Yoo Ah-in was one of South Korea’s most recognized and talented actors, yet his career took a dramatic turn when he became embroiled in a drug scandal in 2023.
After a legal battle, the 37-year-old actor was found to have abused propofol—a potent anesthetic—under the guise of undergoing cosmetic procedures between 2020 and 2022. According to reports, he received the drug on 181 occasions at a Seoul hospital. On September 3rd, 2024, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that Seoul Central District Court has sentenced Yoo Ah-in to one year in prison. He was also fined 2 million won for his drug-related offences. Prosecutors had initially sought a four-year sentence, but the court handed down a lighter sentence, citing his public apology and commitment to reform. Yoo’s fall from grace has drawn widespread media attention, marking yet another high-profile scandal in South Korea’s entertainment industry.
Since his debut in 2003, Yoo Ah-In has starred in a wide range of television dramas and films, earning critical acclaim for his roles in works like Hellbound and Burning. This scandal had put a halt to his career, such that this 2024, the dystopian series Goodbye Earth, which he shot in 2022 but was put in limbo due to the controversy surrounding him, was finally released in April 2024, with all of Yoo’s scenes completely cut.
Source: Yonhap via The Korean Herald
