Penthouse's Kim Youngdae's agency finally broke their silence regarding his abrupt exit of the KBS school drama School 2021.

Earlier, it was announced that Kim Youngdae has decided to ultimately withdraw from the show, citing differences in expectations from what was offered to him and what was written on the script.

Netizens were upset, calling him unprofessional and not that good yet to withdraw from dramas. Also, KBS had released a statement regarding his withdrawal, calling it "one-sided and without negotiation." They put the blame on him for the delay of the drama's production.

After receiving backlash for his professionalism issues, his agency OUTERKOREA has released a statement detailing his decision to withdraw from the show.

They stated that Kim Youngdae and his agency had faithfully cooperated with KBS and King's Media (the drama's production comapny) from March of 2020 until his withdrawal last month. According to them, it was KBS and King's Media's fault that the production was delayed, to the point that the drama was cancelled at some point.

Kim Youngdae was not obliged to work for the show since it was not King's Media who casted him for the show. In addition, they kept on releasing press releases about him without their express consent, causing him to work even though he is not obliged to work for them anymore.

They emphasized that Kim Youngdae was enthusiastic and cooperative throughout his stay in the drama, even though delays and irregularities caused by the production company has made the working atmosphere a bit uncomfortable. His agency also said that it is wrong for KBS to ultimately blame him for the delay of the production when in fact, it was the production company that causes the delays in the first place.

They also exposed that KINGSLAND was also not able to pay for the cast and the production costs in a timely manner, thus aggravating matters even more between Kim Youngdae and the production company. They finally sent their notice of termination of contact last June 23 to the CEO of KINGSLAND, respectfully noting that the termination was caused by KINGSLAND not being able to fulfill their share in the contract.

However, they still received a message from KINGSLAND saying that Kim Youngdae must attend a script reading, and that is where they felt the most disrespected with regards to their treatment towards him and his agency. They said that it was the production company and KBS that were being unprofessional by not keeping their sides of the contract when they have faithfully complied with their part.

Lastly, they asked the journalists to stop spreading biased and misinformed articles about the issue, and asked for his fans' support and understanding regarding the matter.

It is also noteworthy to remember that Kim Saeron was supposed to be the female lead alongside Kim Yohan after the first casted female lead Ahn Seohyun has rejected the role and exited the drama due to differences with the production company.

KBS and KINGSLAND have neither expressed their sides as of this writing.

Source: Koreaboo