Park Sung Hoon leaves cast of upcoming drama following controversy

Park Sung Hoon has left the cast of an upcoming drama where he was reportedly offered to play the lead role alongside YoonA, Soompi reported.

This comes almost two weeks after he received flak online for sharing and then quickly deleting an explicit parody of "Squid Game" on his Instagram Stories.

Studio Dragon issued a statement on Sunday, January 12, announcing the actor's departure from the series, which has a literal title of "The Tyrant's Chef."

"After much discussion between the production team and Park Sung Hoon's representatives, the decision was made that it will be difficult for him to join this project," the studio said, as quoted by Soompi.

"The actor and his agency expressed their apologies several times regarding the recent events, and we discussed various conditions in-depth. As a result of our discussions, the production team and Park Sung Hoon decided to continue on separate paths."

Park Sung Hoon earlier apologized for sharing the explicit photo of adult actresses wearing the Squid Game costumes while South Korea was in mourning period following the Jeju Air crash that killed 179 people.

His agency BH Entertainment said it was "accidentally" posted after the actor received it in a direct message.

Park Sung Hoon played a trans woman named Hyun Ju in "Squid Game 2." He is also known for his roles in "The Glory" and "Queen of Tears."

—MGP, GMA Integrated News