The Korean actor, 78, winner of the Golden Globe in the category of Best Supporting Actor for the series “Round 6” (Netflix), was accused of sexual harassment for touching the body of a woman without consent, in 2017, according to Variety. The actor, who has not been arrested, denies the allegations.
The alleged victim filed the complaint against Yeong-su in December 2021, but the case was closed four months later without a formal charge against the actor. The Suwon Public Prosecutor’s Office has reopened the case at the woman’s request and is investigating the allegations.
In an interview with Korean broadcaster JTBC, the veteran actor explained that he only held the woman’s hand to guide the way around a lake and that he apologized. “But that doesn’t mean I admit to the accusations,” Yeong-su said.
AFP news agency heard from a Suwon court official about the case and he said “everything reported by local media is not factually correct”. Although the case has yet to be adjudicated, the South Korean Ministry of Culture has pulled a government TV commercial about regulatory innovation featured by the actor.
Yeong-su was born in 1944 in the city of Kaesong, which is now part of North Korea, but moved with his family to the US-controlled south. The actor started acting professionally at the age of 23 and has spent most of his career in the theater – he has performed in over 200 stage productions.
Before “Round 6”, Yeong-su was known for his role as a monk in the award-winning film “Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter… and Spring” (2003), by Kim Ki-duk.
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