What Do You Do When One of Your Favorite K-Drama Actors is Exposed to Be Maybe Not Such a Nice Person?

(Updated 10.29.2021)

This may seem like an odd post to put under "Social Issues," and I'm not one to usually write about celebrity gossip, but the recent circumstances surrounding Kim Seon-Ho had me thinking about a couple feminist issues. 

First, for those of you who don't know who Kim Seon-Ho is, he's a popular Korean actor who really started becoming popular in 2020 after the success of the series Start-Up. Most recently he starred in the hit series Hometown Cha Cha Cha, which just finished airing its last episode last weekend. Sadly, he wasn't able to enjoy the finale for long, and neither were we. Shortly after, an ex-girlfriend of his anonymously shared some, apparently, ugly truths about him. And though she didn't name him in her post, the dots were quickly connected, and even more quickly our dimpled rising star has fallen. He's now been dropped from several projects and brand advertisements. 

However, over the past week, it has become unclear whether these accusations are true or not, and his face is now reappearing in ads across Korea. As a fan of his, I have to say I'm a little relieved and am hopeful that he is not the monster she painted him to be. 

After watching him in a few different series, he quickly became one of my favorite actors. I even have a romcom idea I'm working on inspired by him and written with him in mind as the lead. So, I was disappointed when I read that his ex-girlfriend claimed he pressured her to get an abortion in July of 2020 with the promise of marriage in the future. On top of that, he has apparently been rude to cast and crew members of the projects he's worked on and became quite arrogant. 

Kim Seon-Ho eventually released an official statement apologizing to his ex-girlfriend and those who have supported his career. He also apologized to her in person, and she has accepted his apology saying there was a misunderstanding between them. I'm not sure how you misunderstand someone pressuring you to get an abortion, but I'm not here to dissect and speculate their personal lives.

Since his apology, sources have apparently reported that his ex-girlfriend is lying and that the decision to abort was emotional for both and he took care of her afterwards, even making her seaweed soup. So, the tides have turned back in the favor of our dimpled prince. But again, I'm not here to discuss the celebrity gossip.

As I mentioned, this situation made me think of two things. The first is that Kim Seon-Ho is a man, so his career will probably survive this, and as noted, it already is. Look at Chris Brown--he's still making music and radio still plays his music. On the few occasions I actually listen to the radio, I've definitely had to change the station on Chris Brown more often than I ever get to hear a BTS song on the radio. So, looking at the comments on his Instagram, it looks like many fans are standing by him, sending lots of heartfelt and supportive messages. In fact, fans even petitioned to have him reinstated in his projects, especially after reports of the potential inaccuracy of the claims.

The second thing this made me think about is the attack on women's bodies by "pro-life" or as I prefer to call them, "pro-birth," crowds. Pro-birthers are often angry at and blaming women for abortions. If they really wanted to end abortions, they could instead fight for mandatory vasectomies or show at least a little more rage at men for their role in abortions. If it's true, it's really not cool that Kim Seon-Ho pressured his ex-girlfriend into getting an abortion. But the thing that annoys me most is that he's not the only man who has ever done this and we never talk about these guys. I personally know at least a couple guys, who have pressured their ex-girlfriends into getting abortions, because they weren't ready to be dads. Not to mention, one of these guys I used to know was (and probably still is) publicly a pro-birther, but had this one little dirty secret. Yet, no one ever makes a fuss over men pressuring women into getting abortions, yet we punish women for them. That's what really bothers me.

Why does society hate women? I won't answer that, because we all know why.