South Korean firms axe ads with actor Kim Soo-hyun over underage dating scandal

Businesses in South Korea have scrambled to pull down advertisements featuring scandal-hit actor Kim Soo-hyun, as the embattled star’s agency denied his relationship with a late actress when she was underage.

Tous Les Jours, a bakery chain owned by one of the country’s largest conglomerates CJ Group, announced on Thursday it had terminated its contract with Kim, local media reported.

“The contract was originally set to expire at the end of this month. The company has decided not to extend the deal,” a company spokesman said as quoted by Yonhap News Agency.

Tous Les Jours also deleted all social media posts featuring Kim on Wednesday and took down its other physical promotions the following day, according to JoongAng Daily and SBS News.

Kim entered into a contract with the bakery chain last September, nearly a decade after their first partnership from 2012 to 2015.

Also joining the cancellation was Homeplus, a discount retail store chain with more than 10 million members nationwide.