Lee Sun-Kyun 이선균

[sweetroad]

It just doesn't seem like the Incheon police handled the investigation very cleanly. So much harm could have been prevented if they had just respected LSK's privacy and proceeded with the investigation in-house. It reminds me of the drama Pinocchio where the reporters kept going to the police hoping to get inside scoops. But in this case these leaks led to so much humiliation and tragedy for LSK.

Lee Sun-kyun reports were leaked: police

By Yoon Min-sik

Feb. 5, 2024

 

South Korean police told reporters Monday that information related to the drug investigation into the since-deceased actor Lee Sun-kyun were consistently being leaked, and that officials are looking into how the reports were relayed to outside parties.

 

Officials have confirmed suspicions that a photocopy of the original investigation report had been leaked, according to the National Office of Investigation's chief, Woo Jong-soo. Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency has been probing allegations that Incheon police, which had handled Lee's case, had given the related information to local media outlets.

 

Investigators raided the Incheon police agency last month to procure evidence, including the cellphones of some officers involved in the drug crime investigation unit and records of the investigation.

 

"It is yet unclear how (the report) was leaked, if it happened by accident or on purpose, but the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency has conducted a raid and is questioning those involved," he said in a press briefing.

 

Woo added that the investigation involves a wide range of media outlets that reported details related to the investigation that had not yet been publicized, including local investigative news outlet Dispatch, which has already been raided by police. "The Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency did not reveal details such as dates the deceased was to be summoned, yet the information has been consistently leaked," he said.

 

No particular individual has been pinpointed as a suspect yet, Woo said.

The death by suicide of Lee in December has sparked nationwide furor regarding how the case was handled by police and media here. His police visits were highly publicized in spite of Lee's requests for them to be kept private, raising suspicions that the dates on which he was to be questioned had been leaked.

 

Media outlets who reported details of Lee's personal life, including content from his private conversations via a mobile messenger, had also been subject to criticism. Oscar-winning director Bong Joon-ho -- who worked with Lee in the Oscar-winning "Parasite" -- and other prominent figures in the local entertainment scene jointly criticized police and media last month.

 

Lee, who was 48 years old, was best-known globally for his role as the wealthy patriarch in "Parasite." He had a long career in Korea as a working actor in film and TV dramas spanning over two decades.

 

The actor maintained until his death that he was tricked into taking drugs and he tested negative in both a reagent test conducted during a police investigation and a comprehensive lab-based drug analysis of hair samples by the National Forensic Service.

 

Source: http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20240205000728

[sadiesmith]

On 1/23/2024 at 4:34 PM, sweetroad said:

@sadiesmith Have you thought about writing a tribute to LSK for GMS? No pressure, but I think it would be fitting, poignant, and lovely. You're an excellent writer and you have such a great appreciation for him as an actor and as a person.

 

Thank you so much for the suggestion. I wish I could put together a tribute for GMS today. But I am not over my grief and still find it hard to process this tragedy. So many things went so wrong. How about you? Would you like to write one? We can have more than one. 

 

[partyon]

@sadiesmith @sweetroad and everyone else 

Have an idea. Let me know if you feel uncomfortable with it. 
 

How about creating a thread spotlight with a tribute to LSK? Am sure many people on this forum would find it a nice gesture.

 

You can work as a team and write a bit about who he was, his career, his background, family and personality. We EOs will launch it to the full forum.

We could also create a poll and ask which of LSK’s dramas are forum members’ favorites?

 

Am just throwing the idea out there. Feel free to think about it.
 

If you want to see similar thread spotlights for ideas, check out eg Lee Minho’s and Choi Daniel’s threads 

 

re: @Sleepy Owl @confusedheart @agenth

[sadiesmith]

I hate that only in his death do we find out how big of an international star LSK really is because he seems forever underappreciated in South Korea. Here's his death getting analyzed in a lengthy article by a major US newspaper.

 

From the Los Angeles Times:

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-02-13/a-movie-star-a-suicide-and-a-nations-war-on-drugs

A movie star, a suicide and a nation’s war on drugs
BY MAX KIM
FEB. 13, 2024 2 AM PT

SEOUL —  South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun learned he was being investigated for illegal drug use after reading about it in the news.

