“FANTASY BOYS” Yu Junwon Calls Out PocketDol Studio’s Lies In Their Official Statement About His Withdrawal
It was previously reported that #1 ranked trainee on MBC’s debut survival program, FANTASY BOYS, would not be making his debut. Yu Junwon saw differences with the company regarding his contract, and withdrew from the team.
To this, Yu Junwon has issued a personal statement that refutes PocketDol Studio’s claims. He claims that the company lied about certain facts in their statement.
Hello. This is Yu Junwon.
Firstly, I wish to apologize to the fans who have been loving FANTASY BOYS and myself, for affecting them with this matter.
Currently there are too many things being reported about myself, on various media sites and social media, that are far from the truth. Hence, I will be talking about the relevant issue. Firstly, what I can tell you right now, is that I did my best every moment, and never acted in a shameful way in front of the fans.
I have been dreaming of becoming an idol since my third year in middle school, and registered in a training academy. During that process, there were many hard times and difficulties. But I could overcome them as I did not give up on my dream.
Just on time, I was able to receive the honor of ranking #1 on FANTASY BOYS thanks to the love and support from the fans. But it is such a pity and it hurts me so much, that I am unable to make my dreamed debut, despite it being right in front of my eyes. There are some claims in PocketDoll Studio’s statement that are different from the truth, as well as some things that turn away from the truth of the matter.
I have the contents of our calls, as well as multiple advisory sessions and emails, regarding our discussions to reach an agreement. I requested that some unfavorable clauses in the contract to be edited, but they were not, and I kept on asking for a few reasonable conditions to be edited in the contract. However, the company ended up adding some ridiculous conditions and tried to force an agreement. When I refused, they simply informed me out of the blue that I can leave the team. As such, I have reached a stage where my trust in the company’s attitude cannot be recovered, and after which, I made the decision that I will be unable to create and sustain a new contract relationship with the company.
There were many sleepless nights out of fear and sadness that I might not be able to work in the industry again, and my heart hurts as I am sorry to the fans who have been waiting and cheering on my debut. That is why I cannot stay silent.
It is my wish that through this matter, companies will not be able to make use of desperate dreams of debut to force unilaterally beneficial contracts, and that the practice of unfair contracts will be fixed, even just a little.
I hope that you will be able to love and support the FANTASY BOYS members until the end.
Thank you.
— Yu Junwon
You can read more about his withdrawal below.