Hwang Jung-eum reveals bond with Julien Kang amid personal crises

Actress Hwang Jung-eum has revealed her long-standing connection with actor Julien Kang, who stood by her side during a period of overlapping personal crises. The colleague, with whom she once worked on the same production, remained a close friend who even looked after her two sons during her most difficult moments.

In a video uploaded to her YouTube channel on the 9th, Hwang met with Julien Kang to exercise and share a meal, reflecting on their past connection. The conversation, held in a warm atmosphere, went beyond simple industry acquaintanceship and touched upon the sincerity they offered one another during hard times.

"When I was going through a very difficult time, Julien and his wife invited me to their home," Hwang began. Recalling the time she visited Julien Kang's house with her two sons, she added, "He taught Wang-sik and Kang-sik how to exercise and was sincerely worried about us. I was truly grateful."

Julien remained composed. He responded, "Because I think of Hwang Jung-eum as a friend, I only asked because I was worried about how she was feeling." His reaction suggested he was simply doing what any friend would do, rather than providing extraordinary help. However, for Hwang, a time when various personal issues were converging, such ordinary concern from someone close felt much more significant.

The connection between the two dates back to the MBC sitcom 'High Kick: Revenge of the Short Legged.' The friendship built while working together continued even after filming ended. Looking back at that time, Hwang described it by saying, "We were so close. It felt like a sense of camaraderie, like being comrades in arms."

Unlike the typical scene in the entertainment industry where relationships formed on set naturally fade after a production ends, the two remained friends who worry about and look after each other's lives even after a long time has passed. In particular, the anecdote of Hwang visiting Julien Kang and his wife with her two sons demonstrates that their relationship is far from a mere "broadcast-friendly friendship."

Recent years have been a period of significant personal ups and downs for Hwang. She married former professional golfer Lee Young-don in 2016 and had two sons. After applying for divorce mediation in 2020, they reunited the following year, but she eventually ended her long marriage by undergoing divorce proceedings again in 2024.

To this, legal issues regarding the funds of her personal agency were added. In 2025, Hwang was taken to trial on charges of embezzling approximately 4.3 billion won from her one-person management agency, and in the first trial, she was sentenced to 2 years in prison with a 4-year stay of execution. As she did not appeal, the sentence was finalized. It was a period when not only her activities as an actress but also her private life became subjects of intense public scrutiny.

As Hwang mentioned Julien Kang alongside the brief expression "when I was going through a very difficult time," this confession drew even more attention. Behind her glamorous broadcasting activities and her image in works, she also had to endure a complex reality as a mother of two, and in that process, the family of a long-time colleague became a warm shelter.

Julien has also met the public through various broadcasts and works during his long career in the entertainment industry, but in this video, his human side toward a friend was highlighted more than his glamorous activities. He explained his actions of spending time with Hwang's sons and teaching them how to exercise not as a grand heartwarming story, but simply as "worrying because she is a friend."

Hwang is communicating more directly with the public through her YouTube channel again after passing through these turbulent times. This meeting was a moment to bring the connection started in 'High Kick' into the present, while also expressing her belated gratitude toward those who worried about her during her hardest moments.

The "camaraderie" that continued even after the production ended became even clearer during unexpected life crises. The gratitude Hwang expressed to Julien Kang and his wife contained more than just a greeting to a fellow actor; it held the sincerity of a long-time friend who remembers the most complex and difficult times together.