The story that leaked to the South Korean news media was that detectives from the city of Incheon were acting on a tip that Lee had taken ketamine and marijuana.

 

Best known for his role as a haughty tech executive in the Oscar-winning 2019 dark comedy “Parasite,” Lee was one of the country’s biggest movie stars. He had lead roles in two of the seven Korean films screened in May at the Cannes Film Festival.

 

South Korea has some of the harshest drug laws in the world, and recreational use has long been dealt with as a criminal matter rather than a public health issue. The police investigation was opened in October amid a renewed crackdown, and authorities seemed determined to make an example out of Lee.

 

He was paraded in front of reporters, drug-tested four times and once interrogated for 19 hours straight. Salacious personal details, leaked to the media, formed a pulpy narrative of a beloved star whose deviant private life was finally being unmasked.

 

Lee, 48, maintained his innocence. But on Dec. 27, after Lee went missing, police found him dead in his car at a park in Seoul in an apparent suicide.

His death unleashed a swell of criticism that overzealous investigators and the media had turned Lee into a victim of what Jang Won-seok, a film producer and longtime friend of the actor, described as “a character assassination that pushed him to the absolute bottom.”

 

Fewer are questioning the way drug users are demonized in South Korea, a mind-set stoked by decades of government rhetoric and hard-line policy.

 

“The public sees drug use as a ‘social evil,’” Jang said. “Of the many scandals that a celebrity can suffer, drugs are among the worst.”

 

Authorities became interested in Lee after a 28-year-old small-time former actress — whom they have identified only by her surname, Park — showed up at a police station claiming that a former friend and the movie star were drug users.

 

The former friend, a 29-year-old woman with the last name Kim, managed a members-only bar in Seoul. News accounts said the two had met years earlier in prison, where Kim was reportedly serving time for drugs and Park for fraud. But their relationship had recently soured.

 

It was Kim, facing prosecution, who provided the details about Lee and the drugs she said he used at her apartment several times.

According to police reports obtained by broadcaster MBC, her recollection of which dates this happened shifted repeatedly before detectives finally zeroed in on four specific days between October 2022 and June 2023.

 

Lee made a surprising counter-allegation, claiming that Kim had extorted $225,000 from him, while another blackmailer — later revealed to be Park — had resorted to extortion as well, to the tune of $37,000.

 

In South Korea, law enforcement authorities are barred from disclosing the identities of suspects under criminal investigation or allowing suspects to be recorded on video or photographed by the media. But by the time Lee was summoned by the police in late October, a regional newspaper, quoting an anonymous Incheon police source, had already broken the news about the investigation, setting off a maelstrom of coverage. “Lee Sun-kyun drug allegations create shock waves,” read a typical headline. “Damage expected to reach fellow actors and production staff.”

 

At the front of the station, a wall of reporters greeted Lee, who appeared tense and solemn — a sharp departure from his public image of clean-cut, jaunty wholesomeness.

 

“These sorts of A-lister celebrity drug scandals are almost unheard of in South Korea,” said Kim Hern-sik, a pop culture critic who has spoken about Lee’s case on national television. “And if you appear in the press like that, you’re automatically branded as guilty.”

 

As a local telecommunications company and vitamin manufacturer began pulling their advertising campaigns featuring Lee, questions circulated about who had tipped off the media about his trip to the station.

 

In a written statement, a spokesperson for police denied that they disclosed the date of Lee’s summons, adding that “we are in the process of ascertaining whether the source of the initial news report was from an internal leak.”

Law enforcement experts have also criticized the police’s handling of the early stages of their investigation.

 

“Establishing the basic facts, like the specific dates of the alleged drug use, or vetting the credibility of the accuser’s allegations — these are things that should have been done very early on, before Lee was summoned,” said Kim Hee-jun, a former narcotics investigator with South Korea’s prosecutors’ office.

 

“I’ve investigated plenty of celebrities in the past, but not once did I summon them publicly,” he said. “Once the suspect is revealed to be someone famous and there is an expectant atmosphere being created, it’s difficult to say ‘oh, we looked into it and there’s nothing there.’ It can sway the investigation toward prosecution.”

