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Lee Sun-kyun, a South Korean actor who achieved international fame playing a wealthy executive whose family stumbles into tragedy in the Oscar-winning film “Parasite,” was found dead Wednesday in Seoul. He was 48 and had been under police investigation in connection with alleged illegal drug use.

Mr. Lee was found in his car, according to a police spokesman, and was pronounced dead at the scene. Mr. Lee had been repeatedly questioned by police about allegations of drug use, which he denied through his lawyer.

Local media reported that Mr. Lee apparently died by suicide. Lee’s agency, HODU&U Entertainment, confirmed the death but gave no additional details. “There is no way to contain the grief and despair,” it said in a statement.

Mr. Lee was well known in South Korea before the global success of “Parasite” in 2019, which won Oscars for best picture and three other categories in 2020. The film — the first non-English-language entry to win a best-picture Academy Award — tells the story of a struggling clan that cons its way into the lives of an elite family, the Parks, in Seoul. The plot, rich in class satire, drifts into a dark ending for all.

“It’s not that the Parks are that unlikable,” wrote reviewer Hau Chu in The Washington Post. “They are easy marks because they are so insulated by their wealth and privilege in society that they simply couldn’t know any better.”

“Parasite” became part of a wave of South Korean cultural exports that has included K-pop bands such as BTS and popular streaming series such as “Squid Game.”

“There has been an uptick both in Korean cinema and culture,” Mr. Lee said in October, “so I hope it proes opportunities for our younger actors coming up.”

In South Korea, he rose to stardom for roles in hit TV dramas including “Coffee Prince (2007),” “Behind The White Tower (2007),” “Pasta (2010)” and “My Mister (2018).” Mr. Lee took the lead role in Apple TV Plus’s first Korean-language original production, playing a troubled brain researcher in the sci-fi thriller “Dr. Brain,” released in 2021. For his role in the series, Mr. Lee was nominated for the best actor at the International Emmy Awards last year.

Mr. Lee had been questioned on suspicion of using marijuana and other illegal drugs at the home of a woman who worked at an exclusive bar in Seoul’s Gangnam district, Yonhap News Agency reported. Mr. Lee said the woman had tricked him into taking the drugs. Mr. Lee’s drug tests came back negative or inconclusive, according to police.

South Korea’s drug policy is one of the strictest in the world. Citizens can be prosecuted for using illegal drugs, even if they did so outside the country. Drug offenders can be punished by a prison term between six months and 14 years.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared a “war on drugs” earlier this year, calling for government-wide measures. Local authorities stepped up anti-drug campaigns and led a tightened crackdown on the smuggling of illegal substances.

More than 17,000 people were arrested on drug-related charges in the first 11 months of 2023, a jump from 12,387 arrests in the previous year, according to the National Police Agency.

South Korea’s entertainment industry has been rocked by a spate of drug abuse scandals, with K-pop singers and movie stars facing police scrutiny.

Mr. Lee was born on March 2, 1975, in Seoul. He studied acting at the Korea National University of Arts and made his professional debut in a 1999 music .

Mr. Lee is survived by his wife, actress Jeon Hye-jin, and two sons.

After being questioned in October at a police station in Incheon, a city near Seoul, he issued a public apology.

If you or someone you know needs help, visit 988lifeline.org or call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.

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