The star of Squid Game, O Yeong-su, has finally seen justice after his appeal in the notorious indecent assault case. The 81-year-old veteran actor, who is best known for his iconic role as 'Oh Il-nam' or player 001 in the Netflix hit series, was initially found guilty in 2024 and sentenced to an eight-month suspended prison term. However, an appellate court in South Korea has now overturned this conviction, acquitting O Yeong on November 11, 2025.
The Suwon District Court's decision to acquit O Yeong came after a lower court had previously found him guilty of sexually harassing a woman during a 2017 regional theatre tour. The allegations revolved around O Yeong allegedly hugging and touching the woman inappropriately without her consent. Despite his initial apology to the woman at her request, the case was reopened by the prosecution in 2021 at her behest.
The court's decision was not without controversy, as there were doubts about the timing of the incident. The alleged assaults took place in 2017, while the complaint was filed against O Yeong in 2021. The court explained that there was "doubt" as to whether O Yeong had committed the assault, suggesting that the victim's memory may have been distorted over time.
The alleged victim, however, spoke out against the ruling, stating that it would not invalidate the truth or erase the pain she had suffered. "Despite today's ruling, I will continue to speak the truth to the very end," she said in a statement released through the women's rights organization Womenlink.
Womenlink also criticized the decision by the court, saying they were "outraged by a ruling that once again conceals sexual violence in the theatre world." O Yeong-su is a pioneer in Korean entertainment, being the first Korean actor to win a Golden Globe award for best supporting actor in a series after his performance in Squid Game became a global sensation on Netflix.
