#Kris Wu, one of K-pops biggest stars, accused of sexual abuse

Kris Wu, the Chinese Canadian rapper and former member of K-pop supergroup Exo, has been accused of rape by a fan who claims she’s not the only one.

Now, some of Wu’s biggest sponsors are pulling the plug on partnerships with the embattled star as more women have reportedly come forward against Wu, who has denied all accusations, according to a Vice News report.

Du Meizhu, 19, told Chinese news forum NetEase that Wu, 30, had lured her into his home under the pretense of an audition, as Wu’s managers were present at the time of the alleged incident, which occurred about two years ago when Du was 17.

Du said Wu and his team insisted she stick around for drinks, blocking her from leaving.

“I became unconscious soon,” Du said in the July 18 interview, according to Vice’s translated reporting. “When I woke up again, I was on Wu’s bed.” Wu, she added, did not use a condom during the alleged rape.

In the months that followed, Du said that she came under the impression that she and Wu were in a relationship, encouraged by flirtatious text messages between the two and a promise that she’d soon be meeting his mother. But Wu eventually went silent.

Eventually, Du came to learn of several other women who shared her experience, she told NetEase, including two minors who claim to have evidence against Wu.

As of Monday, Wu has denied the claims on Chinese blogging platform Weibo, according to a translation posted by a Kris Wu fan account on Twitter for their more than 10,500 followers.

“I only met Miss Du once at a friend’s gathering, I didn’t ply her with alcohol … I have never ‘coerced women into sex’ or engaged in ‘date rape,’” he wrote, according to the Guardian, adding he does not have sex with underage girls. His studio also announced it had launched legal action against the accuser.

It has also been reported that Du had received some 500,000 yuan as hush money from Wu’s team, but has refused the payoff in favor of taking public legal action, according to a GlobalTimes report on Monday.

Nevertheless, the accusations have prompted brands including Tempo tissues, Chinese streaming site Tencent Video, Kans cosmetics, and laundry detergent maker Liby to drop contracts with Wu. GlobalTimes also reported that Lancome and Kiehl’s have removed social media content including Wu. Meanwhile, internationally recognized brands Bulgari, Porsche, and Louis Vuitton have not formally commented on their existing deals with the pop star.

Wu rose to fame as a member of the K-pop group Exo before breaking out on his own as a rapper — and now one of China’s most popular entertainers. In 2017, he began his run as celebrity judge on hip-hop competition show “The Rap of China,” which had a fourth season air in 2020.

On Sunday, Du called for Wu to personally apologize to his victims within 24 hours, and retire from the music industry for good, according to a translation by Chinese entertainment fan Dramapotatoe, whose Twitter page boasts nearly 89,000 followers.

Du concluded her demand with a sexually charged jab, referring to the rapper as “Wu Toothpick.”