TWICE Jeongyeon Departs JYP for Acting Career with Sister Gong Seung-yeon's Agency

TWICE's Jeongyeon is currently making headlines in Korea for her significant career shift, departing from JYP Entertainment after 11 years to pursue acting. This move is generating considerable buzz as she transitions to an acting career under her birth name, Yoo Jeong-yeon, while strategically maintaining her group activities with TWICE.

Jeongyeon has signed an exclusive contract with Baro Entertainment, an agency primarily housing actors, including her older sister, Gong Seung-yeon. Following this, the new agency released striking profile photos featuring Yoo Jeong-yeon with long hair and natural makeup, a stark contrast to her familiar idol image. This change signifies her commitment to establishing herself as an actress, moving away from the vibrant girl group persona she has maintained for over a decade.

Local bloggers describe this as a "clever two-track strategy," where she sheds her idol image for acting while reassuring fans that her role in TWICE remains unchanged. This approach allows her to secure support from her existing global fandom while pursuing new artistic challenges, a departure from past idol-to-actor transitions that sometimes led to fan backlash, by explicitly stating her continued dedication to TWICE.