Lee Byung-hun slapped with lawsuit by alleged ex-girlfriend

Hallyu star Lee Byung-hun has been sued by a woman who claims she was allured into having a sexual relationship with the actor on his false promises of marriage.

The woman, a Korean-Canadian identified by her last name Kwon, lodged a complaint to the Seoul Central District Court on Tuesday, demanding 100 million won (87,000 dollars) in compensation from Lee for the physical and psychological damage she allegedly suffered from their relationship.

Lee's agency BH Entertainment issued a press release the next day, explaining that anonymous male callers had been threatening to expose false details about the actor's relationship with a former girlfriend since unless Lee paid them several billions of wons.

BH admitted that Lee had a girlfriend between autumn last year and spring this year but declared in the statement, "He has done nothing reproachable so we will seek investigation into the issue and file a countersuit for libel."

BH CEO Sohn Seock-woo asked fans for their trust and support for the actor, saying his agency had become aware of the issue beforehand and was preparing to take legal action. "We see this as an incident brought about by some people who are trying to use Lee's popularity to fulfill their foul motives. We will not involve even an ounce of dishonesty in solving this issue," Sohn told Asia Economic Daily over the phone on Wednesday.

Lee, 39, has appeared in numerous Korean dramas and films, including TV series "All In" and director Park Chan-wook's 2000 film "Joint Security Area". He currently stars in hit TV series "Iris" co-starring actress Kim Tae-hee and actor Jung Jun-ho.

Lee also debuted in Hollywood this year with a supporting role in "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" alongside Channing Tatum and Sienna Miller and starred in action thriller "I Come with the Rain" with Josh Hartnett and Takuya Kimura which also showed in theaters this year.

Editor in Chief : Hwang Yong-hee hee21@asiae.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr