Sought is as correct as sought after. Also, sought after is not a hyphenated phrase unless you’re referring to it as an action type like you might write about the whole “you’re-thinking-about-this-too-much” stage.
Someone can be highly sought and the implication is still delivered that they are being “sought after”.
It’s like saying someone is being chased or chased after. The verb alone indicates that there is a separate party inflicting the subject’s experience. So why waste the space (unless you’re typing for word count) in your telling and the audience’s hearing.
Depth over breadth.
