Director Kim Ki Duk Dies Due To Complications Of COVID-19

JAKARTA - South Korean director Kim Ki Duk died in Latvia due to complications from COVID-19 on Friday, December 11. This news was shared by local media Delfi on the same day.

Kim Ki Duk Film's production house also confirmed the news but did not say where the funeral was.

According to Delfi, Kim Ki Duk has been in Latvia since November 20 to buy a house in the Jurmala area and obtain residency status.

In 2017 and 2018, he was named in the #MeToo movement in South Korea. He is accused of slapping an actress and forcing the woman to film a sex scene in 2017. He confirmed this and paid a fine for sexual assault because there was no evidence.

Kim Ki Duk started his film career with Crocodile in 1996. Since then, his name has become known for films such as Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring, 3-Iron, Samaria, Pietà, and others. Kim Ki Duk is one of the movers of the Korean new wave where he is the man who drives the South Korean film industry in the international arena.

Kim Ki Duk is the only Korean director to receive awards from three international film festivals: Cannes, Venice and Berlin.

In 2018, MBC's PD Notebook investigative program mentioned Kim Ki Duk's sexual harassment of an actress. Kim Ki Duk sued MBC and the actress but lost. At that time, Kim Ki Duk's career in South Korea was declared over.

Kim Ki Duk has never been active in South Korea and chose a career abroad. Kim Ki Duk died at the age of 59.