Actress Ku Hye-sun and her former agency, HB Entertainment, are at odds with each other. When Goo Hye-sun lost the lawsuit for non-payment of appearance fees, she expressed her intention to appeal, and HB Entertainment refuted that Goo Hye-sun was pretending to be a victim.
On the 20th, HB Entertainment said in an official position, "We are seriously considering property damage and mental damage to our employees and artists due to continuous legal response due to disputes related to Goo Hye-sun's exclusive contract and lawsuits based on repeated false claims over the years. I am wearing it,” he said.
They continued, "Ku Hye-seon is distorting the court's judgment and pretending to be a victim with false facts, revealing her position that the judicial authorities' strict judgments regarding disputes started by her own will were wrong." The Korea Commercial Arbitration Board and the court judged that HB Entertainment had no unpaid amount to Goo Hye-sun.
HB Entertainment said, "Although this case has nothing to do with non-payment of appearance fees or tyranny of power, Goo Hye-sun has been damaging HB Entertainment's honor and credibility with various false facts over the years." Although we have refrained from media reports and responded only legally to Goo Hye-sun's unjust claims for years, we cannot tolerate any more distorting and denying court decisions, interfering with the company's work, and seriously damaging our reputation. We will proceed with legal procedures against the disclosure of facts and false reports.”
Earlier, according to the legal community, on the 18th, the 63rd Civil Settlement Division of the Seoul Central District Court ruled against the plaintiff in a lawsuit against Goo Hye-seon for non-payment of 107 million won in appearance fees to HB Entertainment. The judge said, "There is room for the plaintiff (Koo Hye-seon) to be involved in planning and directing in the video production process beyond the role of a simple performer." It is reasonable to admit that he took responsibility as a whole. It cannot be seen that the plaintiff holds neighboring rights as a performer, such as reproduction, distribution, broadcasting, and transmission rights related to the use of video materials."
In response, Ku Hye-sun posted a long article on her personal channel and expressed her intention to appeal. He said, "I had an experience of heartache due to the non-payment of appearance fees for some of the previously aired dramas. As the previous agency's YouTube appearance fees continued to be unpaid, I thought a lot about whether it was right to bear the loss of well over 300 million won alone." The ruling that we lost to them cannot be accepted with common sense. It is an issue that should not be acknowledged, so we will appeal even at the cost of losses."
Then, referring to her ex-husband Ahn Jae-hyun, "Because I trusted him, I willingly appeared (more than 12 times) without pay on the YouTube channel operated by HB Entertainment, to which he belongs. I also provided services such as content planning, location, music, and editing. Total Despite recording more than 10 million views, the former agency forcibly discarded the video containing my beloved companion animal, which has now gone to heaven, instead of paying the appearance fee, and harassed me for several years, such as filing a criminal complaint against a witness who tried to help me." insisted.
Goo Hye-sun said, "Many people who are worried about me have advised me, 'Isn't it best not to respond?', but there is a reason for proceeding with the appeal." It stemmed from the will to sound an alarm bell against the tyranny of the production system's 'abuse of power', such as non-payment after the screening of the department. This wrong practice must be eliminated and must be corrected, so we will correct it through an appeal."
The dispute between the two sides started in 2019 in the divorce lawsuit between Goo Hye-sun and Ahn Jae-hyun. At the time, Goo Hye-sun notified HB Entertainment of the termination of her exclusive contract and filed a lawsuit demanding unpaid performance fees.
Reporter Tae Yuna, Ten Asia youyou@tenasia.co.kr