Twenty-Five Twenty-One actor Nam Joo Hyuk accused of bullying schoolmate, his agency calls it ‘false rumour’

Actor Nam Joo Hyuk, who was last seen in K-drama Twenty-Five Twenty-One, was accused of bullying someone during his school days. On Monday, a Korean media outlet reported an anonymous tipper has claimed that Nam Joo Hyuk has bullied an unnamed person when he was in school for 6 days. The actor’s agency has denied these allegations and ensured strict legal action against them. (Also read: K-drama to K-pop: Is India finally warming up to the Korean wave?)

As per a report in The Korea JoongAng Daily, the bullying incident occurred between middle and high school. The anonymous person has allegedly supported his allegations with a picture from the yearbook of the actor’s school. It further said that Joo Hyuk belonged to a group of bullies who often beat up, cussed and even took money from other classmates. The tipper also claimed that the actor bullied him by throwing mechanical pencil refills at him. He added that there are other victims as well who were bullied much more severely by the actor and are seeking psychiatric help due to Nam Joo Hyuk’s popularity in the industry, as per Allkpop. 

While Nam Joo Hyuk did not yet responded to any allegations personally, his agency Management Soop has shared a statement. “We are informing you of our official stance regarding the article on actor Nam Joo Hyuk. First, we ask for your understanding in the delay in announcing our position in order to confirm the facts. After checking the truth with the actor regarding the initial report, we have confirmed that all the relevant information is not true in the slightest. We also express our regret at the one-sided report from the media that did not check the truth even once with the agency or the actor before publishing the article,” quoted Soompi.

The agency has also said that they will file criminal charges against the reporter of the Korean publication who shared the ‘false rumour’ about Nam Joo Hyuk and damaged his reputation. They have also added that the actor and his family have suffered due to the ‘vague gossip’ and ‘thoughtless rumours’ that were spread without any confirmation.

Nam Joo Hyuk made his acting debut  in a supporting role in K-drama, The Idle Mermaid. He is best known for his leading roles in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo, The Bride of Habaek and Start-Up among others.