NCT Lucas’s Fans Demand An Official Statement From SM Entertainment

NCT‘s Lucas has been on an indefinite hiatus and has mostly stayed out of the public eye since gaslighting accusations were made against him in August 2021. As a result of the allegations, Lucas halted all activities, but he recently appeared in two updates that have given fans hope he will be making his return as an idol soon.

First, the idol appeared in the NCT reality show welcome to NCT universe in a montage of all 7 WayV members.

Oh my oh my!!! NCT Universe included Lucas in WayV and used ot7 images to talk about the members as SM Rookies
**I had to capture it with my phone, I think KㅇKㅇw@ has some screen record block or smth#WayV_4thAnniversary #LucasWeLoveYou #Roadto24thLucas pic.twitter.com/pWeAt7UsgY

— #Phantom 🐬💚²⁶ 💎¹³ ⭐️⁶ (@MidnightSunRavi) January 18, 2023

Lucas’s inclusion in the show gave hope to many fans eagerly awaiting his return as an idol.

BRO THEY SHOWED AND MENTIONED LUCAS AS PART OF WAYV IN NCT UNIVERSE EPISODE 9 OMFG?!?!!?!?

— VANCT 💚 AY-YO 💗 (@NEOVANCT) January 17, 2023

More recently, Lucas was tagged in a now-deleted Instagram post with SM Entertainment‘s co-CEO Lee Sung Soo (also known as Chris Lee), which was met with mixed reactions from netizens.

Some fans voiced their excitement at the seemingly-imminent return of Lucas.

THE WAR IS OVER IM CRYING #LUCAS pic.twitter.com/uXDocUjVmI

— ᴊᴇꜱꜱɪ (@neosbbygrl) February 1, 2023

Surprise yeorobun!!! Lucas is back!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/m13BhNASFq

— Taeyong at PFW 🌹 (@kaikidance) February 1, 2023

While other netizens voiced their concern, not wanting to see Lucas return to being an idol due to his previous allegations.

• “Why did you leave this out? He bought a kitten for his girl but got rejected and threw it to WinWin. It’s legendary.”
• [WinWin: “I bought cat products at a cat store!”]
• “He’s really… He even badmouthed his fellow members behind their backs, so that’s why Korean fans turned their backs on him. It’s been a long time since he’s been left alone, and even the Chinese Bars (fansites) all blew up, so just how are they going to bring him back? Fans will just get mad and it’ll be another obstacle for new fans to join. I think it’s because of SuperM, but if SuperM is gunning for Billboard, is it really right to include him? I don’t get it.”
• “I went to see the post and the number of likes were shocking… Should I say that the expressions on the faces of the CEO and Lucas gave me the creeps? Like no matter what you guys do, it won’t matter… That sorta… And how are the number of likes possible? Just how many i-Roaches are there?”

Lee Sung Soo has continued to support Lucas, commenting on Lucas’s Instagram updates publicly.

Chris Lee has liked the recent post of Lucas, and commented “🔥🔥🔥”#LUCAS #루카스 #黄旭熙 #ルーカス #ลูคัส https://t.co/rHm6eXc9HQ pic.twitter.com/REASOxrPvf

— 黃旭熙 UPDATES (@XUXIUPDATES) February 28, 2023

chris lee commenting under lucas instas, they are defo plotting something https://t.co/5mUtIbItqe

— aiesha (@aaaaieshaaaa) March 2, 2023

But Lee Sung Soo’s recent interactions have actually been receiving criticism from Lucas’s fans, as they believe that SM Entertainment owes them an official statement about Lucas’s future as an idol.

CHRIS LEE OR WHOEVER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL THIS LUCAS MESS KINDLY RELEASE THE FCKING STATEMENT FOR GODS SAKE SABOTAGING LUCAS WOULDNT CHANGE THE FACE THAT HE IS NOT INNOCENT MY MAN DOESNT DESRVE THIS MUCH HATE

— amy (˃ ᵕ ˂ ) (@peterpaneos) February 21, 2023

dear mr. chris lee, i don’t need your posts, i need your statement about lucas

— miss petty 4️⃣4️⃣4️⃣ (@thenameis_nct) February 25, 2023

Of course, SM Entertainment is in the middle of an M&A with HYBE, which SM Entertainment’s co-CEOs and employees have all spoken out against. This legal situation impacts SM Entertainment’s artists, as SHINee‘s Key has spoken about.

Similarly, SM Entertainment is beginning “SM 3.0,” the latest plan to improve the company. These plans include a significant change to NCT: stopping the infinite expansion system. So understandably, these changes could impact SM Entertainment’s plans for their artists.

But fans also point out that part of SM 3.0’s plan is to better protect their artists, which fans argue SM Entertainment failed to do for Lucas.

Chris lee, pls practice what u preach & start by bringing dat b*tch Fttm0 to hell

And give us back Lucas pic.twitter.com/Z7GSfPz0LO

— ✧˚₊ gyulix_sc ₊˚ʚ 💙 (@waysebong7tin) February 25, 2023

chris lee we don’t care do something and protect lucas right now

— 💋 (@prodbyskz) February 25, 2023

Fans are currently trending #SM Give Us A Statement, demanding the company give a clear statement about the allegations surrounding Lucas and inform fans about what SM Entertainment has planned for his future.

BRING OUR LION OUT

Bring back Lucas with the statement. He should be able to shine on his own! Clean his name. He doesn't deserve the threats or the insults that are being directed at him.#BringOurLionOut #LUCAS

We demand a statement SM #SMgiveusastatement @SMTOWNGLOBALSRP pic.twitter.com/YWhFlXkbza

— 💚 🍀 Welcome Back Lucas (@xixi40845606) March 3, 2023

we need answers, we need this hate to stop!!! everyday a lot of people spread hate toward him and there's no reason for this, we need a clear statement to take his name out of all this sh!t#BringOurLionOut#SMgiveusastatement#BringLucasBack #JUSTICEFORLUCAS pic.twitter.com/9079EdLeBT

— bebea²³ LuDery AU 📌 (@xuxicervejeiro) March 2, 2023

Especially since Lee Sung Soo is soon resigning as CEO of the company, fans are concerned that the co-CEO is simply using the idol for clout.

So Mr. Chris Lee if you're resigning on the 6th, isn't there something you should do first????
We're waiting and we have been for over 1.5 years. Protect your artists. Clear #LUCAS's name. @SMTOWNGLOBAL #smgiveusastatement #BringLucasBack #JUSTICEFORLUCAS

— ⁷purp²⁶ 🌙 ilysm (@t3alpurp) March 2, 2023

Chris Lee really posted Lucas pics for clout and now he's resigning in a day or two as the CEO. Like wait a minute sir, you're not done yet, where's Lucas 🥲

— Friendly Neighborhood NCTzen (@friendly_nctzen) March 3, 2023

As of the time of this article, there is no official update from SM Entertainment.