Actor Yun Mi-ra, falsely accused of adultery at 28, cleared after 4 years — but says the stigma still follows her 40 years on

Actor Yun Mi-ra, 74, has spoken out about the anguish of being falsely accused of adultery decades ago.

A video titled "Don't miss this brand if you're heading to the Paju outlet — and a story I've kept to myself for 40 years" was posted Thursday on Yun's YouTube channel.

"There is a scarlet letter that still follows me," Yun said in the video. "People who haven't been through it don't understand how unjust it feels. I can't sleep at night."

The incident dates to 1978, when the wife of a sock factory owner surnamed Hong filed a complaint accusing Yun of having an affair with her husband. Yun denied the allegations, but it took four years before the case was dismissed and she was fully cleared.

"It took four years to be cleared, but people only remember the process — not the outcome," she said. "I can't begin to describe how unfair it was. More than 40 years have passed and it still follows me."

Although she was ultimately cleared, the scandal dealt a devastating blow to a young actress at the height of her career.

The episode cost Yun what would have been a historic opportunity: she would have become the first Korean actress to break into Hollywood.

"I met Terence Young, the director of the '007' films, and passed his audition," she said. "I'm Korean, I'm tall — he cast me on the spot. He liked me so much he even said to use 'Mira' as my character's name." She added, "We had already signed a contract when this whole thing exploded. It all fell apart the same year I won the Grand Bell Award for best actress."

When the production team asked whether she had ever considered setting the record straight, Yun waved the idea off. "It's almost 50 years ago now," she said.

Yun made her debut in the 1969 film "Saranghago Isseoyo" ("I Love You") and built her career appearing in numerous films throughout the 1970s. She won the Grand Bell Award for best actress for the 1977 film "Goga" before the adultery accusation derailed her momentum. From the 1980s onward she shifted to television, appearing in popular drama series including "Seoul's Moon" and "Three Families Under One Roof." She has never married.