Squid Game star O Yeong-Su has been convicted of sexual misconduct over allegations he hugged and kissed a woman on the cheek against her wishes.
O was one of the stand-out performers in Netflix‘s global megahit Squid Game, garnering a Golden Globe nomination for his role as Oh Il-nam.
According to reports in Korea, O was sentenced to up to eight months in prison, suspended for two years, by the Seongnam Branch of the Suwon District Court.
The 79-year-old was charged in 2022 over allegations that he hugged a woman and kissed her on the cheek in 2017, per Korean news agency Yonhap.
He denied the charges and, after leaving court on Friday, told reporters that he would appeal the ruling, which included attending a 40-hour sexual offender treatment program.
O has previously said he held the woman’s hand to guide her around a lake. “I apologized because [the person] said she wouldn’t make a fuss about it but it doesn’t mean that I admit the charges,” he said.
According to AFP, judge Jeong Yeon-ju said the victim’s records of the assault and her claims were “consistent … and appear to be statements that cannot be made without actually experiencing them.”
The court added: “What’s written in the victim’s diary, and the counseling report of the victim after the incident pretty much match the details of this case.”
O has been acting for more than 50 years but his role in Squid Game drew him global fame and acclaim. Other performances include the role of King Lear in the eponymous play and an appearance in South Korean TV series Chocolate.
Womenlink, a women’s rights group in South Korea, welcomed the ruling. “The defendant resembles other offenders of sexual violence in theatre in the past who tried to cover up their sexual violence as ‘favour’ and ‘friendship’,” the group said in a post on Twitter (now X).