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Kim Soo-hyun is certainly one of South Korea’s hottest celebrities
South Korean megastar Kim Soo-hyun has made a tearful public remark denying allegations made by way of the circle of relatives of actress Kim Sae-ron, who died in an obvious suicide in February.
“I will be able to’t admit to one thing I did not do,” the 37-year-old stated on Monday at a press convention in Seoul.
On the centre of the talk are two allegations: that Kim Soo-hyun dated Kim Sae-ron when she used to be 15 – a minor – and that his company careworn her to pay off a mortgage she owed him.
The scandal has surprised South Korea and its leisure trade – and has generated a backlash in opposition to Kim Soo-Hyun, whose roles in a couple of hit drama collection and movies has made him certainly one of its best-known stars.
Kim wept as he stated that even though he dated the actress for a 12 months when she used to be an grownup, they by no means dated whilst she used to be underage.
Monday’s media convention got here after weeks of accusations and counter-accusations between Kim Sae-ron’s circle of relatives and Kim Soo-hyun’s camp within the wake of her dying.
The scandal broke on 10 March, not up to a month after Kim Sae-ron’s dying. A YouTube channel, recognized for its arguable political content material, claimed that the 2 had dated for 6 years, when she used to be 15. The channel has since launched movies and pictures it claims had been taken all through their dating.
Closing week, the legal professional representing Kim Sae-ron’s circle of relatives held a press convention, revealing extra chat historical past allegedly between the 2 actors from 2016, when she used to be 16.
Kim Soo-hyun’s company to begin with denied the allegations however later clarified that they dated, even though handiest between 2019 and 2020, when she used to be an grownup.
The actor himself had remained silent till Monday. On the press convention, he changed into emotional, reiterating to newshounds that they simply dated as two adults.
“Many of us are struggling as a result of me,” he stated, apologising to his lovers and workforce. “I additionally really feel sorry that the past due actress [Kim Sae-ron] is not in a position to relaxation in peace.
“I by no means dated her when she used to be a minor,” he persevered. “Excluding for the truth that either one of us had been actors, our dating used to be identical to that of some other unusual couple.”
He additionally defined why he denied the connection when she uploaded a later-deleted picture of the 2 of them to her Instagram account in 2024 all through the displaying of Netflix hit display Queen of Tears, by which he performed the lead function.
“I had such a lot to offer protection to as its lead actor. What would have came about if I had admitted to a year-long dating? What would occur to the actors, the workforce who had been operating in a single day and the manufacturing crew who had the whole thing staked on that challenge?” he stated. “The extra I considered it, the extra I assumed that should not be what I do.”
Any admission of a romantic dating or a spouse continues to be noticed as scandalous to lovers in South Korea’s leisure trade, the place celebrities’ private lives come beneath intense scrutiny.
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Kim Sae-ron used to be noticed as some of the promising younger actresses in South Korea
Kim Sae-ron herself used to be a sufferer of on-line hate by way of lovers after she used to be fined 20 million gained (£11,000; $14,000) for a 2022 drink-driving incident.
Previous to that, she were noticed as some of the promising younger actresses in South Korea.
On the time, she used to be controlled by way of the similar company as Kim Soo-hyun, which used to be co-founded by way of his relative. Kim Sae-ron joined GoldMedalist in January 2020 and left in December 2022.
Kim Sae-ron’s circle of relatives claimed that GoldMedalist lined the repayment for her drunk-driving incident. They allege that the company later pursued criminal motion for reimbursement and that, whilst the actress requested Kim Soo-hyun for extra time to settle the debt, her request went unanswered.
On Monday, Kim Soo-hyun denied claims that “she made the tragic selection as a result of me or my company pressuring her over a debt”.
He launched a voice recording of a telephone name from a 12 months in the past, allegedly between his company and Kim Sae-ron’s consultant.
Within the recording, the CEO of GoldMedalist seems to provide an explanation for that the file they despatched her in regards to the debt used to be simply for “procedural causes” and that her crew may just take time to reply.
He additionally accused Kim Sae-ron’s circle of relatives of manipulating chat data as proof and said that he had submitted his personal proof to the related government for verification. He advised her circle of relatives to do the similar.
Kim Soo-hyun, 37, is an A-list actor in South Korea, recognized for his roles in a couple of hit drama collection and top-grossing films, together with My Love from the Superstar, Netflix’s Queen of Tears, and the movie Secretly, Very much.
He has additionally been a favorite amongst advertisers within the nation, even though many manufacturers have now distanced themselves from him amid the talk. On 17 March, type logo Prada introduced that it had mutually determined to finish its collaboration with him, in keeping with Reuters. This adopted equivalent strikes from Dinto, a Korean beauty logo.
A Disney+ display that stars Kim Soo-hyun has additionally been placed on pause because of the scandal, in keeping with native information outlet Yonhap.
His attorney said on Monday that they’d filed a felony criticism in opposition to Kim Sae-ron’s circle of relatives and the YouTube channel operator, at the side of a civil lawsuit for damages value 12 billion gained.
Her circle of relatives has now not commented at the proceedings or his newest remarks.
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