to come to the office, and then the CEO called." He said, "When I arrived at the office, victims of the fraud had come to the company, waving papers and holding me responsible." He added, "At that time, I couldn't even read the words. They spoke like debt collectors in a movie scene, and I didn't know what to do," expressing, "Anyway, someone has to take responsibility. So, doing things I didn't want to do made me tired and distressed."

Actor Cheon Jeong-myeong confessed that he was scammed by his manager. SBS 'My Ugly Duckling'

Regarding the amount of the damage, Cheon Jeong-myeong explained, "It was an unimaginably huge sum, so I can't even talk about it." He also said, "After being defrauded, I just sat still and lost weight rapidly. I stopped eating and became dazed," adding, "The emotional wound was deep." Furthermore, he said, "My parents also suffered greatly. Seeing me struggle made them even more distressed," and "So I pulled myself together and decided to resume activities. Rumors have spread, and scripts are coming in."

Meanwhile, Cheon Jeong-myeong debuted in the entertainment industry in 2001 with SBS's "Open Drama Man and Woman - Flower Cafe Pure Love." Since then, he has appeared in dramas such as "Live Straight," "Goodbye Solo," "What Are You Doing, Fox?," "Cinderella's Sister," "The Slave Hunters," "Glory Jane," and "Heart to Heart," as well as films including "The Unjust," "Hansel and Gretel," "Blue Salt," and "The Faceless Boss."