Beloved Stage Star Passes Away at 69 After Three-Year Battle With Brain Tumor
Yun Suk-hwa, 69, the actor of ‘God’s Agnes’ and ‘Empress Myeongseong,’ passed away on the 19th at around 9:50 a.m. while being watched over by her family at a hospital where she had been receiving treatment.
A source from the publication, who had long worked with Yun since her time as the publisher of *Gyeokseok*, informed this newspaper of her passing after witnessing her final moments with her family in the hospital room. Park Jeong-ja, 83, a close friend of Yun, also told this newspaper, “I received a call from Yun Suk-hwa’s husband informing me that she had passed away.”
She collapsed in October 2022 while on a business trip to the U.K. after performing in the play *Hamlet* and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She underwent three major surgeries in Seoul. Later, she focused on natural therapy instead of anticancer treatment, saying, “It’s important to live like myself even for a day,” but she had not recovered fully despite three years of treatment.
Earlier on the night of the 18th, acquaintances of the actor visited the hospital to say their final goodbyes, and it was revealed that her family had already arranged for a funeral hall. Some theater-related organizations sent text messages and press releases stating, “Actor Yun Suk-hwa passed away at 9 p.m. on the night of the 18th,” and media outlets cited this information. The Korean Theatre Actors Association later issued a correction, stating, “We apologize to the family” and retracting the death announcement.
The funeral hall will be set up at the Sinchon Severance Hospital mortuary in Seoul this afternoon (the 19th). Her surviving family members include her husband Kim Seok-ki, former head of Jungang Comprehensive Finance, her son Kim Soo-min, and her daughter Kim Soo-hwa.
