What's Next for TWICE's Jeongyeon After JYP? She Teases a Big Surprise

TWICE member Jeongyeon has spoken publicly for the first time about leaving JYP Entertainment, telling fans she is both nervous and excited about her next chapter. Her message came one day after she announced her move to a new agency through a handwritten letter.

On Aug. 11, Jeongyeon posted a note to fans on a communication platform. "You must have been surprised, right? I'm getting a lot of strength from all the ONCEs cheering me on," she wrote, using the name of TWICE's fandom. "Honestly, I'm scared too. But I really wanted to show more sides of myself."

She said she felt fortunate to have found a company that fully supports her. "You'll be able to see me on TV soon, so please wait a little," she wrote. "I'm going to surprise you. I'll show up in a place you'd never expect, so please look forward to it."

Jeongyeon also made a point of reassuring fans about her group. "TWICE, the biggest center of who I am, will stay the same as it is now," she wrote. "Standing in front of ONCEs as a member of TWICE will always come first."

Jeongyeon revealed her agency move on Aug. 10 through a handwritten letter. She has signed with BARO Entertainment, the acting agency that also represents her older sister, actor Gong Seung-yeon. The signing comes after Jeongyeon confirmed her casting in the film "Shinbyeong: The Movie" (Shinbyeong: The Movie), a project that marks her step into acting.

BARO Entertainment said the company was moved by Jeongyeon's sincerity toward acting. "We deeply connected with Yoo Jeong-yeon's honest attitude and heart toward acting," the agency said. "Based on the global presence she has built as an artist over many years, we will be a reliable partner who supports her in every way, so she can take on new challenges as an actor while continuing her group activities smoothly."

The move places Jeongyeon among a growing group of K-pop idols expanding into acting while remaining active in their groups, a path that increasingly runs through specialized acting agencies rather than the labels that launched them.