Koo Hye Sun slammed her ex-husband Ahn Jae Hyun and the media for exploiting their divorce in a fiery Instagram post.
The actress expressed frustration over entertainment programs repeatedly dragging up the divorce, making her feel uncomfortable and causing her more pain. She called out both Ahn Jae Hyun and the media for “making continuous, indirect references that could point to [her], especially in ways that blur the line between joke and seriousness.”
Koo Hye Sun wrote:
“I do not believe it is ethical journalism to repeatedly stamp ‘five years since divorce’ into headlines as a permanent label on me. During my divorce from my ex-husband, conflicting claims were made, and in the end, we reached an agreement not to determine the truth or falsehood of those claims. While that may not have been a true reconciliation between us, it was nonetheless an unspoken promise and, in a sense, a moral obligation between two people.”
She described divorce as “selfish and difficult” and condemned sensational gossip shows for causing her “secondary harm” through performative consolations and leading questions.
“Divorce is an inherently selfish and difficult process, as it involves each side claiming to be the one harmed. Even though my divorce from my ex-husband was far from amicable, I believe that making continuous, indirect references that could point to me—especially in ways that blur the line between joke and seriousness—is an act of cowardice. Likewise, for those in the industry who produce sensational gossip shows… to inflict secondary harm on the person involved, causing deep wounds.”
Koo Hye Sun called on the entertainment industry to have “a sense of conscience.”
“I wish for there to be a sense of conscience even in entertainment. Even if a remark is made ‘just for fun’ or ‘for laughs,’ if the person at the center of it can feel genuine discomfort, I believe it should stop immediately. I am not someone who easily cries or expresses difficulty in words, but that does not mean I am without feelings. I earnestly ask that people understand that no one in this world has the right to ridicule me, especially when I am the one directly involved. I hope that, going forward, my ex-husband will opt to continue his career not by using me as a topic, but by shining through his own identity, authenticity, growth, and success.”
South Korean fans are split over her post. Some back her call for respect, while others accuse Koo Hye Sun of still using the divorce for attention.
Comments include:
- “If anything, this post itself feels like she’s still pushing her claim that Ahn Jae Hyun cheated on her, while framing it as ‘we had conflicting claims but ended on good terms.’ LOL.”
- “She acts like she has the sole right to talk about the divorce.”
- “She never apologized for that whole thing before the marriage where she made it seem like Ahn Jae Hyun took Anju (the cat) from her without caring for it… now she’s suddenly talking about ‘secondary harm’? Hope she’s ready to be called a hypocrite.”
- “Given her past behavior, I couldn’t help but think ‘Here we go again’ the moment I saw her post. She never changes.”
- “I mean, I did see some YouTube Shorts, and yeah, he’s mentioned her recently. It did sound like he used it as a joke… so I get what she means about feeling uncomfortable. But all that long-winded stuff before? Way too much.”
- “Celebrities really do live off public attention, whether it’s good or bad.”
- “She’s right.”
- “Koo Hye Sun has done plenty herself—hurting other celebs, making them get hate, and dragging people around them into it—but she stays silent on that. Why’s she acting like this again?”
- “I’ve seen several videos where Ahn Jae Hyun talks about the divorce… Even if it was said and done by other people around him, I do think there were enough mentions and jokes that would make her feel like she’s being painted as the bad person.”
The divorce mediation between Ahn Jae Hyun and Koo Hye Sun was officially completed years ago, but the fallout remains a hot topic.
Read more on their complicated history here.
