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South Korean actor Kim Seon-ho, 35, has issued a formal apology to his ex-girlfriend following allegations that he had forced her into getting an abortion when they were dating in 2020.

Kim first gained worldwide popularity with the 2020 K-drama hit 'Start Up'.

His popularity increased following the recently concluded romantic-comedy hit 'Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha'.

His statement

As reported by Allkpop, Kim released an official statement on Wednesday (Oct. 20).

He began by apologising for his "belated statement", explaining that when he first saw his names on various articles the past few days, he "experienced a fear like [he] had never felt before".

Kim went on to say that he had dated his ex-girlfriend "with good feelings".

However, he admitted that he had hurt her due to his "incompetence and lack of consideration", and had hoped to apologise to her in person.

Kim added, according to Allkpop:

"In the meantime, I hope to relay my apology in earnest through this letter. I would also like to apologise to all those who trusted me and cheered me on until the end, for disappointing you. I was only able to stand tall as actor Kim Seon Ho because of the people who cheered me on, but I had forgotten this fact.

I also take this time to apologise to the many people who worked with me on various productions for the harm which I have caused, due to my mistakes. Once again, I want to sincerely apologise to all who may have been hurt by this incident. I know that these ramblings are insufficient to reach many people earnestly, but I offer my honest thoughts in any way that I can. I am truly sorry."

Statement from his agency

Kim’s agency, Salt Entertainment, had also released a statement on the same day.

As reported by Allkpop, the agency said:

"Hello, this is Salt Entertainment. We would like to apologise for causing many people concerns due to actor Kim Seon Ho's private matters. We would like to deliver our apologies to many people who were disappointed or hurt by the recent events."

Allegations emerged on Oct. 17

The allegations first emerged online on Sunday (Oct. 17).

A person who claimed to be an actor's ex-girlfriend alleged that he had forced her to have an abortion, before breaking up with her.

Although she did not identify who the actor was, she labelled him as "actor K".

A reporter-turned-YouTuber Lee Jin-ho later identified the actor as Kim, as reported by The Korea Herald.

Advertisements featuring him were taken down

Following the controversy, advertisements that featured Kim were taken down.

Companies like Domino’s Pizza Korea took, Canon Korea and Food Bucket removed images and posts featuring Kim on their official social media pages.

Kim's agency also announced that his interviews with the media had been cancelled.

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Top image from Kim Seon-ho's Instagram.