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Cosmetics brand denies claims viral video featuring child with eyeliner was staged

Published: 20 Nov. 2025, 13:35

A still from a video that recently surfaced on social media showing a young girl sitting in front of a mirror, crying with black gel eyeliner smeared across her face and hands. The product in question appeared to be Tonymoly’s waterproof gel eyeliner product. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

Cosmetics brand Tonymoly has denied allegations that it staged a viral video showing a young child with eyeliner on her face as part of a covert advertising campaign, calling the claims “completely false.”

The controversy began after a video recently surfaced on social media showing a young girl sitting in front of a mirror, crying with black gel eyeliner smeared across her face and hands. The product in question appeared to be Tonymoly’s waterproof gel eyeliner product.

The video was uploaded by the girl’s aunt, who captioned it, “From now on, don’t ever leave my sight, not even for a second.” The clip quickly went viral, racking up over 20 million views.

Online commenters initially reacted to the girl’s appearance with amusement, praising the product’s durability. “The waterproof feature really holds up,” some remarked.

“This video is absolutely adorable, but since the product is waterproof, it must’ve been difficult to clean off. We’d love to send you a replacement,” Tonymoly commented on the video.

However, skepticism soon emerged. Some netizens questioned whether a child could have applied the eyeliner so meticulously, raising suspicions that the video may have been staged for advertising purposes. Comments accusing the company of exploiting a child for marketing, or engaging in undisclosed paid promotions, quickly spread.

In a statement released on social media Wednesday, Tonymoly said, “We had no involvement whatsoever in the creation, sponsorship, advertisement or viral marketing of the Instagram video currently at the center of controversy.”

The company explained that it had only become aware of the video during routine brand monitoring and commented simply to offer a replacement for what appeared to be a damaged product.

“We want to make it absolutely clear that allegations of staging, hidden advertising or viral marketing are false,” the company said. “Using a child for marketing purposes is something we would never consider under any circumstances.”

Tonymoly also warned that it would consider legal action against the continued spread of malicious or false claims.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JUNG SI-NAE [[email protected]]