The relationship between actor Kim Soo Hyun and the late actress Kim Sae Ron became a subject of intense public scrutiny following a photo Kim Sae Ron briefly posted on Instagram in March 2024. Kim Soo Hyun’s agency, GOLD MEDALIST, has since released a series of statements addressing the rumors and subsequent claims. Here’s a detailed look at their responses:
Initial Reaction and Denial (March 2024)
Following the emergence of a photo of Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron on Kim Sae Ron’s Instagram in March 2024, GOLD MEDALIST initially acknowledged the rumors and stated they were investigating the matter.
We just heard about the rumors related to Kim Soo Hyun this morning. We will provide an accurate statement after looking into the rumors and confirming the truth.
โ Gold Medalist
Shortly after, the agency issued a firm denial of any romantic involvement between the two. They labeled the rumors as “unfounded” and threatened legal action against what they termed “groundless misunderstandings” arising from the photo.
Hello, this is GOLDMEDALIST.
We would like to inform you of our official position regarding a picture of Kim Soo Hyun that has been spreading today.
We would like to inform you that the rumors of Kim Soo Hyun being in a relationship [with Kim Sae Ron] are unfounded. The photo that is being spread online appears to have been taken in the past when the two were both under our management. As for Kim Sae Ronโs intentions for uploading the picture, we do not know.
Due to the groundless misunderstandings and speculations that are circulating about Kim Soo Hyun regarding the picture, our legal representatives will be taking strong action against all damages to his character and reputation as well as for slander and spread of malicious posts.
Please refrain from spreading unfounded rumors or speculative articles.
Thank you.
โ GOLDMEDALIST
Response to Garo Sero Institute’s Exposรฉ (March 2025)
In March 2025, the YouTube channel Garo Sero Institute began releasing information related to Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron’s relationship. GOLD MEDALIST initially remained silent. However, after the second part of an interview involving Kim Sae Ron’s aunt (later clarified as a close family friend) was published by Garo Sero Institute, the agency issued a brief statement acknowledging the broadcast and stating they were discussing how to respond.
We have seen the live stream by Garo Sero Institute, and we are currently discussing how to deal with it. We still do not have any additional things to say. We will let you know as soon as we organize things.
โ Gold Medalist
Following further details revealed by Garo Sero Institute, including information about Kim Sae Ron’s financial situation, GOLD MEDALIST announced their intention to release a comprehensive statement to “set the record straight, correct false statements, and counter baseless rumors” concerning Kim Soo Hyun.
Hello, this is Gold Medalist.
We would like to comment on the recent broadcast from Garo Sero Institute about Kim Soo Hyun.
We will be releasing a full statement next week to set the record straight, correct false statements, and counter the baseless rumors that were presented about Kim Soo Hyun.
We apologize for causing exhaustion with the length wait. Please understand as this is to avoid continuous statement releases.
Thank you.
โ GOLD MEDALIST
Confirmation of Past Relationship (March 2025)
On March 14, 2025, GOLD MEDALIST released a statement confirming that Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron had dated in the past. However, they firmly denied that the relationship began when Kim Sae Ron was a minor, stating that it occurred between the summer of 2019 and the fall of 2020, after she had reached adulthood.
The agency addressed specific evidence presented by Garo Sero Institute, including a letter Kim Soo Hyun wrote to Kim Sae Ron during his military service. At the time, she was 17, and he was 30. GOLD MEDALIST clarified that this letter was one of many sent to close friends and that the phrase “I miss you” was a common expression among soldiers to their friends.
Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron were dating between the summer of 2019 and fall of 2020, after she became an adult. It is not true that Kim Soo Hyun dated her when she was a minor. Kim Sae Ronโs photo that she uploaded on March 24, 2024 on her Instagram story and the photo that Garo Sero Institute shared on March 11, 2025 were private images taken by the two in the winter of 2020 when they were dating [T/N: Gold Medalist has since clarified that when they said Winter 2020, they meant between January and March 2020]. The clothes Kim Sae Ron was wearing at the time were released in June 2019 by the brand, so Garo Sero Instituteโs claim that the photo was taken in 2016 when Kim Sae Ron was a minor is impossible.
In addition, another photo shared by Garo Sero Institute on March 12, 2025, was a photo taken by the two on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2019. This can be confirmed through the pictureโs metadata. The photo released on March 13, 2025, was taken on the same day, as seen from the fact that they are wearing the same clothes. All of the photos being shared by Garo Sero Institute with the claim that Kim Soo Hyun dated Kim Sae Ron when she was a minor were taken after she became an adult. Their claim that these photos were taken in 2016 have no grounds. This is because the two were not dating at that time.
Kim Soo Hyunโs letter to Kim Sae Ron while he was in the military was just one of the letters he sent to his close friends. As you could see from the contents of the letter, Kim Soo Hyun was adjusting to the military lifestyle and used the letter to let his close friends know about his daily life in the military. The expression โI miss youโ is a light-hearted expression used by soldiers to their close friends. However, Garo Sero Institute is claiming that the two had been dating since 2015, using photos that were taken after Kim Sae Ron was an adult and claiming they were from when she was a minor. They used the postcard sent to Kim Sae Ron after the two were dating to strengthen their claim that the military letter was also a love letter. Kim Sae Ronโs nickname (Saero Nero, ์๋ก๋ค๋ก) that she used publicly since 2016 was made to seem like it was a nickname that only the two used between each other.
