1tokki@juantokki
HYBE’s ‘Divide-and-Conquer’ Target NewJeans—Is Min Hee-jin the Real Objective? Was the Shareholders’ Agreement Lawsuit a Factor?
spochoo.com/news/articleVi…
- HYBE pursues a “selective return” for NewJeans: reviving Hanni and Minji while expelling Daniellele and pressing ahead with litigation
- HYBE backtracks on its promise of a “full-group return,” fundamentally denying NewJeans’ core values of “bond” and “complete-group identity”
- Legal community: “A clear abuse of rights and a legal contradiction” … Cultural sector: “Criticism over turning artists into consumables”
By Kim Hyun-soo
HYBE, South Korea’s largest entertainment company, has adopted an unprecedented policy of “selective contract termination” targeting members of the group NewJeans.
According to an exclusive report by Maeil Newspaper on the 29th, HYBE has internally finalized a contradictory stance: officially reinstating activities for members Hanni and Minji, while simultaneously moving to terminate Daniellele’s exclusive contract and pursue massive damages against her.
Following the exclusive report, HYBE acknowledged Danielle’s removal.
“Hanni and Minji Return, Danielle Lawsuit” — After Promising Fans a Full-Group Comeback, Is This Ultimately a Divide-and-Conquer Strategy?
After winning its lawsuit on October 30 confirming the validity of exclusive contracts with all five NewJeans members, HYBE promised the resumption of the group’s activities.
At the time, HYBE stated:
“We have completed preparations for activities including the release of a NewJeans full-length album, and we will do our utmost through discussions with the artists to bring them back to fans.”
Fans expected a swift return—especially the long-awaited moment when all five members would stand on stage together again. However, nearly two months after the trial ended, no concrete plans emerged. There was not even confirmation of returns for Hanni, Minji, or Danielle, let alone Hyein and Haerin. Rumors circulated within the industry that negotiations between HYBE and the three members had stalled.
Amid this uncertainty, it was confirmed that HYBE had decided on different courses of action for Hanni, Minji, and Danielle. Taken together, the exclusive report and HYBE’s announcement reveal the core of HYBE’s policy: selective contract termination—division.
In other words, HYBE appears intent on simultaneously offering rewards (“return to activities”) to some members while imposing punishment (“contract termination and costly lawsuits”) on others.
Maeil Newspaper reported that while HYBE is preparing an official announcement regarding the return of Hanni and Minji, it plans to demand unilateral contract termination and substantial damages from Danielle.
“Who Gets Saved, Who Gets Sacrificed?” — Industry Reaction
One industry insider commented:
“After promising fans a ‘five-member full-group revival,’ they abandon Danielle alone? If you’re keeping some and discarding others under identical conditions, there must be a clear standard. But is that standard the law—or someone’s mood? I seriously question what value or meaning NewJeans has as an IP without Danielle.”
Another entertainment industry source added:
“Among the members, Danielle has an innocent, sunlit image. If a conglomerate singles out a young artist like that and says, ‘Only you are terminated’ and ‘Only you will face massive damages,’ it looks like punishment to anyone watching—and classic corporate bullying to fans. With Danielle cast out, the remaining members may feel less like voluntary participants and more like hostages forced to stay while watching a colleague led to the slaughterhouse.”
A senior figure from a mid-sized agency observed:
“Rather than bear the risk of all five members uniting and speaking with one voice, HYBE appears to have calculated that forcibly dispersing their interests would fracture their solidarity. By presenting extreme ‘carrot and stick’ measures—return versus expulsion—it sends a silent warning to the remaining members: comply, or you could be next.”
“A Direct Denial of NewJeans’ Core Values”
Critics argue that this divide-and-conquer approach fundamentally denies NewJeans’ defining values of bond and complete-group identity.
An anonymous pop culture critic stated:
“NewJeans is not simply a combination of five individuals—their shared narrative and relationships form the core of the brand. Using one member as an example and pushing her into litigation exposes the arrogance of a conglomerate that treats K-pop artists not as people, but as disposable management assets.”
Legal Circles: A Strategic Move Ahead of the HYBE–Min Hee-jin Shareholders’ Lawsuit?
Some in the legal community view this as a strategic maneuver ahead of the shareholders’ agreement lawsuit between HYBE and former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin, with a ruling scheduled for February 2026.
One attorney explained:
“If HYBE frames Danielle’s contract termination as a case of tampering, it can leverage that argument extensively in its lawsuit against Min. Given that HYBE has little evidence beyond KakaoTalk messages in the shareholders’ dispute, it may see the tampering claim as a decisive card.”
Legal and Cultural Backlash
Legal professionals warn:
“HYBE’s selective punishment could be adopted by courts as decisive evidence that HYBE lacks any genuine intent to restore trust when determining responsibility for the breakdown of the trust relationship.”
The cultural and entertainment sectors are equally critical. One cultural industry insider stated:
“Reviving Hanni and Minji while punishing Danielle is a classic ‘divide and rule’ strategy that dismantles the NewJeans collective and serves only the managerial goal of ‘erasing Min Hee-jin.’ This retaliatory administration—treating artists as strategic consumables—risks triggering a moral collapse across the entire K-pop industry.”
The source continued:
“HYBE may claim it is ‘protecting the system’ by dividing the members. In reality, it is closer to a hostage situation, leveraging artists’ livelihoods to force silence from those who remain while imprinting an image of endless legal warfare onto the public.”
