‘Idol life or horror movie?’ Super Junior’s Kim Hee-chul exposes disturbing behavior by obsessive K-pop fans

Kim Hee-chul / Captured from Yoon Il-sang's YouTube channel

Super Junior member Kim Hee-chul has lifted the lid on years of harassment by so-called “sasaengs,” a kind of obsessive fan, revealing that some incidents went far beyond stalking into deeply disturbing territory.

The K-pop star spoke candidly about his experiences in an episode of Yoon Il-sang’s YouTube show “iLSang TV” released on Wednesday, titled "If you could be reborn: Super Junior vs. 100 billion-won retiree.”

Kim Hee-chul / Captured from Yoon Il-sang's YouTube channel

‘They chased my car and banged on the door’

“I don’t even call them ‘sasaeng fans.’ I just say ‘sasaeng,’” Kim said. “They were really extreme. When I left in my car, they would quickly get into taxis and chase after me. So I would stop in an alley, get out and start banging on their car doors and yelling at them.”

Kim Hee-chul / Captured from Yoon Il-sang's YouTube channel

He recalled that one of the most infuriating parts of the situation involved taxi drivers who exploited foreign teenage fans. “They would charge them insanely expensive fares to follow us around,” he said. “When I confronted them, they’d just laugh and say, ‘Why are you being like this, Hee-chul?’ That made me furious. These kids had no idea and were paying huge amounts of money.”

‘They knew our homes, bars and restaurants’

Kim said that some of the harassment was fueled by people around the industry. “I understand that teenagers might act like that during puberty, but there were adults who encouraged it,” he said. “Taxi drivers knew where TVXQ and Super Junior members lived, and even which bars and restaurants we frequented.”

Composer Yoon added that some idols experience sexual harassment by fans. “When you drink with idol friends, you hear crazy stories,” he said. “Some said that getting touched in their private parts as they passed by was nothing unusual.”

Kim Hee-chul / Captured from Yoon Il-sang's YouTube channel

‘They left sanitary pads — and worse — in our dorm’

According to Kim, some sasaeng activity became shockingly invasive. “There was an organized group. When we left for scheduled events, they would sneak into our house, take photos as proof to post online, and even leave sanitary pads in the dorm,” he said. Yoon added, “I even heard about people defecating there.”

The relentless invasions also affected Kim’s reputation. “Back then, fans said I had a bad personality,” he said with a laugh. “We used to travel in a bus wrapped with our photos, and when I got off, people would scream and run away like a scene from a zombie movie.”

The revelations sparked heated discussions online, with many fans expressing outrage over the years-long pattern of harassment and calling for stronger legal protections for K-pop idols. Others noted the irony that while Korean entertainment is now a global cultural powerhouse, some of its stars still face extreme privacy violations at home.

This article from Xportsnews is adapted by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.