Brands are cutting ties with South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun, amid an ongoing scandal about the 37-year-old star allegedly dating late actress Kim Sae-ron when she was underage.
Prada, which announced Kim Soo-hyun as a brand ambassador three months ago in December, said it has terminated its contract with the star. According to South Korean entertainment news site Soompi, the Italian fashion brand said on March 14: “In consideration of the gravity of the issue, we have mutually agreed to terminate our contract with actor Kim Soo-hyun.”
Another brand, South Korean vegan cosmetics label Dinto, released a statement on Instagram on March 15 to cut ties with him. The actor was originally signed to the brand for a one-year advertising contract until August 2025.
The label said: “This decision was made to uphold the values that Dinto stands for and to honour the trust placed in us by our consumers.”
Kim Soo-hyun, an A-lister in South Korean entertainment known for massive K-drama hits like My Love From The Star (2013 to 2014) and Queen Of Tears (2024), has fallen from grace in recent days.
Controversy grew when Hoverlab, a YouTube channel in South Korea, alleged in a video on March 10 that he began dating Kim Sae-ron in 2015, when she was 15 and continued the relationship for six years.
Kim Sae-ron, who rose to fame as a child star in the thriller film The Man From Nowhere (2010), died in February aged 24 due to suicide.
Additionally, Hoverlab claimed that Kim Soo-hyun pressured Kim Sae-ron to pay back a 700 million won (S$642,000) debt she owed Goldmedalist, the management agency Kim Soo-hyun belongs to. The agency, established by Kim Soo-hyun and his cousin, previously managed Kim Sae-ron until the end of 2022.
Goldmedalist originally denied all the allegations made by the channel, calling them baseless and malicious.
In response, the channel released previously unseen photographs of the pair kissing and behaving intimately, as well as purported love letters sent from Kim Soo-hyun to the late actress during his military service days. The material was reportedly provided by Kim Sae-ron’s family.
On March 14, Goldmedalist admitted that the actor was indeed romantically involved with Kim Sae-ron, but only from 2019 to 2020, when she was a legal adult. It continued to deny the other allegations made by the channel.
According to South Korean news outlet Korea JoongAng Daily, Goldmedalist made a plea to Kim Sae-ron’s mother on March 15 in a statement, and requested a meeting to explain its side of the story.
Calling it inappropriate to continue a public argument, the agency said: “We know that no words of comfort will be enough to console the broken heart of Kim Sae-ron’s mother after the loss of her daughter. We express our deepest regret towards the pain that the deceased had to endure.
“But we believe there are differences in opinion between her mother and our agency. We also believe that there are things that (her mother) could not have known.”
That same day, Hoverlab released another photo, allegedly of Kim Soo-hyun doing the dishes at Kim Sae-ron’s home without wearing pants.
Hoverlab released a statement said to be from Kim Sae-ron’s family, which asked for Kim Soo-hyun to formally apologise for dating Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor and for pressuring her to pay back the debt she owed.
Kim Soo-hyun is in the midst of filming the Disney+ K-drama Knock-Off, in which he plays a man who becomes a king of counterfeit goods in the 1990s.
Earlier reports from South Korean media said the production has continued filming as usual amid the controversy. So far, there has been no news about whether Kim Soo-hyun might be replaced.
The actor came to Singapore in November as part of Disney’s Apac Content Showcase to promote the series, which has yet to confirm its release date.
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MDDI (P) 048/10/2024. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. Copyright © 2025 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.
