Lee Sun-kyun: Parasite actor found dead inside car in Seoul park at 48-years-old

South Korean actor Lee Sun-kyun has been found dead at the age of 48. Lee was known to international audiences for his role in the South Korean film Parasite, in which he played the patriarch of a wealthy family.

The film gained huge popularity across the world, and became the first foreign film to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, while also picking up another three Oscars during the 2020 ceremony.

The actor was found dead in his car in a park in Seoul. Police have said it is unclear whether he took his own life but officers are currently looking into reports that he left a note at home. Lee was under investigation for alleged drug use shortly before his death, a crime which is treated extremely seriously in South Korea.

He was accused of taking ketamine and marijuana with a Seoul bar hostess, with the hostess reportedly claiming he willingly took the drugs at her home multiple times. He denied knowing what the drugs were, saying he only took what the hostess had given him. Lee also offered to undergo a lie detector test and returned negative or inconclusive drug test results.

HODU&U Entertainment, the actor's agency, said in a statement: "There is no way to contain the sorrow and despair. We respectfully ask that you refrain from spreading false facts based on speculation... so that [Lee's] final journey will not be unfair."