Four Years After Leaving LE SSERAFIM, Kim Garam Is Returning to Entertainment in a New Role

Kim Garam Returns With a New Identity

Four years after her brief and controversial debut with LE SSERAFIM, Kim Garam is preparing to reenter the entertainment industry as an actress.

Management Koo released a new set of profile photographs on September 10, formally presenting the 20-year-old as an actor rather than an idol.

The images move between noticeably different moods. Some emphasize a clean and youthful appearance, while others use darker styling, controlled expressions and direct eye contact to suggest a more mature screen presence.

For Kim, the photographs represent more than a routine portfolio update. They are the first visible step in an attempt to build a new career after one of the most abrupt departures in recent K-pop history.

From a Two-Month Idol Career to Four Years Away

Kim debuted with LE SSERAFIM on May 2, 2022, through the group’s first EP, FEARLESS.

Allegations concerning her behavior in middle school had already begun spreading online before the group’s official debut. The controversy intensified after documents connected to a school violence committee became public.

Kim temporarily suspended her activities on May 20, just 18 days after debuting. HYBE and Source Music subsequently terminated her exclusive contract on July 20, confirming that LE SSERAFIM would continue as a five-member group. Source Music’s official notice

Her active career as an idol therefore lasted less than three months, with much of that period dominated by public debate over allegations from her school years.

Kim largely disappeared from the entertainment industry afterward.

What Was Confirmed About the School Controversy

Reporting on the case requires separating documented facts from the many claims that circulated through anonymous online posts.

It was confirmed that Kim had received a Level 5 disciplinary measure from a school violence committee while attending middle school. Under the system used at the time, that measure involved special education or psychological treatment intended to address a student’s behavior.

The existence of the disciplinary record became one of the central facts in the controversy.

However, the parties offered sharply different accounts of the incident behind it.

A former student alleged that Kim and others had subjected her to verbal and physical abuse. HYBE and Source Music disputed several accusations and argued that the conflict began after the student photographed another classmate in her underwear and shared the image without permission.

The companies said Kim confronted the student while defending her friend and maintained that she had not engaged in the severe physical violence described online. Kim later released her own statement denying that she had hit or bullied another student, smoked or consumed alcohol as a minor.

No court ruling publicly resolved every disputed claim surrounding the conflict. It would therefore be inaccurate either to erase the confirmed school disciplinary action or to present every allegation circulated online as an established fact.

Acting Was Not a Sudden Decision

Kim’s transition into acting appears to have been developing for several years.

She enrolled at Konkuk University in 2024 and began studying media acting. The program allowed her to train in performance away from the intense public attention that accompanied her idol debut.

She also opened a personal YouTube channel in March 2026, where she shared videos related to her daily life and acting practice. Management Koo said it had followed those activities and was impressed by her potential and work ethic.

The company announced an exclusive contract with Kim on June 16.

“We have consistently watched Kim Garam’s YouTube activities and were deeply impressed by her potential for growth as an actor and her sincere attitude,” the agency said at the time, according to Dispatch.

The newly released profile photographs now turn that contract announcement into a more concrete career launch.

Management Koo Is Betting on Her Screen Potential

Management Koo represents actors including Lee Yo Won, Seo Hyo Rim and Jung Si Ah and specializes in developing acting careers rather than idol promotions.

The agency said Kim has been working continuously to show the public a different side of herself.

“We wanted this profile to demonstrate her diverse charms and potential as an actor,” the company explained. It also promised to support her development and help her meet audiences through suitable productions.

No drama, film or character has yet been announced as Kim’s official acting debut.

That means the current campaign should be understood as an introduction rather than confirmation that she has secured a major role. Her next important test will be the project she chooses and how audiences respond when they see her perform rather than pose for profile photographs.

A Difficult Return to Public Life

Kim’s new beginning is likely to produce divided reactions.

Some viewers may believe four years away from the industry, university training and a change in career direction should give her an opportunity to demonstrate personal and professional growth.

Others may feel that the questions surrounding her school record remain unresolved in the public sphere.

Both responses are likely to follow her first acting project. Management Koo will therefore need to build her career through more than visual promotion. Her performances, interviews and conduct will determine whether audiences accept her new identity.

Unlike an idol debut, an acting career does not require an immediate, fully formed public persona. Kim may be able to begin with smaller roles and gradually establish what she can do on screen.

That process could also allow audiences to evaluate her current work separately from the abbreviated idol career that made her name familiar.

She Is Not Returning to LE SSERAFIM

Kim’s acting announcement does not indicate any connection to LE SSERAFIM’s current activities.

The group continued with Kim Chaewon, Sakura, Huh Yunjin, Kazuha and Hong Eunchae following her departure. It has since established its identity as a five-member act through releases including “ANTIFRAGILE,” “UNFORGIVEN,” “EASY” and “CRAZY.”

Kim is now represented by an acting agency and is pursuing an independent path.

Headlines may continue identifying her as a former LE SSERAFIM member because the group remains the best-known part of her public history. However, the new profile represents an effort to ensure that it does not remain her only identity.

The Real Beginning Comes With Her First Role

Profile photographs can introduce a new image, but they cannot establish an acting career by themselves.

Kim Garam’s return will ultimately be judged through the characters she portrays, the projects she selects and whether she can demonstrate the range her agency sees in her.

She has spent the years since 2022 away from idol promotions, studying acting and gradually returning through her own content. Now, for the first time since leaving LE SSERAFIM, she has a company publicly supporting her next step.

Her idol career ended almost as soon as it began.

Whether her second beginning lasts longer will depend on what she does once the camera starts rolling.