Netizens Bring Up Actor Nam Joo Hyuk’s Past Amid Bullying Allegations

As the whole K-Drama industry is holding its breath over actor Nam Joo Hyuk‘s bullying accusations, some netizens are bringing up the actor’s past. On June 20, an alleged former classmate of the actor held an exclusive interview with The Day News to accuse the actor of bullying him and his fellow classmates.

He bullied me for six years through middle School and high School. Nam Joo Hyuk hung out with thugs who bullied many students.

— Alleged Victim

The accuser alleged the actor assaulted him physically and forced him to run his errands.

He cursed and hit me every day. He made me run errands for him and would humiliate me in a class by throwing pencil lead at me from the back row.

— Alleged Victim

Some netizens, however, are bringing up the actor’s past as a transfer student to suggest that the allegations may not be true. The actor was born in 1994 in Busan, Korea, and attended Kyung Nam Middle School. He was a basketball player for the school’s team from 2006 to 2008, however, had to give up on the sport due to injuries. The actor is said to have transferred to Chang Yong Middle School in Gyeonggi-do, Suwon at 16, and graduated there before attending Soo Il High School.

Netizens are asking how the accuser is accounting for the six years he was bullied when the actor moved to Suwon in the last year of his middle school. The Korean high school and middle school systems are both three years long. In order for the accuser to have been bullied for six years straight, he would have had to transfer from the same middle school to the same high school in the same year.

With the new revelation, netizens are saying it is important to wait for the label’s official statement before judging on the matter.

Since the victim reached out to the journalist himself, we should wait for the label’s official statement before judging.

— Netizen

Nam Joo Hyuk debuted in 2013 as a model and has since established himself as one of K-Drama’s most recognizable leading men. On June 20, the actor was accused of bullying a classmate. Actor Nam Joo Hyuk’s agency soon followed the allegations by stating they are investigating the allegations.