On June 8, 2023, the MBC reality survival series Fantasy Boys concluded, and it gave birth (initially) to a 12-member K-pop boy group at Pocketdol Studio. That group is of course called… well, Fantasy Boys! And in a group this large, it’s important to have a leader to keep it all together. However, explaining who the leader of the group is has become more complicated. So among Kim Gyurae, Hong Seongmin, Oh Hyeontae, Lee Hanbin, Ling Qi, Kang Minseo, Hikari, K-Soul, Kim Wooseok, Hikaru, and Kaedan, here is the answer to who the leader of Fantasy Boys is — and it involves predebut member Yu Junwon.
Minseo Is the Leader of Fantasy Boys
Kang Minseo is the official leader of the group, as announced during a live video on September 16, 2023. He had finished the Fantasy Boys series ranked seventh out of 12, but he is also the oldest Korean member of the group. (Only, K-Soul, who is from China, is older, but he went on hiatus shortly after debut due to his family’s ailing health back home.) As a matter of seniority, it makes sense that Minseo is the final leader, and he seems to have the group’s trust.
Meanwhile, Yu Junwon was actually the original leader of the group. His selection as leader was officially announced in a video released online on June 23, 2023, in which the members performed a brief, silly ceremony to make the declaration. He had actually finished in first place during the competition; in a sense, you could say he “earned” the leadership spot. The other members seemed happy to see him in the role as well.
However, prior to Fantasy Boys actually debuting, it was announced on August 23, 2023 that Yu Junwon would not debut with the group because he and company Pocketdol Studio could not come to an agreement about this contract. Pocketdol claimed it had to do with Yu Junwon’s parents wanting him to earn more money than the other members of the group, but on Instagram across more than one post, he refuted that this was a major reason for being unable to arrive at an agreement. He cited “ridiculous conditions” stipulated by Pocketdol that ultimately resulted in a breakdown of trust, and he said that “it is such a pity and it hurts me so much, that I am unable to make my dreamed debut, despite it being right in front of my eyes.” Pocketdol then countered with additional claims and evidence that Junwon’s mother had been overbearing, so Junwon published details of his proposed contract to illustrate the imbalance of its terms. It would ultimately result in a legal dispute. It was an unfortunate and messy situation.
Prior to appearing on Fantasy Boys and finishing at the top, Junwon had appeared on the HYBE Labels Japan reality survival series &AUDITION – The Howling in 2022, where he was eliminated. Of course, it was his experience with this show that would inevitably help him succeed in Fantasy Boys. It is unfortunate Junwon would not ultimately debut in Fantasy Boys as its leader.
In summary, Minseo is the leader of Fantasy Boys, but the predebut leader of the group was Junwon. Their fandom, Bandi, looks forward to watching the group succeed. But for more about the group, check out how old the Fantasy Boys members are or when Fantasy Boys made their debut.
For another K-pop boy group created through a reality competition series in 2023, check out the debut of Zerobaseone, how old its members are, and where each member comes from.