Comedians Park Na-rae (left) and Jo Se-ho. Provided by their respective agencies

Past remarks that seemed to foreshadow the controversies surrounding comedians Park Na-rae and Jo Se-ho are drawing attention.

On the 4th, controversies erupted around Park and Jo. Park faced allegations of power abuse and embezzlement raised by former managers, while a netizen claimed that Jo had accepted money and valuables through his ties with Mr. A, the head of an organized crime group, and had promoted Mr. A’s franchise.

They each denied the claims, saying, “Former managers received severance pay yet demanded 10% of the previous year’s sales,” and, “Mr. A is merely an acquaintance, and the allegations raised are groundless.” However, as criticism mounted, they ultimately announced a hiatus. Park stepped down from MBC’s ‘I Live Alone’ and ‘Where Is My Home’, and tvN’s ‘Amazing Saturday’, while Jo announced his exit from tvN’s ‘You Quiz on the Block’ and KBS2’s ‘2 Days & 1 Night’.

Even so, with the controversies not easily subsiding, past remarks by fellow entertainers that sounded like warnings about their private lives have resurfaced and become a hot topic.

Past remarks by Lee Hyo-ri about Park Na-rae’s drunken behavior are a hot topic. Tving ‘Seoul Mate’ video

■ Park Na-rae, hints at issues with drinking habits and people around her?

Park’s former managers claimed that she demanded they join her for drinks, hurled verbal abuse when they did not drink, and once threw a glass, injuring a manager. Through a YouTuber, a further claim was made that Park kept a former manager on standby 24 hours a day.

In this context, a past scene on the Tving variety show ‘Seoul Check-in’ where Lee Hyo-ri mentioned Park’s drunken antics has become a talking point. While dining with Park, Lee video-called singer Hwasa; when Lee said, “She slept here,” Hwasa asked, “Sometimes you call at 45 a.m. Did you have a wild night?” Lee then said, “We (the two of us) drank, and I wanted to sleep, but Narae kept opening the door. I briefly thought about whether I should hit Narae on the head with a soju bottle, whether I should knock her out.”

Past remarks by Kian84 about people around Park Na-rae are a hot topic. YouTube channel ‘Narae-sik’ video

Kian84 also appeared on the YouTube channel ‘Narae-sik’ and voiced concerns about the people around Park. In addition to the power-abuse controversy, Park faces suspicions that she registered her ex-boyfriend as an agency employee and paid him 44 million won over 11 months, and that she received unlawful injection treatments and prescription drugs from a so-called ‘injection auntie’.

Kian84 said, “You introduce people, do you not? I have a hunch. I get a slight ‘scammer’ smell,” adding, “I could be mistaken, but there are just too many such people around you.” Speaking about one of Park’s past partners, he also said, “I was a bit suspicious at first based on his looks. It felt like he approached you for your assets.” He then concluded, “He is tall and looks like a model, so I wondered, ‘Why is that person dating Park Na-rae?’ But after a long time, I felt I had jumped to conclusions.” Many responded that it was heartfelt advice from Kian84.

Past remarks by Lee Kyung-sil about Jo Se-ho’s network are a hot topic. tvN ‘You Quiz on the Block’ broadcast still

■ Jo Se-ho, consistent advice regarding his connections

Given Jo’s reputation as a social butterfly in the entertainment world, advice regarding his network drew attention. In October, Lee Kyung-sil appeared on ‘You Quiz on the Block’ and, sharing her impressions after attending Jo’s wedding, said, “In all my life, I had never seen a wedding with that many people.”

Jo’s wedding, held on October 21 at the Shilla Hotel Seoul, reportedly drew about 900 guests, including many celebrities.

Lee continued, “In life, you do not need that many people,” adding, “When we took a group photo, there were a comedians group, a singers group, a businesspeople groupfive groups in all,” and, “Let us see how many remain later. That is what life has taught me.”

At the time, it amused viewers as if listening to relatives chatting at a holiday gathering, but after the organized-crime controversy surfaced, it is being spotlighted as ‘life advice’.

Past remarks by Yoo Byung-jae about Jo Se-ho’s network are a hot topic. YouTube channel ‘Yoo Byung-jae’ video

A 2022 remark by Yoo Byung-jae is also drawing attention. When Jo appeared on Yoo’s YouTube channel at the time, Yoo said of Jo, “Ten minutes efore the meeting time, you ask, ‘There is someone you do not knowwould it be okay if he comes?’ and I cannot answer, ‘It is not okay,’ so we end up meeting.”

When Jo explained, “For example, if I tell someone that I am going to meet Byung-jae and they ask, ‘Could I join you?’ I do not really know how to handle that,” Yoo said, “There have been grateful cases where I made good connections like Lee Dong-wook and Jung Jae-hyung. But then there are others, people who are, you know, doing gangster work somewhere.”

At the time, it was dismissed as a joke, but now some say Jo’s controversy had already been foretold.