 

Most of Asia has taken a hard stance against recreational drug use, and South Korea is no exception. Citizens can even be prosecuted for consuming drugs outside the country.

 

But things weren’t always this way.

 

Cannabis seeds were used in traditional Korean medicine, and as recently as the 1960s, marijuana could be found growing wild in the countryside, where farmers would sometimes smoke the leaves like tobacco.

 

Recreational marijuana use took root among the countercultural youth of the 1970s, associated with rock ‘n’ roll and American GIs, who called it “happy smoke.”

 

Responding to pressure from the U.S. military — which blamed locally grown marijuana for American troops getting high — as well as the dissident undertones of pot culture, the Park Chung-hee military dictatorship declared that the drug was corrupting the country’s youth and made cannabis offenses punishable by death.

 

The regime’s anti-drug campaign featured a string of high-profile trials of celebrities, including Shin Joong-hyun, a guitarist known as South Korea’s “godfather of rock” who was tortured and institutionalized.

 

Marijuana use is no longer a capital offense, but the legacy of that era has endured. There are deep stigmas around drug use and widespread fears around the newfound availability of methamphetamine, MDMA and other drugs, which are sold on the dark web or anonymous messaging apps, paid for with cryptocurrency and delivered in contactless drop-offs.

 

A single dose of meth, which would have cost around $75 a few years ago, is now estimated to sell for as little as $15.

 

In April, the conservative administration of President Yoon Suk-yeol, a former prosecutor, launched a multi-agency narcotics investigation unit led by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, the most powerful law enforcement body in the country.

“The reason drugs used to be expensive in South Korea was the risk cost — if you were caught, your life would be ruined,” Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon said. “This administration is going to root out many offenders and will come down on them so hard that they will shriek.”

 

Police made 17,817 drug arrests last year, up from 8,107 in 2018, with teenagers and people in their 20s accounting for the biggest, sharpest spikes.

 

A survey by polling company Hankook Research in December 2022 found that almost 80% of South Koreans supported the drug war. A similar percentage associated drug use with “a lack of morals” and believed that, on top of the legal consequences, celebrities caught using drugs deserved to suffer additional social or economic fallout.

 

For law enforcement, the government has offered up clear incentives to score big wins.

 

In April, the country’s police chief announced “significant rewards” for the agency’s top performers — including special promotions for entire teams — calling for both major drug ring busts as well as awareness-raising efforts.

 

“That creates competition among narcotics departments and adds pressure to produce results,” said Kim Hee-jun, the former prosecutor. “And high-profile cases, like investigations into celebrities or famous corporate figures, are a prime example of these kinds of highly regarded performance outcomes.”

 

Lee would have understood that drug scandals can torpedo careers long before a guilty verdict is even reached.

 

Fellow actor Yoo Ah-in, currently on trial on charges of using ketamine, marijuana and cocaine, is now widely regarded as persona non grata in the South Korean entertainment industry. Two movies and a Netflix series have indefinitely been put on hold, and he may also be on the hook for damages to advertisers for causing “social controversy.”

 

Lee was never arrested or charged, but between late October and late November, police gave him four drug tests, including hair tests said to detect drug use for up to a year.

 

One test was inconclusive and the rest were negative.

 

“If it had been a regular person, I think the case would have likely been closed right there,” said Kim Hee-jun, the former prosecutor. “It’s very difficult to prosecute a suspect without a positive drug test when the dates of alleged use fall within that detection window.”

But the investigation of Lee remained open.

 

“We investigated the case according to standard protocols and the law,” the police department said in a written statement. “In determining whether a charge exists, drug investigations take into account not only testing results, but also testimonies of involved parties and forensic data.”

 

In late November, as newspapers began to question why the police were pushing ahead with the investigation with seemingly little evidence, the national broadcaster KBS released parts of a recording of a phone conversation between Lee and his accuser.

 

The two appeared to be flirting with each other. At one point, Kim steered the conversation toward drugs, in what some have interpreted as an attempt to get Lee to incriminate himself. Lee’s response was distracted and noncommittal.

 

The source of the recording remains a mystery. Incheon police have acknowledged that it was filed as evidence but have denied leaking it.

