- Twice's Jeongyeon (Yoo Jeong-yeon) has exited JYP Entertainment after 11 years, signing an exclusive deal with Varo Entertainment on August 10, 2026, to launch her acting career.
- She joins her sister, actress Gong Seung-yeon, at Varo, alongside labelmates Byeon Woo-seok, Lee Yoo-mi, Lee Chae-min, and Jin Goo.
- The deal covers acting only: Jeongyeon confirmed she remains with Twice and stays under JYP for group activities.
- Her film debut, New Recruit: The Movie, is expected soon, marking her first big-screen role in roughly a decade.
Twice’s Jeongyeon, born Yoo Jeong-yeon, has signed an exclusive contract with Varo Entertainment to launch her acting career, the Seoul-based agency confirmed on August 10, 2026.
The move ends an 11-year run with JYP Entertainment, which signed her as a trainee in 2010 before she debuted with Twice in 2015.
Varo said it was “truly delighted” to partner with Yoo Jeong-yeon, citing her “diverse charms” and “genuine commitment to acting,” and pledged support as she balances acting with her ongoing Twice schedule.
The signing reunites Jeongyeon with her older sister, actress Gong Seung-yeon, a longtime Varo client. It also places her alongside a deep bench of screen talent, including Squid Game Emmy winner Lee Yoo-mi, Bon Appétit, Your Majesty lead Lee Chae-min, Byeon Woo-seok, and Descendants of the Sun actor Jin Goo.
Jeongyeon’s deal adds representation on top of her group commitments rather than replacing them; her JYP ties for Twice remain intact.
Jeongyeon broke the news herself, posting a handwritten Instagram letter calling JYP “my second home since my teenage years” and telling fans, known as Once, that Twice “remains the center of my life.”
She’s expected to make her film debut soon in New Recruit: The Movie, an adaptation of the ENA drama, playing a nursing officer in her first movie role in about a decade.
The timing lands amid a broader shake-up at JYP, where members including Jihyo, Tzuyu, and Chaeyoung have reportedly explored outside representation for solo work, even as Twice tours behind its sixth studio album, This Is For, and its Netflix-linked hit “Takedown.”
As with Kayda Bosse’s recent signing with UTA or Courtney Grace’s addition of Gersh alongside existing management, Varo’s approach fits a 2026 pattern: talent layering in specialized reps for one lane without unwinding their core team.
For Varo, it’s an active year; the agency added Lee Chae-min in August 2025 after his contract with Kim Soo-hyun’s agency lapsed, and it’s increasingly the go-to home for K-pop idols branching into acting.
Takeaways
This isn’t a Twice breakup story; it’s the “separate but together” model becoming standard for veteran K-pop groups, where members split solo representation from group contracts.
It’s also notable how much Varo is building its acting roster through personal connections: Jeongyeon followed her sister the way idols increasingly follow family or friends into new agencies.
Will Jihyo, Tzuyu, and Chaeyoung follow the same split-contract model, or push for full agency exits? Can Varo turn Jeongyeon’s built-in global fanbase into crossover acting success the way it did for Lee Yoo-mi post-Squid Game?
