Kim Soo-hyun: "Did Not Date Late Kim Sae-ron During Her Minor Years" (Update)

Actor Kim Soo-hyun, who had remained silent about the recent privacy controversy, is making a statement at the Stanford Hotel in Mapo-gu, Seoul on March 31, 2025. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Actor Kim Soo-hyun once again denied allegations that he dated the late Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor.

On the afternoon of the 31st, Kim Soo-hyun held a press conference at a hotel in Mapo-gu, Seoul, along with his agency’s legal representative, stating, "I did not date the deceased when she was a minor," and "It is also not true that the deceased made a tragic choice due to debt pressure from my agency."

He said, "I cannot accept being forced to acknowledge lies as facts," adding, "The deceased and I dated for about a year five years ago, four years before 'Queen of Tears' aired. However, at that time, I denied the relationship."

Regarding why he initially denied dating Kim Sae-ron, he explained, "There were many things I had to protect as a lead actor, and whenever the choices of Kim Soo-hyun the person and Kim Soo-hyun the star conflicted, I think I chose Kim Soo-hyun the star." He added, "Even if I could go back to the time when 'Queen of Tears' was airing, I would make the same choice again."

Kim Soo-hyun tearfully said, "I am a coward. Every time my private life was exposed, I kept thinking, 'Tomorrow, I will just tell everything,' 'Let’s end this hellish situation.'"

Actor Kim Soo-hyun, who had remained silent about the recent privacy controversy, is entering the press conference room to make a statement at the Stanford Hotel in Mapo-gu, Seoul on March 31, 2025. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Regarding the cellphone messages recently released by Kim Sae-ron’s bereaved family and a YouTube channel A, Kim Soo-hyun rebutted, "The bereaved family is framing me as a pedophile and a groomer of a minor. However, the person conversing with the deceased in the 2016 and 2018 KakaoTalk messages are different individuals."

He continued, "To prove the facts, I submitted the 2016 and 2018 KakaoTalk messages provided by the bereaved family, as well as messages I exchanged with acquaintances this year, to a scientific verification agency for statement analysis. The agency concluded that the individuals in 2016 and 2018 were not the same person."

He sobbed, "What has been most painful since the bereaved family’s revelations began is that whenever my agency and I respond to their evidence, new recorded testimonies and evidence suddenly emerge. Photos and videos with cleverly altered timelines, and edited KakaoTalk images rather than originals, are presented as evidence. Fake testimonies and fake evidence continue to be used as leverage to claim that I dated the deceased."

Kim Soo-hyun’s agency’s legal representative announced that day, "We have filed a complaint for defamation against the bereaved family of the deceased, an unidentified person claiming to be an aunt, and the operator of YouTube channel A." They added, "We also submitted a lawsuit seeking damages totaling approximately 12 billion KRW to the Seoul Central District Court today."