South Korean actor Choo Young-woo faces online backlash for phone case design

Choo Young-woo is drawing backlash online over the artwork displayed on his phone case that he was holding at an event. The artwork is reportedly from the Instagram account @sunzhouuu, originally uploaded in 2023.

On April 11, the account promoted the phone case for sale with the caption:

"Akihabara, a new mobile phone case with rukawazcity, is online!"

The photo showed a cartoon of a young girl wearing what looked like a Japanese school uniform. However, many also saw a building in the background that read 'Adult Goods.' The bottom of the case read, "Don't want to say goodbye..."

Netizens linked the imagery on the phone case to “High School Girls of Akihabara,” a phrase associated with Japan’s controversial JK businesses, where customers pay for pseudo-dates with high school girls.

Following this, netizens began questioning the actor’s choice, highlighting other similar controversial images on the artist’s account.

How are netizens reacting to Choo Young-woo's controversial phone case?

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@Marvelchat11

Literally that's what happened to me, I loved Choo Young-woo, but I would never submit to defending people like that, I already took him out of my profile picture and deleted everything I could.

Choo Young-woo is facing backlash after a photo of his phone case went viral online, with users calling him out for his choices.

A user, @Marvelchat11, wrote:

"Literally that's what happened to me, I loved Choo Young-woo, but I would never submit to defending people like that, I already took him out of my profile picture and deleted everything I could."

Another user, @lilichuland, tweeted:

"A building with "adult goods"/"love merci" written on it, meaning a place that sells adult products and really exists, with a little girl in front of it!! It's a disgrace, and the fact that these incidents are constantly being covered up because he's really a nepo baby himself is a whole other issue"

One more user, @kookiethhv, added:

"For me, the worst thing about this whole Choo Youngwoo controversy is that he was the protagonist of a drama where the setting was ✨ school, high school ✨ and if he really is a fetishist about that, it must have been a ready-made dish, which leaves me even afraid to think about the possibilities"

Another user, @DUDUMRN, posted:

"TikTok and Instagram are true sewers in the form of social networks, they're destroying Park Minyoung because of her weight, accusing Lee Soohyuk of various things and now defending Choo Youngwoo, as if he were a poor boy who sees no malice in anything"

As of now, neither the actor nor his agency has responded or released a statement regarding the same.

In 2025, Choo Young-woo appeared in three dramas, which include The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call, Mercy for None, and Head Over Heels. He played the lead role in all three, each of which has earned a rating of over 8 on MyDramaList.

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