South Korean star Rain responds to criticism after wife Kim Tae-hee’s tearful motherhood remarks went viral

South Korean pop star Rain, 43, recently appeared on the talk show You Quiz On The Block, where he spoke about how he unexpectedly became the target of angry netizens over a short clip from his wife, actress Kim Tae-hee’s appearance on the same show last year.

Rain and Kim have been married for nine years and have two daughters, who turn seven and nine this year.

On a 2025 episode hosted by renowned South Korean comedian and host Yoo Jae-suk, the actress opened up about motherhood, saying she only truly understood how difficult it was after having children herself. It was an emotional moment, with tears welling in her eyes as she spoke.

During Rain’s appearance, Kim’s vulnerable moment naturally came up, with Yoo asking if he had watched the episode.

Rain hesitated for a short moment before admitting: “About that… I really have to mention [this].”

He explained that he and Kim watched it together at home, and he even praised her for doing a good job. However, short clips of the episode soon spread online, with only her emotional moment going viral, ending just as she covered her face with her hand and tried to hold back tears.

That was when things started to get a little messy for him.

“I received so many calls asking, ‘Don’t you help out at home?’” Rain recalled.

He added that online comments included criticism such as “Who made Kim Tae-hee cry?” and more scathing remarks like “Is childcare only a woman’s job?”.

Rain said he was hit with a barrage of backlash, joking that he felt “wronged” by the situation.

He then set the record straight, explaining that he does his share of parenting duties, especially school runs, sending both daughters to school in the morning and picking them up in the evening.

However, he also acknowledged that his wife takes on a larger share of childcare, as their daughters tend to look for their mother more often.

Yoo then took the opportunity to tease Rain, saying that some children actually look for their fathers more often too.

Rain chuckled before agreeing, then jokingly added that the host was being “unusually strict” with him, despite him being a fan of the show.

This story was originally published in 8Days.

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