Taiwanese Influencer Molly Chiang Apologises After She Gets Called Out For Making Korean Star IU Uncomfortable At Gucci Event In Seoul

The Gucci Cruise 2024 show took place on Tuesday night (May 16) at Seoul’s Gyeongbokgung. The event saw many celebs in attendance, including Mediacorp actress Rebecca Lim.

One of the guests, however, has come under scrutiny for her behaviour.

In a video posted online, Taiwanese fashion influencer, Molly Chiang, who boasts more than 800K followers on Instagram, was filmed trailing Korean star IU closely from behind.

Molly was then seen slipping past IU’s bodyguard before reaching out for the star's hand. She then continued holding on to it, much to the latter’s apparent discomfort.

Although IU maintained a smile throughout the exchange, she could be seen glancing over at her bodyguard, hinting at him to intervene.

A netizen later posted another video, showing Molly following IU even after her bodyguard had stopped the very awkward exchange.

The bodyguard was also seen repeatedly looking back at Molly.

The clips soon went viral, with many netizens expressing their shock at Molly’s bold behavior.

“It’s very obvious that IU is uncomfortable,” said one netizen.

Another wrote: “That’s disgusting. IU was obviously trying to push her hand away, yet she continued clutching on.”

Others also described Molly’s actions as “horrifying” and “disrespectful”.

According to other netizens, Molly is a repeat offender when it comes to "acting like she is close to celebs”.

In fact, she displayed similar behaviour with Korean actor Jung Hae In at a Louis Vuitton event in Taiwan earlier this year.

On a forum post, a netizen described how Molly had lingered around Hae In at the event, and waited for the chance to get between the star and his bodyguard.

When she eventually managed to squeeze next to Hae In, her next course of action, which we must say was very strange, was to lightly poke his arm.

Netizens were repulsed by her behaviour towards both Korean stars, asking that she “changed her exaggerated celeb-chasing habits”.

It appears that Molly is aware of the backlash she has received as result of her behaviour at the Gucci show.

This afternoon (May 18), she took to her Instagram to apologise for causing “agitated emotions and discomfort” with regards to her interaction with IU.

She also acknowledged her mistake and said that she “felt bad and sorry” towards her idol.

“Regardless of how badly I wanted to take a photo with IU in order to fulfil the wishes of my followers who want to see me in a pic with her, I shouldn’t have reached out my hand or tried to touch a celeb who was not familiar with me. I sincerely apologise for my actions,” she wrote.

She continued: “I have always been aware that I’m a ‘nobody’ as compared to celebrities. But I started from nothing and worked hard to get to [where I am] today, where I’m invited by brands to attend events. I’ve put in all my effort and have always tried my best for my fans.”

Molly also took the chance to explain that as someone who has a career on social media, she needs to take responsibility for her page traffic and numbers. As such, she tries her best to produce content that would best suit the interest of her audience.

However, she also clarified that she has always sought permission before taking photos with celebs.

“If the manager rejected my request, or the celebs themselves do not want their photo taken, I would never force my way to get a pic,” she wrote.

She then apologised again, promising to be “more sincere and respectful” with her actions in the future.

She also expressed her regret for letting her fans down, and thanked everyone else for their criticism and advice.