Kim Soo-hyun Denies Dating Late Actor Kim Sae-ron While She Was Underage in Emotional Press Conference: ‘I Can’t Admit to Something I Didn’t Do’

variety.com:

Naman Ramachandran South Korean A-list actor Kim Soo-hyun made an emotional appearance at a press conference Monday, vehemently denying allegations that he dated actress Kim Sae-ron when she was a minor. “I can’t admit to something I didn’t do,” the 37-year-old star declared through tears, according to the BBC, addressing the controversy that has rocked the Korean entertainment industry since Kim Sae-ron’s apparent suicide in February.

The scandal centers on two explosive claims: that Kim Soo-hyun had a relationship with Kim Sae-ron when she was just 15, and that his agency pressured her to repay a debt prior to her death.

Kim Soo-hyun, star of Netflix’s recent hit “Queen of Tears” and beloved for roles in “My Love from the Star” and “Secretly, Greatly,” acknowledged dating the actress, but insisted their relationship occurred only between 2019 and 2020, when she was an adult. “Except for the fact that both of us were actors, our relationship was just like that of any other ordinary couple,” he stated at the press conference.

The controversy erupted when a YouTube channel published videos and photos allegedly documenting a six-year relationship beginning when Kim Sae-ron was 15.