As the controversy over comedian Park Na-rae's manager continues, comedian Kim Mi-ryeo's confession is resurfacing.
A past episode of the web variety show B-Grade Hearing featuring Kim has gone viral online. Asked about her peak-era earnings, Kim candidly said, "I could've made much more, but my managers did a lot of 'shooking' (embezzling money by secretly skimming or siphoning it off)." She recalled a settlement after shooting a commercial with another entertainer, during which a manager allegedly pitted them against each other by telling each side completely different stories.
"They told the other person, 'Mi-ryeo is doing well, so let's give more to her,' and told me, 'He's your oppa, so let's give him more,'" Kim explained. "I didn't take it the wrong way, but the other person thought I'd changed after getting popular." She added that she later learned a manager's money skimming was behind the whole situation.
When comedian Nam Ho-yeon asked, "Why didn't you sue?" Kim hesitated, then said, "There was an even bigger incident back then," before sharing another story. She recalled visiting a hospital at a company executive's suggestion to consult about breast reduction surgery.
"At the hospital, I took off my top, they took photos, and we had the consultation. The conclusion was that I didn't need surgery," she said. "I thought that was the end of it, but on the drive back, my manager showed me those photos. He had saved pictures of my body for himself," she revealed, shocking viewers.
Kim said she immediately demanded the photos be deleted, but "the manager brushed it off, saying he would." It later came to light that the same person had siphoned off most of her appearance fees and income. With time, Kim admitted a chilling thought crossed her mind: "If I kept demanding my money, maybe he took those photos to use as leverage to threaten me."
Even so, in her characteristically candid tone, Kim defused the heaviness with a joke: "It was an old 2G phone anyway, so the quality is bad." Her calm delivery drew laughs while also forcing a fresh look at the industry's structural problems.
Kim Mi-ryeo debuted in 2006 through MBC's special recruitment and enjoyed her heyday as the beloved 'Madam' character on Gag Ya.