There is a lot of criticism being directed towards Kim Soo Hyun regarding their relationship. Even if a relationship between two adults is a private matter, it is natural to expect Kim Soo Hyunโs life, as a person who is loved by many, will be within the public sphere. If there is criticism to be had, then he should accept it seriously and it should sting even more. However, due to Garo Sero Instituteโs report, a plethora of false claims and misinformation is spreading as if they are true. The informant who appeared on their broadcast and made numerous false claims stated they were part of Kim Sae Ronโs family. But according to one media outlet, she is actually just an acquaintance of Kim Sae Ronโs mother, [not her aunt]. They are distorting reality and creating rumors based on a few photos and information from an informant whose identity cannot even be confirmed.
The fact that the extremely personal private lives of two people are being forcibly revealed by others, and the fact that both Kim Soo Hyun and the deceased [Kim Sae Ron] are having their private lives discussed alongside numerous rumors and speculative reports, is extremely painful for Kim Soo Hyun and those around both him and Kim Sae Ron. After the private lives of the two were revealed by Garo Sero Institute, we believe that the varied public opinions on his choices are unavoidable. But the past when two consenting adults dated and broke up are being distorted by others and countless lies are still being spread. It is incredibly painful for one person to endure all of this due to their private life. Also, digging into the private life of the deceased is an act of defaming their honor.
โ GOLD MEDALIST
Addressing Claims of Minor Dating and Distorted Facts
In a subsequent statement released on the same day (March 14), GOLD MEDALIST reiterated their stance that Kim Sae Ron was an adult in the shared photos and accused Garo Sero Institute of manipulating the context and timeline of the evidence to portray Kim Soo Hyun negatively. They claimed that the debt issue Kim Sae Ron’s former agency handled was being misrepresented and that Kim Soo Hyun was unfairly being blamed for the tragedy Kim Sae Ron faced.
The agency confirmed that the photos of Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Sae Ron released by Garo Sero Institute โare trueโ but denied the alleged context: Kim Soo Hyun dating Kim Sae Ron when she was a minor.
A photo taken as an adult has been changed to one taken when she was 16. The deceased motherโs acquaintance has changed to her aunt. After showcasing strong visual evidence that attracts attention, the content and timeframe for the evidence have been changed.
This has made the debt issue that the former agency had taken care of into a situation where they pressured her to pay it back with a screenshot of a single text. So, the debt issue that the company sorted out a year ago has now become the direct cause of her passing.
With this process, Kim Soo Hyun has become dragged into being the culprit of the tragedy that the deceased had to face. With just one piece of evidence that removes context and distorts facts, someone is made a criminal. And because they are a criminal, everything becomes a target of condemnation.
With Garoseroโs report, all of Kim Soo Hyunโs past actions have been made to look like intentional evil deeds. The photos that leaked other peopleโs private lives without consent and the claim that Kim Soo Hyun dated Kim Sae Ron at 16 are being repeated.
Through this process, false facts are turned into established facts and spread on the Internet, creating countless fake news stories. It is almost impossible for the person who is the target to refute all these things one by one. Even if they do, they would have to spend a large amount of time organizing the evidence and materials. And while doing this, the person in question suffers damage that is difficult to recover from.
The photos of the two revealed by Garosero are true. However, that doesnโt make their claims true. Many people are suffering because of their claims, which are made without the context behind them, distorting the truth. As mentioned earlier, we should accept the publicโs view and criticism of the events regarding Kim Soo Hyun.
But we cannot accept the numerous false facts and personal attacks just because he is a celebrity. The reactions that will follow regarding his private life that has been revealed or will be revealed will have to be endured. However, we wonder if it is acceptable for adults to have their private lives revealed without their consent and if all this has to happen because their private lives were revealed without consent.
โ GOLD MEDALIST
Responding to Kim Sae Ron’s Mother and Explicit Photo (March 2025)
Following a statement from Kim Sae Ron’s mother disputing GOLD MEDALIST’s earlier claims and Garo Sero Institute’s announcement of their intent to release an explicit photo of Kim Soo Hyun, GOLD MEDALIST issued another statement on March 15.
The agency confirmed that a photo of Kim Soo Hyun in what appeared to be Kim Sae Ron’s kitchen was taken on December 14, 2019. They condemned the “indiscriminate exposing” of private photos and urged for the cessation of disseminating personal matters.
Addressing Kim Sae Ron’s mother’s statement, GOLD MEDALIST expressed deep sorrow for her loss and sympathized with her concerns regarding the reports about her daughter. However, they noted discrepancies in perspectives and suggested a private meeting to provide a thorough explanation, believing that a public debate would not be appropriate for honoring the deceased.
Hello, this is Gold Medalist.
We are sending our official statement regarding the report aired on the YouTube channel Garo Sero Research Institute (Gaseyeon) on March 14.
The photos disclosed by Gaseyeon were taken on December 14, 2019. There is no justifiable reason for indiscriminately exposing private photos of Mr. Kim Soo Hyun and the deceased. We urge you to cease any actions that involve the dissemination of personal matters.
We have also taken note of the statement made by Ms. Kim Sae Ronโs mother in the broadcast. We believe that no words can sufficiently comfort her in the indescribable pain she is experiencing after losing Ms. Kim Sae Roon. We express our deep sorrow and regret for the pain the deceased had to endure.
We also deeply sympathize with the concerns Ms. Kim Sae Ronโs mother raised regarding the nature of various reports about the deceased. As stated in our recent official statement, Mr. Kim Soo Hyun has also suffered harm due to Gaseyeonโs reports.
However, there are certain points in the motherโs claims that differ from our perspective. Additionally, we believe there may be aspects that she was not yet aware of. Publicly debating these matters is not an appropriate way to honor the deceased or the motherโs efforts to restore their dignity. Instead, our management team would like to meet with Ms. Kim Sae Ronโs mother to provide a thorough explanation.
Please feel free to contact the Gold Medalist office at any time. We would be grateful for the opportunity to speak with you.
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