Funeral procession for late actor Lee Sun-kyun begins

The funeral procession for the late actor Lee Sun-kyun to Suwon, Gyeonggi, was set to begin around noon on Friday.

Actor Lee Sun-kyun's funeral altar is set up at the Seoul National University Hospital's funeral home in Jongno District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [NEWS1]

The funeral procession for the late actor Lee Sun-kyun to Suwon, Gyeonggi, was set to begin around noon on Friday.

The procession to a crematorium was set to be held privately, his agency Hodu&U Entertainment said Thursday.

The actor was found dead on Wednesday inside a car in Seoul after undergoing police investigation on allegations of drug use. He was 48.

His funeral altar was set at the Seoul National University Hospital's funeral home in Jongno District, central Seoul, on the same day.

Lee's fellow actors, celebrities and colleagues attended his funeral to express their condolences to the surviving family and pay tribute to the late actor.

Actor Jo Jung-suk was seen shedding tears, and actor Cho Jin-woong was seen falling weak in grief, according to media reports.

Lee debuted in 2001 through the MBC sitcom "Lovers." His breakthrough came in 2007 with the MBC series "White Tower," followed by MBC's hit rom-com series "Coffee Prince" (2007). Since then, Lee played many lead roles in popular shows such as "Pasta" (2010) and "Golden Time" (2012).

Lee's career was not only limited to television. He starred in films, including "Petty Romance" (2010), "Officer of the Year" (2011), "Helpless" (2012), "All About My Wife" (2012) and "A Hard Day" (2014).

He gained international recognition through director Bong Joon-ho's "Parasite" (2019), which won awards at major film ceremonies, including the 72nd Cannes Film Festival and the Academy Awards.

The actor was embroiled in a drug scandal in October and was summoned three rounds of police questioning. His last questioning was on Christmas Eve and lasted for 19 hours. The actor tested negative for drugs both in a reagent test and a lab test.

If you or someone you know is feeling emotionally distressed or struggling with thoughts of suicide, LifeLine Korea can be contacted at 1588-9191 or the Crisis Counseling Center at 1577-0199. The Seoul Global Center offers English-language counseling, contact 02-2075-4180 (+1) to arrange a session. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.

BY KIM JI-YE [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]