Departure From Return
On February 7, 2018, SBS released a statement that Go Hyun-jung would be stepping down from her lead role in the drama Return. The next day, it was confirmed by her agency, IOK Company. According to Soompi, the agency stated that there was a difference of opinions and the actress could not close the gap, and therefore decided to leave after much discussions and thought. “Rather than blaming someone, we have decided to accept SBS’s notice of departure due to the fact that it is only right that the person who is said to be the problem should leave for the sake of the drama,” they added. They concluded by expressing support and love from the agency as well as the actress towards the drama Return.
Physical Assault Allegation and Reason She Left Return
Previously, on February 7, Go Hyun-jung was reported to have been involved a large fight with the Return‘s producing director (PD), Joo Dong-min, which is speculated to be the reason she left the drama. Moreover, it was reported that the fight involved some physical assaults from the actress, such as grabbing the PD’s collar. SBS’s representatives confirmed the occurrence of the big fight and that they were currently looking into replacing the lead actress. According to Soompi, it was also confirmed by her agency that there was an argument and verbal conflict due to different opinions. They also confirmed that the actress did shove the PD, but denied the grabbing act as reported before. The agency also explained why they didn’t mention it before after announcing her departure. “We thought that if we told our side of the story, it would aggravate the situation and fuel more arguments over whether there had been physical assault or not, so we remained silent,” they said. However, because the physical assault rumor was taken as a fact, the agency wanted to clarify. Furthermore, the agency denied that the argument was about a dispute over screen time. “As filming progressed, [Go Hyun Jung] felt that the nature of her character was changing. So she expressed her difference of opinion, and there was a clash resulting from the disagreement,” they said. The agency also said that Go Hyun-jung was sorry to the production staff and viewers that this kind of incident had to happen, and that it was the first time in her career, too. Meanwhile, in response to the physical assault allegation, SBS stated that they had compiled verbal accounts from the staff who witnessed the incident and said that shoving and kicking took place. “The actress may not have felt that it was physical assault because it was typical behavior for her, but if the victim felt that it was physical assault, it was most likely physical assault,” they added.
Being Replaced by Park Jin-hee
As mentioned before, after Go Hyun-jung’s departure, SBS needed to find another actress to do the lead role of the drama, to play Choi Ja-hye. Following SBS’s announcement about Go Hyun-jung, actress Park Jin-hee was rumored to be taking the lead role. Her agency, Elefun Entertainment, later clarified, saying that Park Jin-hee had indeed received an offer from Return but nothing was confirmed yet. However, they revealed that the actress and the drama’s production team were in still discussion regarding it. Days after that, Park Jin-hee finally made up her mind and accepted the offer to take the lead role. She would start filming the drama from February 13. As cited by Soompi, the actress expressed her feelings about the offer, “I was surprised by the sudden offer from the production team and I worried about it a lot, but I decided to accept the offer due to the team’s earnestness.” Park Jin-hee first appeared in the drama at the end of episode 16. Even though she didn’t have any lines in the episode, her appearance sure made the viewers even more curious about how Cha Ji-hye’s role would be brought out by the actress for the rest of the episodes.
Go Hyun-jung Talks About Her Departure
After awhile, in April, 2018, Go Hyun-jung finally made her first public appearance in a press-conference for her current movie, Winter Guest Scarier Than A Tiger, along with Lee Jin-wook, her former co-star in Return. According to Soompi, the actress expressed that she should reflect a lot after what happened. She continued by stating that there were also misunderstandings and things that didn’t happen and that people asked her why she didn’t say anything. ““I realized once again that with everything, there aren’t just bad things or just good things. My fans are one of the reasons why I need to live well and that’s everything. Thank you,” she added.
Faces Lawsuit Following Her Departure
Her departure turned out to have impact on her in the future. In August, 2018, she faced a lawsuit from an advertiser for a health food company. It had been part of the aftermath of her sudden departure from Return and the physical assault allegations. They feared that the controversies might damage their image, so, as a result, they terminated their contract with her and filed a damages suit against her. According to Soompi, her agency commented on the issue, “It is true that Go Hyun Jung is currently facing a lawsuit. We do not have anything more to say.”
Latest News
Go Hyun-jung’s latest drama is My Lawyer, Mr. Jo 2: Crime and Punishment, which is the sequel drama of My Lawyer, Mr. Jo from 2016. It aired from January 7 to March 26, 2019, on KBS2. The drama was based on a webtoon series titled Neighbourhood Lawyer Jo Deul-ho, by webtoonist Hatzling (Kim Yang-soo). Go Hyun-jung became the female lead with male lead co-star Park Shin-yang, who starred in the first season of drama, as well. Watch one of the teasers below!
Up until now, we don’t know what actually happened between Go Hyun-jung and the drama Return‘s PD, as both the agency and SBS made very different statements. However, the actress sure has reflected a lot on what happened, not to mention the fact that she has had indirect consequences in the form of a lawsuit from an advertiser, and maybe other stuff, too. We may as well keep supporting her and hope other artists will take a good insight of this incident.
