Korea's messiest love triangle in 2024: Han So-hee, Ryu Jun-yeol, and Hyeri

South Korea entertainment's latest love drama is the love triangle between two actors and a K-Pop star. The scandal has brought massive criticism to those involved.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb, hyeri_0609 / Instagram

The parties involved in this love scandal are prominent figures in South Korea’s entertainment circle: actress Han So-hee, actor Ryu Jun-yeol, and a member of the K-pop girl group ‘Girls Day’, Hyeri.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb, hyeri_0609 / Instagram

Han So-hee is best known for her works in ‘The World of the Married’, ‘Nevertheless’, and ‘My Name’. She has also starred in BTS’ Jungkook’s music video for ‘Seven’.

Han So-hee can be considered one of Korea’s top actresses, as she not only has a massive media presence with her work as an ambassador for big brands like L’Oreal, but she has also won and been nominated for multiple acting awards.

Ryu Jun-yeol is known for his works on ‘The King’, ‘Little Forest’, and ‘Reply 1988’ among many others. ‘Reply 1988’ was also where he met Hyeri, and the two would go on to date for seven years after, according to Sports Chosun.

Just like Han So-hee, Ryu Jun-yeol is another of Korea’s top actors who has also not just won but has been nominated for many acting awards. He, along with Han So-hee, are both ranked in Forbes’ Korea Power Celebrity 40 list on multiple occasions.

As a member of the K-pop group ‘Girls Day’, Hyeri is known for songs such as ‘Twinkle Twinkle’, and ‘Ring My Bell’. She is also an actress, and is best known for her work on ‘Reply 1988’.

Hyeri also has a massive influence in the K-entertainment industry and is considered one of the country’s top commercial models, according to Kpop Herald. She also holds the title of ‘Nation’s Little Sister’ due to her massive popularity in South Korea, reports OSEN.

The scandal between the three started when Korea Herald reported that Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol were spotted together in Hawaii by a Japanese netizen, which sparked rumours that the two were dating.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb / Instagram

When the news broke out, Korea Herald reported that the agencies of Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol were quick to respond and deny the dating rumours. They claimed that the two stars were on separate trips for different purposes and happened to be coincidentally in Hawaii.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb / Instagram

According to The Korea Times, Hyeri had responded to rumours of Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol dating with an Instagram post. It had the word "interesting" in it, which has since been interpreted as a reference to the dating rumours.

Image: hyeri_0609 / Instagram

Hyeri's response on Instagram made way for more speculation online and backlash, where Allkpop reports that it sparked more rumours of Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol's relationship started when he had not properly ended things with Hyeri.

Image: hyeri_0609 , ryusdb / Instagram

Amid the buzz surrounding the dating rumours and denials, Soompi reports that Han So-hee herself had come forth to confirm that she had indeed been dating Ryu Jun-yeol in her blog, contrary to official agency statements.

Image: xeesoxee / Instagram

In response, Han So-hee was reported by Soompi to have responded to the rumours in her blog post confirming her relationship, stating that she and Ryu Jun-yeol had gotten together only after he and Hyeri had broken up in early 2023.

Image: xeesoxee / Instagram

According to the Korea Times, Hyeri issued an official apology on social media for sparking netizen debate and speculation about her, Ryu Jun-yeol, and Han So-hee's love lives, apologising for "causing hurt through a momentary emotion" in her previous cryptic Instagram post.

Image: hyeri_0609 / Instagram

Soompi reports that since coming out as a couple, both Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol have lost the opportunity to star in the production of the mystery thriller, ‘Delusion’, despite being confirmed previously to have been in talks to lead in the upcoming film.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb / Instagram

Despite the difficulties they faced in coming out in their relationship, Han So-hee and Ryu Jun-yeol announced through the actress' agency that they had split up on March 30, just two weeks after the relationship was confirmed.

Image: xeesoxee, ryusdb / Instagram

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