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The South Korean entertainment industry is currently embroiled in a series of controversies surrounding Kim Soo-hyun and the late Kim Sae-ron.
While the controversy persists, speculations began concerning Kim Soo-hyun and the actress Kim Ji-won. On March 13, 2025, India Times reported that the YouTube channel Garosero made new allegations against Kim Soo-hyun, that he tried to misdirect media attention by being linked with Kim Ji-won during the promotional period for Queen of Tears.
During their March 13 livestream, Garosero presented a news article where Kim Soo-hyun was romantically linked to several actresses. These included Kim Ji-won, Seo Yea-ji, Lim Na-young, and the late Kim Sae-ron.
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Queen of Tears, starring Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Ji-won, premiered on Netflix in March 2024. The show did well and became a worldwide hit, prompting fans to ship the two lead characters and name them "BaekHong," after Baek Hyun-woo (Kim Soo-hyun) and Hong Hae-in (Kim Ji-won).
Starting March 10, 2025, the actor has become embroiled in a controversy after Garosero accused him of dating the late actress Kim Sae-ron when she was 15 years old. As of March 13, the YouTube channel released pictures of 27-year-old Kim Soo-hyun kissing 15-year-old Sae-ron on the cheek, fueling the controversy.
India Times highlighted how Garosero focused on Kim Soo-hyun's alleged "strategic" silence regarding his dating rumors with Kim Ji-won. The actor had ambiguously denied any links with Seo Yea-ji, Lim Na-young, and Sae-ron but kept quiet while he was linked with Kim Ji-won in 2024.
Garosero claimed that this was intentional, and the Queen of Tears actor tried to use this as a way to manipulate the media's attention. He allegedly used Kim Ji-won to redirect the media's focus from him to the actress. Furthermore, Garosero alleged that Kim Soo-hyun nicknamed Kim Ji-won as "Kim Support," Sae-ron as "Saero-Nero," and called himself "YouTuber Kim Paris."
Controversy of Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Sae-ron's alleged relationship
The controversy began when allegations surfaced claiming that Kim Soo-hyun, now 37, had been in a romantic relationship with Kim Sae-ron that started when she was a minor. These claims intensified following Kim Sae-ron's tragic death in February 2025, which was ruled a suicide.
Top Star News reported the financial disputes between Kim Sae-ron and her agency, Gold Medalist. Garosero revealed that Gold Medalist was established by Kim Soo-hyun in 2019. The YouTube channel spoke with Kim Sae-ron's aunt, who confirmed the details and also claimed that the late actress worked for free for Kim Soo-hyun.
In May 2022, Kim Sae-ron was charged with drunk driving after her car crashed into a transformer and a tree. The court ordered her to pay the damages. Gold Medalist reportedly took care of the payment initially.
Later, the agency demanded repayment of 700 million KRW (around $480,901.35) from Kim Sae-ron. This financial burden allegedly caused significant distress to the actress.
The YouTube channel Garosero Research Institute released new photos provided by Kim Sae-ron’s family. This included a screenshot of a KakaoTalk text message sent by the actress and a previously unseen photo of the two, where Kim Soo-hyun was seen kissing Kim Sae-ron.
The Korea Times reported that the screenshot message was dated March 19, 2024. In the text, the actress begged Kim Soo-hyun to give her some time to pay him back. She promised to repay him and Gold Medalist the 700 million KRW by the "percentage from each project" she can get.
The Bloodhounds actress wrote:
“Oppa, it’s Saeron. I received the legal notice, it says you're suing me... You said you would give me plenty of time, so I've been working hard to prepare for my comeback. I plan to gradually pay back a percentage from each project I take on.”
She continued:
“I'm not saying that I won't pay the money back, but if you ask me for 700 Million KRW right now, I just physically can't. Do we really have to resort to a lawsuit? Please save me...I'm begging you. Please give me some time.”
Reportedly, Kim Soo-hyun did not reply to any of her text messages or calls after Gold Medalist served her the notice.
In desperation, the Bloodhounds actress posted an intimate picture of her with Kim Soo-hyun in March 2024. This was during the time when the actor's Netflix series, Queen of Tears, with Kim Ji-won aired, and became a global hit.
The picture sparked controversy surrounding the actor's dating life. On March 26, 2024, My Daily reported that Kim Sae-ron refrained from commenting on the picture.
At present, in light of these challenges, The Express Tribune reported on March 12, 2025, that unverified reports surfaced claiming that actor Won Bin offered to pay off her debt to Gold Medalist. Won Bin co-starred with Kim Sae-ron in the 2010 film The Man from Nowhere. However, Kim Soo-hyun declined this offer.
It's important to note that these claims remain unconfirmed, and neither Kim Soo-hyun nor his agency has commented on the matter.
On March 12, 2024, Kim Soo-hyun's handwritten letter to the late actress went viral online. In the letter, the actor addressed Sae-ron as "SaeroNero" and expressed his wish to go to the same school as him. This letter is allegedly from the time when Kim Soo-hyun was serving in the military.
The letter was dated June 2018, when Kim Soo-hyun was 30 years old and Kim Sae-ron was 17. As translated by Korea Deok, Kim Soo-hyun wrote:
"June 9, 2018. To. Saeronero, The younger guys here keep pulling me into their flow, and now I’m even thinking, 'Should I go back to school and finish my degree?' Wait, would that mean we’d end up going school together?!"
Kim Soo-hyun asked the late actress to take care of him and wrote:
"But when am I even getting discharged? Looking back, it’s already been 8 months since I enlisted, but looking forward, I still have over a year left. Ahaha. So yeah, Please keep take caring of me."
Kim Sae-ron took her life on February 16, 2025, in her apartment in the Seongsu-dong district. The BBC reported that the late actress's friend found her body at 4:55 pm KST and immediately called the police. She was 24 years old. The police confirmed her death as a s*icide with no note left behind.