 

Jang, Lee’s friend, believes that this recording was the compromising material used by Kim to extort Lee, who had a wife and two sons.

 

“Nobody really knows what the nature of their relationship was,” Jang said. “But he was a famous celebrity with a family, and I think the manager exploited that and the optics of the situation to extort him.”

 

Although KBS has defended its publication of the recording, others say the decision was the lowest point in what they regard as frantic, often prurient coverage of Lee. In two months, South Korean media published nearly 3,000 online news reports about Lee.

 

At a news conference held by Lee’s industry colleagues in early January, singer and music executive Yoon Jong-shin asked, “Can KBS say, on its honor as a public broadcaster, that the private conversation of the deceased, which had nothing to do with the allegations at hand, was really journalism in the service of the public interest?”

 

Lee wasn’t the only target of his accuser. She also told investigators that Kwon Ji-yong, a famous musician known as G-dragon, had done cocaine at the bar she managed.

 

Police closed that investigation in mid-December after the musician passed his drug tests and his accuser admitted that she hadn’t actually seen him take the drugs.

But the police were not done with Lee. On the morning of Dec. 23, he showed up at the Incheon police station for his third interrogation. Police denied a request from his lawyers that he be allowed to enter the building through an underground parking garage, so he had to walk through a throng of reporters.

 

Police said that the overnight interrogation was arranged with Lee’s consent in order to make enough time for questions related to the drug case as well as his extortion case.

 

Three days later, Lee asked for a polygraph test. But before it could be administered he was dead.

The Incheon police agency is being investigated for its potential role in the leaks about Lee’s case. Park and Kim, Lee’s accusers, are being tried on extortion charges. Kim is also on trial for allegedly taking meth and marijuana.

 

A coalition of entertainment industry figures, including “Parasite” director Bong Joon-ho, are now campaigning for strengthened privacy protections for subjects of law enforcement investigations.

 

“Ultimately, the attitude of the public needs to mature, to not expect celebrities to be like pure, blank sheets of paper,” Jang said. “But there is a need for some basic safeguard to prevent something like this from happening again.”

 

Jang remembered his friend as warm and kind, recounting how Lee liked to hype up his colleagues, rearranging seats at restaurants so a younger actor had a chance to shine.

 

Amid the tide of eulogies, some drug experts hoped that Lee’s death would begin to change the national conversation around the country’s punitive approach to drugs.

 

But that has not happened.

 

“Other countries have adopted a rehabilitation-focused model, but South Korea has not,” said Lim Sang-hyeon, the director of a drug treatment facility in Gyeonggi province. “The public still sees drug users as criminals or menaces to society rather than patients. And that’s because the enforcement of drug laws paints them that way.”

 

Kim Hee-jun said that the incident has at least raised questions that might eventually help inch public awareness forward.

 

“When I was a prosecutor, I myself only ever thought you needed to come down hard on drug users,” he said. “But over time, I saw the high recidivism rates, I sought out more information and came to see the issue in terms of not just crime, but also of disease and addiction.”

 

In January, he published a book that aims to demystify teenage drug use. An exonerated G-Dragon agreed to write the foreword.

 

“Prejudice stands in the way of healing and change,” he wrote. “To fix the heart of the problem, we must begin with prevention and positive education rather than law and punishment.”

 

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-02-13/a-movie-star-a-suicide-and-a-nations-war-on-drugs

[Heina]

A lot of news around Jeon Hye-jin I found it weird that after 22 days (January 18, 2024), Lee Sun-kyun and Jeon Hye-jin's agency would post something like this, but for sure, with her approval, the picture had been posted. But then, since her movie "Cross" was delayed because of his sudden death, talks are being said it will release in the second half of the year, during the Chuseok Holiday. 

 

"An official from PlusM Entertainment, the film's distributor, expressed a cautious stance, saying, It is expected to be released in the second half of the year, but the release date has not yet been confirmed."

https://entertain.naver.com/read?oid=241&aid=0003329351 

 

Whatever the outcome I wish her the best.

 

Credit: Hoduent on Twitter (X) 

 

Edited February 14 by Heina

[sweetroad]

Welcome @Heina to the thread. Thanks for posting about JHJ - she looks so tired and sad in that picture. Good to know her movie will still be released this year.

