7 Korean Celebrities Who Were Affected By Hoaxes or Rumors About Themselves

There are many theories in the entertainment world that make stars laugh and cry. Untrue stories about celebrities have always existed but have become increasingly more common and problematic in recent years due to the development of social media and YouTube.

Actor Hong Suk Chun was angered by false stories about him on YouTube. In a now-deleted post, he wrote a note on his Instagram that attracted a lot of attention. The post he shared was a photo of panelists discussing homosexuality under the title “Hong Suk Chun”. In the caption, he mentioned that it might be best for him to sue for defamation.

He condemned the broadcast as being terrible for spreading wrong information as fact.

Actress Kim So-hyun was the victim of a fake marriage theory with actor Lee Min-woo. In August of last year, someone edited their Wikipedia profiles to describe them as spouses and detailed an October wedding, which caused rumors of their “marriage” to emerge. Both Lee Min-woo and Kim So-hyun denied the marriage rumors, claiming that it was a “ridiculous hoax” and were completely baseless.

Kim Nam Gil and actress Jang Nara were also the victims of a marriage theory that had no roots. In August, a story about the pair getting married in November after a seven-year relationship was not true. Kim Nam Gil commented, saying that the marriage rumors were viciously spread without grounds and he would respond strictly to the further dissemination of the rumor. In a now-deleted statement on her Instagram, Jang Nara said it was really terrible that a groundless post could be taken as the truth, and that she has never met him personally and doesn’t know his contact information.

Jang Nara has been affected twice by false marriage rumor. In June 2017, a rumor that she was married to junior actor Park Bo Gum emerged. At that time, Park Bogum’s affiliated agency said, “There is no need to confirm this. It is a worthless, unfounded story.”

Some entertainers experienced ridiculous theories about their own deaths. People were shocked by the sudden rumor of actress Kim Ah Joong‘s death last August. Her agency released a statement that clarified the rumors were false and brought the hoax to an end.

Kim Ah Joong’s death hoax was not the first celebrity death hoax that came from unknown origins. Long-time talent, Song Hae, who has been an MC for KBS‘s National Singing Contest was also the victim of a death hoax, which greatly angered fans.

A trot (Korean enka) singer, Ju Hyun-mi was the victim of a cruel death hoax that said she passed away as the result of AIDS. She slammed the article perpetuating the false narrative as being malicious and written without confirmation. She stated that after she got married, she took a break for about seven years, and that was when the AIDS death theory came out.

There are also recent hoaxes that have left fans feeling confused.

This year, a social media account purporting to belong to actor Kim Woo Bin gathered fan attention for posting a photo of himself looking healthy and energetic. However, his agency quickly responded stating that he does not use social media. The account was revealed to be run by a fan posting old photos in an effort to make it look like a personal account.