K-drama star Kim Soo Hyun finds himself in a controversy involving the late actress Kim Sae Ron. Recently, the actress’ aunt stated that Soo Hyun was in a relationship with Sae Ron for six years. She claimed that when they started dating, Sae Ron was only 15 while Soo Hyun was 27 years old. Her aunt also accused Soo Hyun and his agency, GOLD MEDALIST of financial misconduct and not supporting Sae Ron during her 2022 DUI scandal.

As the exposé is deepening, old pictures, posts, interviews, and text exchanges concerning Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron are surfacing every passing day. An old interview of Soo Hyun with the-then-child-actress Kim Yoo Jung has been going viral. Moreover, Soo Hyun’s birthday and Sae Ron’s death coincided. The ‘Queen of Tears’ actor’s deleted celebratory post has resurfaced, fuelling criticism.

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Following the spree of allegations, the actor’s agency, GOLD MEDALIST has issued a lengthy statement. While they have acknowledged that Soo Hyun and Sae Ron were in a relationship, it was not during her minor years. Moreover, the statement denied the actor’s involvement in her debt case. The agency also claims that the legal notice to the actress was for procedural purposes and for her pressuring her. The agency is also willing to furnish evidence against the claims. It has also slammed the YouTube channel Garo Research Institute for trying to villainise Soo Hyun.

Explanation of Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron’s alleged relationship

The agency states, “Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron were in a relationship from the summer of 2019, after Kim Sae Ron became a legal adult, until the fall of 2020. It is not true that Kim Soo Hyun dated Kim Sae Ron when she was a minor.” Making the claim, GOLD MEDALIST also challenges the photos of the actors together. Specifying dates, the agency iterates that during their relationship, the late actress was not a minor.

Moreover, the agency also clarified the letter Kim Soo Hyun wrote to the actress while serving in the military. “The letters Kim Soo Hyun sent to Kim Sae Ron during his military service were among the letters sent to close acquaintances. As can be seen from the content, Kim Soo Hyun was adapting to military life and often wrote in detail about his daily life to his friends. Expressions of missing someone are common among soldiers and their close friends.”

The statement added, “However, HoverLab has claimed that the two were dating since 2015, distorting photos taken after Kim Sae Ron became an adult as if they were from her minor years and juxtaposing postcards sent after their relationship with letters from his military service to make ordinary letters appear as love letters.”

 

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Explanation of Soo Hyun’s involvement in the debt case

Addressing the allegations of pressuring Kim Sae Ron about the 700 million won debt, the agency released a detailed clarification. “Due to HoverLab’s reports, Kim Soo Hyun has been portrayed as the devil who drove Kim Sae Ron to her death. HoverLab claims that Kim Soo Hyun’s agency GOLD MEDALIST pressured him to repay debts incurred from the deceased’s drunk driving accident and that when Kim Sae Ron sought help, Kim Soo Hyun ignored her, leading to her extreme choice. However, this is not true. At that time, GOLD MEDALIST paid off the entire remaining debt that Kim Sae Ron could not handle.”

Moreover, the agency alleges that they worked to reduce Sae Ron’s debt from 1.14 billion Won to 700 million Won. They also denied seizing her car, stating that they helped arrange its sale to ease her financial burden.

Defending the notice sent to the actress, they explained it was required to forward with writing off the debt. The agency claims that they had to follow a formal procedure. This included sending a legal notice to Kim Sae Ron. However, they state that it wasn’t meant to pressure her for repayment. It was part of the required process to finalise closing the debt. “Additionally, if her debt was forgiven, there was a risk that she would have to pay a gift tax on the amount waived. The message she sent to Kim Soo Hyun on March 19, 2024, regarding her financial situation must be understood in this context.”

Sae Ron’s text to Soo Hyun

In the statement, the agency also addressed the viral message Sae Ron sent to Soo Hyun about the debt. In the message, she begged for help. During that time, the agency advised Soo Hyun not to respond and to leave it in their hands. Claiming that the two parted ways for almost four years after Sae Ron exited GOLD MEDALIST. The agency further clarified, “At the time, she had left the agency and lacked sufficient legal knowledge regarding her debt. This led her to reach out to Kim Soo Hyun, who was not involved in the matter. By then, the two had been separated for four years.” Later on, her legal representative contacted the agency to acknowledge the debt and discuss a way to resolve it.

For context, follow thread: Kim Sae Ron death: Backlash against Kim Soo Hyun mounts as old interview and post go viral