 

Do we have any news as to whether Project Silence and The Land of Happiness will be released? I'm still waiting to see Sleep, too (maybe - not sure about the gore) - hopefully a platform has it soon.

 

On 2/14/2024 at 1:19 AM, sadiesmith said:

Here's his death getting analyzed in a lengthy article by a major US newspaper.

 

Solid reporting. I'm glad things aren't getting swept under the rug, but people are still calling out the police for these obvious leaks.

 

On 2/14/2024 at 1:19 AM, sadiesmith said:

A coalition of entertainment industry figures, including “Parasite” director Bong Joon-ho, are now campaigning for strengthened privacy protections for subjects of law enforcement investigations.

 

Would love to get insight as to whether these kinds of things move quickly or slowly in Korea. Are they hopeful for real change, or will it never happen?

 

On 2/13/2024 at 5:18 PM, partyon said:

How about creating a thread spotlight with a tribute to LSK? Am sure many people on this forum would find it a nice gesture.

 

Good idea! Maybe in a few weeks we can do something? It would be nice to invite people here to celebrate LSK's life and works.

 

On 2/13/2024 at 4:23 PM, sadiesmith said:

So many things went so wrong. How about you? Would you like to write one? We can have more than one. 

 

I know - even reading through the LA Times recap of what happened, I remember how it seemed like so many incidents compounded to end in tragedy .

 

I can think of writing a tribute for GMS, when life slows down a bit...maybe we can use some of what we do for the thread spotlight over at GMS, too.

 

[sweetroad]

On 12/2/2023 at 1:42 AM, Heina said:

On another note does anyone know where I can find dir Hong Sang-soo movies that Lee Sunkyun is in? I want to watch "Nobody's Daughter Haewon" with actress Jung Eunchae and "Our Sunhi", any movies with Jung Yumi and LSK 

 

Do you have access to Apple TV? I just checked and you can buy Nobody's Daughter Haewon, Our Sunhui, and Oki's Movie for $12.99 (USD) each, or rent them for $4.99 each.

 

[Heina]

On 2/15/2024 at 3:06 PM, sweetroad said:

 

Do you have access to Apple TV? I just checked and you can buy Nobody's Daughter Haewon, Our Sunhui, and Oki's Movie for $12.99 (USD) each, or rent them for $4.99 each.

 

Thank you so much, I'll definitely check on Apple TV!

[Alisha Hem]

Happy Birthday Lee Sun Kyun

[sweetroad]

15 hours ago, Alisha Hem said:

Happy Birthday Lee Sun Kyun

 

Welcome to the thread, @Alisha Hem.

Remembering Lee Sun Kyun; Commemorate late actor's birthday with memorable performances in Parasite, Coffee Prince, and more

Lee Sun Kyun’s sudden demise in 2023 was met with many heartbreaks and dejections. On his 49th birthday, let’s celebrate the actor’s legacy through his 10 best performances in hit K-dramas and movies.

 

By Moupriya Banerjee

Published on Mar 01, 2024

 

Lee Sun Kyun (credit: NEON, tvN)

 

Lee Sun Kyun was a beloved actor in the Korean Entertainment industry for his ability to showcase versatile talents. Starting with musical theater, he made his television debut with the 2001 sitcom Lovers. Later, he earned notable recognition for his prolific appearances in many popular Korean films and dramas, furthered by a career delving into challenging and diverse roles.

 

Today, March 2, marks the 49th birthday of the late actor, who passed away on December 27, 2023, breaking the hearts of many fans. To commemorate the phenomenal actor Lee Sun Kyun, let’s check out his 10 best roles in popular K-dramas and movies.

List of 10 best roles taken on by late actor Lee Sun Kyun

1. Coffee Prince (2007, IMDb rating: 8.1)

Released on July 2, 2007, the classic MBC drama, Coffee Prince offered a breakthrough role for Lee Sun Kyun. He portrayed the role of a talented record producer Choi Han Sun. His character was met with much emotional turmoils of love and loyalty, especially with his ex-girlfriend Han Yoo Joo(played by Chae Jung An), who was also the first love of his cousin Choi Han Gyeol (portrayed by Gong Yoo). 

