In a matter of days, three big names in South Korea's entertainment industry have made headlines in separate scandals that could derail their careers.
The allegations that have embroiled comedians Park Na-rae and Cho Sae-ho, as well as veteran actor Cho Jin-woong, are all different - ranging from workplace abuse to previous teenage detention to associations with a gang member.
But the results have been the same: departures from the television screens where they had worked their way up to become household names.
The scandals have also raised questions about the standards to which South Korea's public figures are held - especially in the entertainment industry.
What are the scandals about?
Park Na-rae, one of the country's most successful female comedians, made headlines last week when two of her former managers lodged criminal complaints claiming she had verbally abused and physically assaulted them.
The 40-year-old had also made them do her personal chores, they alleged.
Park has denied these allegations and sued the former managers for blackmail, her agency said over the weekend.
She is separately being accused of receiving IV drips illegally at home, which violates local medical law, prompting a police investigation.
On Monday, Park Na-rae announced on social media that she had talked things through with her accusers, but would halt all broadcasting activities until things were clearly resolved.
As a comedian whose job is to bring laughter and joy, I cannot continue to be a burden to my programmes and colleagues, she wrote.
Another rising scandal
Another comedian who has come under scrutiny over the past week is Cho Sae-ho.
Rumours started swirling last week that the 43-year-old was friends with a prominent local gang member and had received money to promote the latter's business.
Backlash came swiftly, as social media users demanded that Cho Sae-ho be removed from his popular shows, including You Quiz on the Block and Two Days and One Night.
On Tuesday, Cho's agency announced that he would leave the shows - though it denied his links to the gang's business activities.
In a social media statement, Cho Sae-ho said he should have been more careful with the people he met at events.
He added that he decided to step down from the shows because he did not want to burden the programmes and their production teams.
The downfall that has generated the most debate comes from veteran actor Cho Jin-woong, who announced over the weekend that he would quit acting.
Debate over cancel culture
The abrupt announcement came after a viral news report that said Cho Jin-woong, as a teenager in the 1990s, had been sent to a juvenile detention centre on allegations of robbery and sexual assault. As an adult, he also assaulted a person in his theatre troupe and had his driving licence suspended for drink driving, the report said.
The 49-year-old's agency said that Cho Jin-woong had confirmed wrongdoing in his youth, but denied sexually assaulting anyone.
Broadcasters have scrambled to erase Cho Jin-woong from their platforms, with a documentary series he narrated being re-recorded, while the fate of Second Signal, the sequel to his hit TV series, remains unclear.
The allegations against Cho Jin-woong have stirred heated debate about how much public figures should be forgiven for past mistakes, with discussions emerging about the societal implications of cancel culture.
Critics argue that the trend of targeting celebrities for past transgressions raises questions about moral standards and accountability in a rapidly changing social landscape.
Culture critic Kim Sung-soo notes that celebrities are easy targets due to their dependence on public approval and reputation, leading to intense scrutiny of their past actions.
As Park, Cho Sae-ho, and Cho Jin-woong vow to reflect on their actions, audiences also grapple with the broader implications of how celebrities are treated in South Korea.
