In a fresh turn to a long-running controversy, the family of the late actress Kim Sae-ron has released a cache of text messages they claim prove she was romantically involved with actor Kim Soo-hyun while still a minor. The actor and his legal team have firmly denied the allegations, calling the messages false and deliberately manipulated.
According to reports of Reuters, the texts date back to 2015–2016, when Sae-ron was still underage and Kim Soo-hyun in his late twenties. The messages reportedly include romantic phrases such as “Give me a kiss later,” “Is this forbidden too?”, and “When can I hold you and fall asleep? I think I’d be able to sleep really well then.” The family also claims the messages arrange meetings and suggest an intimate relationship.
The timing of the texts is key to their case. On October 13, multiple Korean media outlets pointed out that the dates in those messages overlap with the filming schedule for Kim Soo-hyun’s movie Real. One statement from the Real staff circulated among Korean media says the actor was heavily occupied on set, often exhausted, leaving “absolutely no time to wait around for anyone.”
Kim Soo-hyun and his legal team issued a statement the same day, asserting the texts are not evidence that he was the sender. They argue the conversations are vague, lacking any identifiers or contextual clues about time, place, or activity. They further suggest that the sender’s real identity has been intentionally obscured.
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To counter the narrative, Kim’s team released a collection of personal letters he wrote during his military service, claiming these show his emotional fidelity toward a then-girlfriend, not Sae-ron, and that his communication during that time was limited. They also stated that the only letter addressed to Sae-ron was one casually shared with an acquaintance, not a romantic exchange.
Earlier, during a press conference, Kim Soo-hyun admitted he once had a relationship with Sae-ron, but insisted it began when she was already an adult and lasted only about a year. He has also filed defamation suits against those he claims are propagating false or manipulated evidence.
What this really means is the truth is far from clear. The family offers texts as proof, but Kim’s camp questions their authenticity and context. The overlap with Soo-hyun’s filming schedule is a serious counterpoint, especially if rigorous call logs or location data surface. On top of that, the release of the military letters complicates the narrative: are they exculpatory evidence or carefully curated fragments?
No definitive forensic verification of the texts, such as server metadata or SIM logs, has been made public yet. Until that happens, or until a court compels disclosure, the allegations remain contested. The case now sits at the intersection of reputation, morality, and legality — raising difficult questions about consent, power imbalance, and accountability.
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