A video of Seventeen Mingyu’s playful skinship with a female staff member backstage was released, drawing criticism.
On March 9th, a video of Mingyu hugging a female staff member spread on Twitter and YouTube. The video was filmed at KBS’s “Gayo Daechukje” on December 17th last year and is 30 seconds long. In the video, Mingyu hugged a female staff member from behind while talking to her. At that time, S.Coups and Vernon were also reportedly present.
After the video was released, criticism was pouring out on the Internet that it was disappointing. Generally speaking, it is inappropriate to touch female staff in public places. In the comments section, there were comments such as “Inappropriate behavior as an idol”, “I’m disappointed that he did something like that with a staff member of the opposite sex” and “I wish he had done it in different places”.
On the other hand, many point out that there is nothing wrong with it. One fan criticized, “Most of Carats (Seventeen’s fandom name) wouldn’t think Mingyu’s behavior was a problem. On the contrary, fans who prevent even light skinship are wrong.”
The YouTuber claimed, “He had fun talking with a woman in a place that looked like backstage. He back-hugged her then lifted her lightly and smiled. In the process, he came into close contact with a woman, and it was like hugging.”
Some fans mentioned Mingyu’s past private life controversy and demanded that he be cautious. In April 2020, Mingyu was criticized for visiting a pub in Itaewon, Seoul during social distancing due to COVID-19.
In March last year, Mingyu’s collage work was embroiled in controversy over misogyny. It has been pointed out that the work is reminiscent of illegal filming as it contains images of a woman with amputated limbs and a man holding a camera.
