Cho Jin-woong Admits to Allegations, ‘Icon of Justice’ Image Shattered

Actor Cho Jin-woong’s 20-year acting career is being re-examined after he admitted and apologized for reports of having a juvenile criminal record from his high school days.

This is because there are many points of conflict with his image as a representative actor who has consistently played ‘righteous investigators’ and characters in ‘independence movement narratives.’ For a long time, the public has remembered Cho Jin-woong through the screen as a figure who fights against injustice. Now, however, the controversy surrounding his past directly confronts the narrative the actor has built for himself.

Cho Jin-woong (real name Cho Won-jun) grew up in Busan and started on the theater stage before making his film debut in 2004 with ‘Once Upon a Time in High School.’ Since then, he has built a strong presence by establishing tough detective and prosecutor characters through a significant filmography including ‘Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time,’ ‘A Hard Day,’ ‘Believer,’ ‘Steel Rain,’ ‘Me and Me,’ and ‘The Policeman’s Lineage.’ In particular, his role as detective Lee Jae-han in tvN’s ‘Signal’ completely solidified his image as a principled investigator tracking down organizational corruption and crimes of power. Thereafter, his image was naturally overlaid with notions of ‘justice,’ ‘responsibility,’ and ‘strength that protects the weak.’

His connection to independence movement and historical content is also prominent. He played the young Kim Gu in the movie ‘Man of Will’ and also narrated a documentary about the history of the independence war. The scene where he showed his sincerity by personally reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at a national event commemorating Liberation Day remains in many people’s memories. It was a narrative of a ‘righteous actor’ that he chose and built himself.

In interviews for various projects, Cho Jin-woong has expressed that he ‘wants to be a friendly clown,’ meaning he wants to remain an actor who brings laughter and emotion to the audience. Regarding his stage name ‘Cho Jin-woong,’ he once smiled and said, ‘I took it from my father’s respected name,’ and ‘I should pay my father royalties.’ His words, ‘I chose a new name with a special resolve’ when transitioning from the theater stage to film, contained his sense of responsibility and determination as an actor.

In an interview after the movie ‘The Devil’s Deal,’ Cho Jin-woong had also made comments connecting the film’s message about social absurdity to his own values, saying, ‘It was a work that made me think seriously about myself. I thought a lot about not kneeling to evil.’

However, a completely different narrative about his teenage years recently emerged through entertainment media reports. Allegations were raised that he was involved in car theft and a sex crime while in high school, for which he faced a criminal trial and received a juvenile protective disposition, as well as claims that he was punished for assault and drunk driving as an adult. These reports have intensified the shock, casting suspicion even on the background of his past name change.

Ten hours after the initial report, Cho Jin-woong’s agency released a statement saying, ‘After confirming with the actor, we have verified that he engaged in wrongful acts during his minor years.’ They added, ‘This is based on partially confirmed facts, but it is difficult to fully grasp the details of events that occurred over 30 years ago, and there are limitations as the related legal procedures have already concluded. However, we want to state clearly that he was not involved in any acts related to sexual assault,’ emphasizing his non-involvement in sexual assault.

However, was the agency’s response too late? Netizens have already found news reports from that time about a 1994 sexual assault case involving a high school girl, based on informants’ testimonies and details like the period, region, and school initials of Cho Jin-woong’s high school. The atmosphere is one of growing anger, particularly towards the agency’s statement that ‘the related legal procedures have already concluded.’

The repercussions of the controversy extend beyond a simple entertainment industry issue. This is because the past of an actor who has represented the voices of righteous police officers, prosecutors, and independence activists is so contrary to reality. How should we evaluate the way the public has consumed an individual as a representation on screen? Conversely, it also raises the question of to what extent should one separate youthful wrongdoings from achievements built as an adult.

Cho Jin-woong is preparing for his next project, ‘The Second Signal.’ It is a work that viewers of ‘Signal’ have been waiting for for over 10 years, and filming has already been completed with a scheduled release in August 2026. Due to the actor’s personal controversy, another project, into which the labor and costs of hundreds of people were invested, is at a crossroads of being shelved without release.

This issue has become an opportunity to question not just one actor’s past, but the conditions for the establishment of the ‘hero narrative’ in Korean popular culture.