Rain to sue over rumors, nude photo

Home > National > Social Affairs

print dictionary print

Rain to sue over rumors, nude photo


Singer-actor Rain is gearing up to file a lawsuit over rumors about a full-frontal nude photograph that was uploaded online on Thursday and has since enjoyed frantic circulation across the Internet.

The image, which shows a naked man showering, is alleged to be a picture of the K-pop star that leaked after his girlfriend lost her cell phone.

“We are preparing to take legal action against rumors that have spread over the Web and social networking services,” Rain’s agency, Cube DC Entertainment, said yesterday in a release.

Lawyer Kim Nam-hong, who represents Rain, added in the statement, “The man in the picture is clearly not [Rain]. We plan to sue the person responsible for posting the picture online and others who added false depictions to go along with it.”

According to rumors, the intimate photograph was posted online after Rain’s actress girlfriend Kim Tae-hee allegedly lost her smartphone.

The photo was uploaded on Thursday and went viral on Kakao Talk, Twitter and Facebook, though the user who uploaded the suspect image blocked out the eyes of the man showering.

Rain, whom also goes by his given name Jung Ji-hoon in his domestic acting projects, has reportedly been in a romantic relationship with Kim for about a year.

“Kim never lost her smartphone,” Rain’s lawyer said. “The rumors are way too malicious … so we decided to file a complaint.”

Rain is the latest entertainer to find himself embarrassed by nude photos going public. Seo Jii-su, a member of the up and coming girl group Lovelyz, was absent from the band’s recent stage debut on Wednesday following a slew of viral allegations.

Rumors previously surfaced online that Seo had engaged in lesbian relationships with numerous women and had released nude photographs without the consent of her ex-lovers.

Her agency, Woolim Entertainment, addressed the rumors simply by stating that the upcoming singer was in need of “medical treatment to bring her back to psychological stability.”

Kwak Geum-ju, a psychology professor at Seoul National University, said social networking services fuel a sense of excitement among people.

When people share negative rumors, she said, “they feel a sense of achievement because they believe they have information others don’t.”


BY SUNG SO-YOUNG [so@joongang.co.kr]

Log in to Twitter or Facebook account to connect
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
help-image Social comment?
s
lock icon

To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.

Standards Board Policy (0/250자)