Danielle Marsh’s exit from NewJeans sparks fan outrage.

ADOR’s unexpected decision to remove Danielle Marsh from NewJeans has sent shockwaves through the K-pop industry. On December 29, the HYBE subsidiary announced the termination of Danielle’s exclusive contract, citing a “breach,” officially confirming her exit from the group. Fans, who call themselves Bunnies, expressed outrage online, questioning the company’s motives and the future of the girl group.

Multiple reports now suggest that ADOR may have had no plans to bring NewJeans back as a full group with all five members—Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, and Hyein. Some sources point to a commercial as the catalyst for Danielle’s removal, alleging that the singer filmed a Southeast Asia snack ad without ADOR’s approval. The independent move reportedly violated the court-validated contract that encompassed all five members of NewJeans.

Independent Deal Sparks Contract Termination

Viral social media posts claim Danielle signed an ad deal with Omega Watches on her own, rather than as part of the full group. While the deal reportedly earned her billions of won, it went against ADOR’s directives. A viral post on X (formerly Twitter) stated, “According to a YT source, Danielle signed an advertising contract with Omega watch and earned over 1 billion won on her own. This ad should have been for NJS, negotiated by ADOR, but after the ‘termination,’ she did it alone.”

Other posts allege ADOR never intended to reinstate NewJeans fully. Reports suggest the company leveraged past achievements and repackaged archived content to strengthen its control over the band, rather than genuinely supporting the members. Fans believe Danielle was kept in the dark until ADOR released the public statement, learning about her removal while attending a charity event. This secrecy may also affect Minji’s ongoing contract negotiations and potential return to the group.

Given Danielle and the other members’ young ages—between 17 and 21—industry insiders warn that pursuing further legal action could waste their prime years and cost significant time and money, as similar disputes have historically exhausted artists. Meanwhile, ADOR confirmed that Haerin and Hyein will return to NewJeans, Hanni has also decided to rejoin after discussions, and negotiations are still underway with Minji.