Korean Newsmakers Of The Week: Min Hee-jin Faces Lawsuit From ILLIT's Agency, Park Seo-joon's Dating Rumours And More

Here are the top five newsmakers in the entertainment industry of the week, all the way from South Korea.

Cannes 2024: YoonA, Han So-hee, Jung Hae-in

This year, at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival, several South Korean actors made an appearance. Girls’ Generation’s YoonA made a dazzling debut on the red carpet on May 20. Draped in an elegant blush pink gown, she graced the premiere of ‘Horizon: An American Saga.’ On the same day, Han So-hee captivated with her striking white contour ensemble, looking like a princess as she stepped onto the red carpet. Meanwhile, Jung Hae-in made an appearance in a stylish tuxedo as his film ‘I, The Executioner’ was slated for screening under the Midnight Screenings section.

SEVENTEEN's Jeonghan x Wonwoo Announce Unit Debut

SEVENTEEN made a thrilling announcement on May 20 at midnight KST, revealing that two of its members, Jeonghan and Wonwoo, are teaming up for a captivating new venture as a sub-unit. Their unit, known as ‘Jeonghan X Wonwoo,’ will mark its debut with the release of their first single album titled ‘THIS MAN’ on June 17 at 6 PM KST. While fans eagerly anticipate this dynamic duo’s debut, additional information about the track list is anticipated to be unveiled in due course of time.

ADOR's CEO Min Hee-jin Faces Lawsuit From BELIFT LAB

BELIFT LAB has taken legal action against ADOR’s CEO Min Hee-jin, who accused ILLIT of copying concept ideas from NewJeans. On May 22, BELIFT LAB announced that they “have filed a complaint against CEO Min Hee-jin on the charges of interference with business and defamation for causing harm to our company and our affiliated artists with her unilateral false claims.” They went on to refute plagiarism allegations and stated they “have submitted evidence to the judicial authorities that can prove these allegations are false, and even if this may take some time, we will clarify the truth through proper legal procedures.” Furthermore, they also requested netizens to not further pass any defamatory comments to the members of ILLIT, who are experiencing backlash online.

Park Seo-joon Gets Embroiled In Dating Rumours With Lauren Tsai

Park Seo-joon’s agency has briefly passed a statement regarding the actor’s dating speculations. Reports emerged claiming his  romantic involvement with American actress Lauren Tsai following alleged sightings of them together in Japan. In response to these speculations, his agency, Awesome ENT, stated, “Park Seo-joon was carrying out overseas activities for attendance at a brand event recently, and artists and related individuals of diverse fields were invited to this event. We ask for your understanding in not being able to provide confirmation on any aspects of his personal life beyond information about his official activities.” With this, it’s still not confirmed whether they’re together or not.

BLACKPINK Makes History; Becomes 1st K-Pop Girl Group To Earn Gold Certification In UK

BLACKPINK has added another achievement to a list of their historic milestones. The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) recently revealed that the quartet’s debut studio album, ‘THE ALBUM,’ has been officially certified gold in the United Kingdom. The BPI’s certification criteria states that albums attain gold status upon reaching 100,000 units sold. So with this remarkable feat, BLACKPINK has become the first female K-Pop act to achieve a gold certification for an album in the country.