 

Though Lee Sun Kyun wasn’t the lead character in this first gender-bender drama of South Korea, he definitely claimed the spotlight with his portrayal of intricate emotions, adding a pivotal layer to the complex storyline of Coffee Prince.

2. Pasta (2010, IMDb rating: 7.5)

This 2010 TV series tells the story of a kitchen assistant named Seo Yoo-Kyung(played by Gong Hyo Jin), who dreams of becoming a master chef of Italian cuisine. Things take a turn, when Choi Hyun Wook, an Italian culinary school graduate turns up at the restaurant where she works. While many dislike the new head chef Choi, for his haughty and stubborn attitude towards the female chefs, Seo Yoo-Kyung looks up to him for his expertise in Italian cuisine. 

 

Lee Sun Kyun portrays the unusual leading character of Choi Hyun Wook with much perfection and uniqueness, proving his versatility. For his performance in Pasta, he went on to win the Top 10 Asian Stars recognition at the 2010 CETV awards. Furthermore, he was also nominated in the Top Excellence: Actor category at the 2010 MBC Drama Awards. 

3. A Hard Day(2014, IMDb rating: 7.2)

A Hard Day, a film of action and suspense genre kicks off with the lead character Go Geon Soo, a detective attempting a fatal case of hit and run, while on the way to his mother’s funeral. Within 24 hours, He is handed a divorce notice by his wife and, he gets put under investigation for involvement in alleged embezzlement. To make matters worse, the victim of his hit-and-run case turns out to be associated with heinous gangsters.

 

Lee Sun Kyun perfectly portrayed the complex character of the corrupt detective, proving his ability to ace any role on the movie screen. This 2014 film was a grand success, earning Lee Sun Kyun many notable award nominations. For his stellar performance as Go Geon Soo, he was bestowed with Best Actor recognition at the 51st Baeksang Arts Awards.

 

Spoiler

 

 

4. My Mister (2018, IMDb rating: 9.1)

 

This heartwarming TV drama revolves around Park Dong Hoon, a diligent engineer, and 21-year-old Lee Ji An (played by IU), who struggles to make ends meet. They cross paths in a dysfunctional backdrop. Lee, initially hostile towards Park, soon finds herself close to his stoic supervisor, who is burdened with his wife’s affair. 

 

The kindness, honesty, and suffering of the character Park Dong Hoon were portrayed with immense authenticity by Lee Sun Kyun. The cultivated narrative and character arcs of the 2018 drama My Mister drew many global fans, furthering Lee Sun Kyun’s popularity worldwide. He also bagged a string of nominations across notable ceremonies such as The Seoul Awards 2018, the 6th APAN Star Awards, and the 55th Baeksang Arts Awards.

 

 

5. Parasite (2019, IMDb rating: 8.5)

This Oscar-winning film from renowned director Bong Joon Ho narrates the story of the poverty-stricken Kim family, whose son lands a well-paid tutoring gig in the rich Park family. Soon, the wealthy family unknowingly gets entangled in a parasitic relationship with the Kim family. Lee Sun Kyun as Park Dong Ik, the head of the affluent Park family brought organic nuance to the intelligent storyline of Parasite. Dong Ik’s entitlement and despise toward the lower class becomes convincing through Lee Sun Kyun’s portrayal. 

 

Parasite gained wild success worldwide with its flawless narrative of social hierarchy, winning the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 2020 Oscars ceremony. For his extraordinary performance in the film, Lee Sun Kyun took home the Outstanding Performance title from the SAG Awards 2020.

 

Spoiler

 

 

6. Diary of a Prosecutor (2019, IMDb rating: 8.0)

This 2019 drama series follows the mundane daily life of overworked prosecutors, whose life revolves around many cases handed over by the police.

 

Lee Sun Kyun played the role of Lee Sun Woong, the narrator of the story. He is also a hardworking prosecutor of criminal unit 2. Coming from a wealthy background, Sun Woong started working in prosecution 10 years ago. Because of his privilege, he is often disliked by his colleague, Cha Myung Joo(played by Jung Ryeo Won ).

 

With this slice-of-life drama, Lee Sun Kyun again proved his huge range of acting. 

