SEOUL, Dec 27 (Reuters) – Lee Sun-kyun, a South Korean actor who drew global attention with his performance as the wealthy patriarch in the Oscar-winning film “Parasite”, was found dead on Wednesday in an apparent suicide in a Seoul park, officials in the city said.
Lee, 48, who met a gory end in the 2019 film, South Korea’s first to win any Oscar, had faced police questioning three times over claims of illegal drug use amid a government crackdown, with one session running 19 hours over the weekend.
The actor had said he was tricked into taking drugs by a bar hostess trying to blackmail him, the Yonhap news agency claimed.
Authorities found Lee in a search triggered by a missing person report, a fire source told Reuters on condition of anonymity, as the matter is a sensitive one.
Lee was found in a car at a park in Seoul, after his manager told police the actor had left home, leaving behind an apparent suicide note, a police source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Lee’s agency, HODU&U Entertainment, did not answer to calls.
However, domestic media quoted a statement by the agency that voiced sadness at the death, while urging restraint regarding false information, speculation, or malicious reports.
nfringements of South Korea’s tough drug rules can lead to six months in jail, or up to 14 years for repeat offenders and dealers.
A dark-comedy thriller directed by Bong Joon-ho, “Parasite” won the Academy Award in 2020 in the four categories of best picture, best director, best original script and best international feature film, off six Oscar nominations.
The film became the first non-English language movie to win the best picture award. Bong hailed its appeal as a sign that the “one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles” was no longer a stumbling block to global success.
In the film, Lee played the role of Mr Park, whose affluent home is infiltrated by members of a lower-class family posing as highly qualified domestic workers in a tangled scheme that ends in violence.
Lee, born in 1975, had leading parts in South Korean films such as the 2012 thriller “Helpless” and 2014’s “All About My Wife”, as well as the acclaimed 2018 TV series “My Mister”.
He played the lead in Apple TV+’s first Korean-language original series, rolled out in 2021.
A six-episode sci-fi thriller, “Dr. Brain” featured a cold-hearted neurologist hunting for answers to a mysterious family accident through brain experiments.
Lee’s wife is award-winning actress Jeon Hye-jin, and the pair had two children.
Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi, Josh Smith, and Hyonhee Shin; Additional reporting by Minwoo Park and Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Writing by Josh Smith; Editing by Clarence Fernandez