(ANN/THE KOREA HERALD) – “Queen of Tears” star Kim Soo-hyun has denied allegations linking him romantically to the late actress Kim Sae-ron. The controversy deepened recently with the emergence of what a YouTube channel claims was a message showing the actress begging for more time to settle a debt.
On Monday, Gold Medalist, Kim Soo-hyun’s agency, strongly refuted dating claims made by YouTube channel HoverLab Inc. (Garosero Yeonguso in Korean). The far-right Youtube Channel earlier that day published a video featuring alleged testimony from Kim Sae-ron’s family, claiming the actors had carried on a six-year relationship starting when she was 15 and he was 27.
The accusations quickly provoked heated reactions across social media platforms worldwide. Numerous users expressed strong criticism towards the 37-year-old actor, with comments pointing to inappropriate conduct with a minor.
In a statement, the agency called the allegations “clearly false and baseless” and vowed to pursue “the strongest possible legal actions” against the YouTube channel for “spreading falsehoods.”
HoverLab claimed to have verified the allegations with Kim Sae-ron’s parents and shared unfiltered audio from an interview with a relative. The actress took her own life last month at age 24.
On Tuesday, the YouTube broadcast brought up additional claims about Kim’s financial matters. According to allegations in the video, Gold Medalist, which represented Kim Sae-ron from 2019 to 2022 and was co-founded by a relative of Kim Soo-hyun, initially picked up the tab for a KRW700 million (USD482,000) compensation related to the actress’ 2022 drunk driving incident but later sought repayment through legal action.
In a follow-up post, the channel shared what it claimed was a text message from Kim Sae-ron to Kim Soo-hyun pleading for more time to settle the debt, which allegedly went unanswered.
The video also featured a photo purportedly showing Kim Soo-hyun kissing Kim Sae-ron on the cheek, which reignited relationship claims the actor has previously denied. Speculation first arose when Kim Sae-ron briefly uploaded — and quickly deleted — a photo with Kim Soo-hyun on social media in March 2024. At that time, Kim Soo-hyun’s representatives brushed off dating speculation as “entirely without factual basis.”
HoverLab claimed that the newly surfaced photo was taken on the same day and also hinted that more accusations would follow in upcoming videos.
Following HoverLab’s second video, the agency on Wednesday stood firm in its denial of all allegations.
HoverLab has a checkered history of publishing content later ruled false or defamatory by courts. The channel, which started out as far-right political commentary, has lost a number of legal battles over its broadcasting practices in recent years.
In January, South Korea’s Supreme Court ordered the channel to shell out KRW45 million in damages to former Justice Minister Cho Kuk and his family.
Making a debut as an infant model in 2001, Kim Sae-ron began her acting career at the age of 9 with “A Brand New Life” (2009), which was screened at the Cannes Film Festival. She earned acclaim for her performances in “The Man From Nowhere” (2010) and “A Girl at My Door” (2014). Her television work included the period fantasy “Mirror of the Witch” (2016).
Kim’s career took a hit in May 2022 after a drunk driving incident in Gangnam-gu, southern Seoul. She crashed her car into a guardrail and transformer, cutting off electricity to dozens of businesses. Following public backlash, she withdrew from the drama series “Trolley” and had most of her scenes edited out of Netflix’s “Bloodhounds.”
After the incident, Kim largely retreated from public life, though local media reported she had been attempting to return to acting through small-budget projects and stage plays. Her then agency Gold Medalist did not renew her contract following the incident.
Gold Medalist’s statement expressed regret over Kim Sae-ron’s death while condemning HoverLab’s actions as “driven solely by self-interest” and harmful to both the company and “the honor of the deceased.”
