Actor Jeesoo has effectively halted domestic activities after the school violence controversy, and released an update showing active work in the Philippines. However, the aftermath of the past controversy still continues as a legal dispute.
On the 6th, Jeesoo posted several photos on his social media taken at a famous shopping mall in the Philippines with a clothing brand.
In the photos, Jeesoo wore a bright smile and waved to fans, carrying out local schedules in a cheerful manner. Rather than domestic activities, he appears to be meeting and engaging with fans mainly in the Philippines.
At the same time, a damage compensation lawsuit related to the past school violence controversy was again drawing attention. Earlier, on Feb. 2, the Seoul High Court ruled in the appeal of a damages suit filed by drama production company Victory Contents against KeyEast, Jeesoo's then agency, ordering KeyEast to pay about 880 million won plus delayed interest. This amount is reduced from the first-instance award of about 1.42 billion won, but the full 3 billion won the production company sought was not recognized.
The lawsuit stemmed from school violence allegations that surfaced during the 2021 broadcast of the KBS2 drama "River Where the Moon Rises." Jeesoo, who played the male lead Ondal, admitted to some of the alleged wrongdoing and voluntarily withdrew from the project when the controversy erupted. Because most of the filming had already been completed, the production team brought in Na In-woo as a replacement to reshoot major scenes, and went through the process of re-filming the early broadcast segments. The production company then filed a damages claim against KeyEast, the agency at the time, over additional production costs incurred in this process, leading to ongoing legal disputes.
Coincidentally, Jeesoo ended his exclusive contract with KeyEast immediately after the controversy in 2021, and subsequently completed alternative service as a public service worker. After discharge he said there were aspects of the facts he felt were unfair, but his domestic activities have effectively been suspended. He is currently continuing overseas activities mainly in the Philippines, but the aftershocks left by the school violence controversy continue.
Some argue that because this damages ruling is the result of a civil lawsuit between the former agency and the production company, it should not be used as a pretext for excessive personal attacks on the actor or indiscriminate malicious comments. Evaluations of the controversy should be made calmly based on judicial procedures and facts, and emotional condemnation and online witch hunts could create other problems.
[photo] 'OSEN DB, SNS'
[OSEN]