Kang Soo-yeon's Final Work is 'Jeong-i'... "An Actress Who Was Korean Cinema Itself"

Unconscious Due to Brain Hemorrhage on the 5th, Passed Away on the 7th

Kang Soo-yeon, Executive Chairperson of the Busan International Film Festival
Photo by Sports Today

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] Actress Kang Soo-yeon, who illuminated Korean cinema, sadly passed away on the 7th, leaving her final work as the film 'Jung-E'.

Kang Soo-yeon closed her eyes at 3 p.m. on the 7th at Gangnam Severance Hospital in Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, surrounded by her family. She was 55 years old. The funeral will be held as a film industry funeral, with the mourning hall set up at Samsung Seoul Hospital Funeral Hall, Basement Level 2, Room 17. Condolences will be received from 10 a.m. on the 8th. The funeral procession will be on the 11th.

Kang Soo-yeon had been filming the Netflix online video service (OTT) movie 'Jung-E', directed by Yeon Sang-ho, until January. It is said that she recently participated in post-recording and was preparing for a comeback. The film, which attracted attention from the film industry as her first new work in over ten years since director Im Kwon-taek's 'Moonlight Drawn by Clouds' (2011) and the short film 'Juri' (2013), was set to be released soon, but she passed away before its premiere.

'Jung-E' is a sci-fi film set in the 22nd century, where humanity, struggling to survive on Earth due to climate change, has created a shelter called Shellter. A civil war breaks out there, and the story revolves around people trying to successfully create a brain-cloning robot of the legendary mercenary Jung-E, who holds the key to victory. Kang Soo-yeon played Seo-hyun, the head of the research team.

On the day, Netflix posted on its official social media account, "The brilliant actress Kang Soo-yeon, a pioneer of Korean cinema, has passed away today," adding, "It was an honor to work with the late Kang Soo-yeon, who always showed wonderful acting and great energy on set. We will never forget every moment of Kang Soo-yeon, who gave her best for great works. We offer our deepest condolences."

Netflix planned to release 'Jung-E' within the year. Those who worked with director Yeon Sang-ho and Kang Soo-yeon could not hide their sorrow upon hearing the news. Film industry figures closely connected to the late actress also showed somber expressions at the sudden news. On the same day, director Yeon posted on social media, "She was Korean cinema itself. Rest in peace, senior. The past year working with you will never be forgotten."

Born in Seoul in 1966, Kang Soo-yeon began acting as a child actress exclusively for Tongyang Broadcasting Company (TBC) at the age of four in 1969. At 21, in 1987, she made history as the first Asian actress to win the Best Actress award at the Venice International Film Festival for director Im Kwon-taek's 'The Surrogate Woman'. She later starred in numerous box office hits such as 'A Petal' (1990), 'The Road to the Racetrack' (1992), and 'Blue in You' (1993).