7. Dr. Brain (2021, IMDb rating: 6.7) 

Based on the webtoon of the same name, this drama peeks into the life of a neuroscientist named Sewon Koh, who obsessively researches advancing the human consciousness with technology. But his life takes a turn when his family falls victim to a mysterious accident. Lee Sun Kyun brought out the best of Sewon with his sincere portrayal of many turmoils.

 

Spoiler

 

 

8. Kingmaker (2022, IMDb rating: 6.7)

Based on true events, this 2022 political film follows the professional relationship between Kim Woon Beom(played by Sol Kyung Gu), a politician running for president's campaign, and a political strategist Seo Chang-dae (Lee Sun-kyun). Kim Woon Beom likes to stay clean when it comes to strategies, while Chan Dae is all in for getting his hands dirty. Amidst the contradiction between the two, the opposition party reaches out to Chang Dae, and the question arises about his loyalty.

 

Lee Sun Kyun was hailed as a brilliant actor for his convincing portrayal of the shady political strategist, earning him a nomination at the 58th Baeksang Arts Awards.

 

Spoiler

 

 

9. Payback: Money and Power (2023, IMDb rating: 7.3)

In this 2023 revenge thriller drama, Lee Sun Kyun portrays the roller coaster life of Eun Yong, who goes from an obstinate orphan to a criminal tyrant and ends up living peacefully in Mongolia as a financial wizard. Lee Sun Kyun’s portrayal of the brainy protagonist added layers to the depth of this humorously thrilling drama created in the backdrop of power and money.

 

 

10. Killing Romance (2023, IMDb rating: 6.1)

This 2023 comedy film narrates the story of a media celebrity Yeo Rae( Lee Hanee), while running from the spotlight, she meets and falls in love with Jonathan, a narcissistic and wealthy man.

 

Lee Sun Kyun in this oddball rom-com movie was a treat to the eyes for his never-seen acting as the flamboyant and antagonistic lead, Jonathan.

 

Furthermore, films and dramas like Paju (2009), Helpless (2012), Behind The White Tower (2007), and more were blessed with Lee Sun Kyun’s compelling presence. From an insensitive dad in Parasite to a compassionate engineer in My Mister, the exceptional actor has left a lasting impression on his audiences through his diverse range. With his tragic death, the global entertainment industry lost a visionary actor.

 

Source: https://www.pinkvilla.com/entertainment/remembering-lee-sun-kyun-commemorate-late-actors-birthday-with-memorable-performances-in-parasite-coffee-prince-and-more-1282940

 

[Sleepy Owl]

Quick Poll: Evil Ladies of Kdramas

Vote for your favorite Female Villains in Kdramas 

[sweetroad]

Lee Sun-kyun honored during 'In Memoriam' at Oscars

March 11, 2024

 

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences commemorated late actor Lee Sun-kyun during the 96th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences commemorated late actor Lee Sun-kyun during the 96th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday.
 
The “In Memoriam” segment paid tribute to personalities in the entertainment industry who passed away over the past year. Those who were remembered include Michael Gambon, Chita Rivera, Alan Arkin, Julian Sands, Andre Braugher, Glynis Johns, Paul Reubens, Ryan O’Neal, Matthew Perry, Richard Lewis, Carl Weathers and Lee.

 

Andrea and Matteo Bocelli performed “Con te partirò,” or “Time to Say Goodbye,” with a screening showing each of the deceased individuals.
 
“It gives me a heavy heart seeing Lee Sun-kyun at the Oscars,” said film critic Lee Dong-jin, who commentated this year’s Oscars in Korea.
 
Lee died on Dec. 27 after going through police questioning on suspicions of illegal drug use. The actor is best known for starring in the Oscar-winning film “Parasite” (2019) by director Bong Joon-ho.

BY SHIN MIN-HEE [shin.minhee@joongang.co.kr]

 

Source: https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2024-03-11/entertainment/movies/Lee-Sunkyun-honored-during-In-Memoriam-at-Oscars/1999325

 

[sweetroad]

A nice tribute to LSK, written the day after he was laid to rest:

 

https://www.gwenchanoona.com/post/our-ahjussi-remembering-lee-sun-kyun