Popular TV star found dead at 39

The body of well-known South Korean TV star Song Jae-lim has been discovered in just the latest tragedy to rock the industry.

South Korean K-drama actor Song Jae-lim has tragically been found dead at the age of 39.

Seoul Seongdong police have confirmed the body of the star, who was best known for his TV series Moon Embracing The Sun, was discovered last Thursday in his apartment by a friend.

The pair had planned to have lunch that day.

Police added that there were “no signs of foul play”, and Korean publication Soompi reports that a “two-page letter” was also found at the scene.

As of yet, Song’s cause of death is not known.

In a statement to Korea’sYonhap news agency, his family said they would hold a small, private funeral in Seoul. The service is believed to be scheduled for Thursday, November 14.

The popular actor and model first broke into the film industry with his role in Actresses in 2009, before being cast as a loyal warrior in Moon Embracing The Sun in 2012.

Song also starred in a series of other K-dramas including Cool Guys, Hot Ramen and Queen Woo, as well as reality show We Got Married.

Most recently, he appeared in the musical La Rose De Versailles.

Song’s passing is the latest in a string of tragic deaths within the South Korean entertainment industry.

Late last year, the body of Parasite actor Lee Sun-kyun was found in a car at a park in central Seoul after police received a call from his wife that she’d discovered a suicide note in their home.

He’d been under investigation for illegal drug use in the weeks leading up to his death.

Just a few months earlier, K-drama actress Park Soo Ryun, star of Disney+ series Snowdrop, died after accidentally falling down a set of stairs at the age of 29.

In April last year, South Korean actress and model Jung Chae-yul was found dead at the age of 26, with popular 25-year-old K-Pop star Moonbin also passing away in a suspected suicide just a week later.