South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun, renowned for his pivotal role in the 2020 Oscar-winning film “Parasite,” passed away on Wednesday morning at the age of 48, as reported by the Associated Press and South Korean news agency Yonhap. Authorities discovered him lifeless in a vehicle within a central Seoul park, following a search initiated by the police after his family asserted that he had left a suicide note and departed home early on Wednesday.
The late actor had been recently ensnared in a police inquiry regarding alleged illicit drug usage. The Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency in South Korea was scrutinizing Lee and seven others for purported drug involvement. Lee contended that he fell victim to extortion by one of the individuals under investigation, resulting in substantial financial losses. Police, as reported by Yonhap, had interrogated Lee multiple times, including as recently as the previous Saturday. The investigations centered on his alleged consumption of marijuana and other substances at the residence of a high-end bar hostess in Seoul throughout the earlier part of the year. Lee professed innocence, claiming deception and ignorance about the nature of the substances.
In 2020, “Parasite” secured four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Director for Bong Joon-ho, Original Screenplay, and International Feature Film for South Korea. The film also earned the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival, marking a historic achievement for South Korean cinema. The “Parasite” ensemble, which included Lee, received a Screen Actors Guild award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
Lee’s portrayal of Park Dong-ik in “Parasite” catapulted him to stardom. Subsequently, he took on roles in the Apple TV+ series “Dr. Brain,” the platform’s inaugural South Korean venture, earning a nomination for Best Actor at the 2022 International Emmy Awards. His career spanned various South Korean projects, such as “Payback,” “Diary of a Prosecutor,” “My Mister,” “Killing Romance,” and “Kingmaker” in the 2000s and 2010s.
A notable presence in Korean cinema, Lee also featured in films like “Project Silence” and “Sleep” at Cannes, with the latter dominating the Korean box office charts for three consecutive weeks after its commercial release in September. Lee is survived by his wife, actor Jeon Hye-jin, and their two children.
