On June 9, SBS Entertainment News reported that the late actor Kim Sae Ron had been struggling financially for many years before passing away, and one of them was directly related to her family's economic situation.
Kim Sae Ron has shouldered some of his family's debts while he was alive and received a lot of financial support from the entertainment industry, as well as close friends to cover his living expenses.
According to court records in 2023, Kim Sae Ron was listed as one of the creditors in her father, Mr. A.,'s personal bankruptcy case. According to those involved, the debt she had to bear exceeded 250 million won.
Mr. A filed for bankruptcy in December 2020, after his business failed due to COVID-19. He left hundreds of millions of won in debt to more than 20 creditors. By March 2023, the bankruptcy and debt exemption were officially recognized by the court. At that time, Kim Sae Ron was only 20 years old.
A restaurant opened by Kim Sae Ron's family that she invested in has also gone bankrupt. This restaurant was named after an acquaintance by her parents, and opened around May 2021.
Kim Sae Ron not only invested in money but also took advantage of his Entertainment industry relationships to support, but the restaurant eventually closed in 2024.
In this situation, Kim Sae Ron's financial pressure became serious due to the drunk driving accident that occurred in May 2022. Compensation for nearby stores and arising lawsuit costs have put huge financial pressure on Kim Sae Ron.
In the 2023 trial, Kim Sae's lawyer said that Kim Sae Ron was the pillar of the family and had to support the family. Not only Kim Sae Ron but her whole family are also facing financial difficulties.
An acquaintance in the entertainment industry said: "Kim Sae Ron works tirelessly at a coffee shop, a bar, a flower shop and is an acting instructor to make a living. But her situation was so bad that she had to worry about the rent.
Earlier last year, her management company even paid part of the 50 million won she had borrowed from an athlete she knew when she needed to pay urgently.
According to SBS Entertainment News, in addition to the 3 entertainment industry acquaintances that Kim Sae Ron directly mentioned, she also owes from tens of millions of won to hundreds of millions of won to singers, actors and athletes.
She also owes about 700 million won to her former management company, Gold Medalist, and about 60 million won to Run Entertainment. Therefore, when all these details are combined, it can be confirmed that Kim Sae Ron owed at least 1.2 billion won until her death.
However, a month after Kim Sae Ron passed away, the family denied that the actor had to shoulder the debt for his family.
Kim Sae Ron's mother said: "Now that Sae Ron is no longer around, rumors like 'she is the pillar of the family' or 'the family spent all the money she earned to suck her blood' are all fabricated news."
It has been 3 months since Kim Sae Ron passed away, the controversy over the cause, responsibility, and whether she dated actor Kim Soo Hyun when she was a minor is still ongoing.
