Veteran actress Jeong Ga Eun has issued an apology after her recent social media post sparked accusations of sexual harassment.
On July 25, Jeong uploaded a photo to Instagram in which she could be seen embracing one of her male co-stars from her upcoming play, All-Star Boeing Boeing. Most notably, while the actor had his hands on Jeong’s arms, Jeong had her own hands in a compromising position on her co-star’s buttocks.
In her caption, Jeong told fans they were “practicing for the play” with a series of smiling emojis, but it was her following sentence that sparked a huge backlash across the internet: “My hands are… having a good time.”
While deleted shortly afterward, the post quickly drew widespread criticism from Korean netizens, who found the 46-year-old actress’s caption and behavior towards her colleague to be both inappropriate and lacking in awareness. Many stated that Jeong’s actions constituted sexual harassment, insisting that the backlash would be even more severe if the actors’ genders were reversed.
Two days later, amidst the growing controversy, Jeong — who is best known to many these days as a variety show host — has now issued an apology for the post, in which she expressed sorrow for her carelessness.
Everyone, I apologize for causing discomfort with my careless words while sharing a scene from our rehearsal of the play Boeing Boeing. I will be more careful and cautious with my words and actions in the future.
— Jeong Ga Eun
Given Jeong Ga Eun’s 27-year career in the entertainment industry, numerous netizens stated they were disappointed in her lack of professionalism, with some suggesting it seemed like she was using work to satisfy her personal desires.
In response to the incident, Korean media outlets have compared the actress to other female entertainment stars such as Lee Kyung Sil and Park Na Rae, both of whom were investigated after making lewd comments about men on television.
Source: Newsis
