Actress Cha Chung Hwa has revealed that she stepped down from three drama roles due to her pregnancy, sharing the emotional toll it took on her career.
On June 16(KST), Cha appeared on the YouTube channel "Eminae Welcome – Luxury Actress Gathering with Kim Jung Nan," alongside actresses Kim Sun Young and Jang So Yeon.
During the episode, she candidly discussed her life after marriage and childbirth, as well as the challenges of balancing motherhood with acting. “Before getting married, I would devote the entire day before filming to preparing for my role. Now I find myself making baby food and rushing out to set after a call from my manager,” she shared. “At first, it was disorienting because acting had always been my whole life.”
Cha went on to disclose that she had to drop out of three dramas due to the physical demands of her roles. “I thought I could still handle the roles while pregnant, but when it came time for water scenes and action sequences, it became a serious issue on set,” she explained. “I didn’t want my blessing to become a burden for the production, so I ultimately decided stepping down was the right thing to do.”
She had already completed costume fittings for the roles, making the decision even more bittersweet.
However, a heartfelt message from her mother helped her come to terms with it. “My mom told me, ‘Chung Hwa, you’re carrying the most precious role of your life right now. Dramas will come again.’ That really comforted me.”
Cha Chung Hwa married a younger businessman in 2023 and gave birth to a daughter later that year.
Known for her standout supporting roles in hit dramas like Crash Landing on You, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, and My Demon, she most recently delivered a compelling performance in the SBS series The Matchmakers.
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