The South Korean entertainment world was in mourning yesterday for Lee Eun-joo, a popular actress who committed suicide after apparently being filled with remorse over taking a sexually explicit movie role.
Lee's depiction of a sultry jazz singer in last year's hit movie The Scarlet Letter broke an unwritten rule of South Korean cinema: keep your clothes on at all costs.
Her family said Lee, 25, had been battling depression and insomnia following the release of the movie, in which she acted out a torrid sex scene with lead actor Han Suk-kyu. Her angst was not eased by the fact that the film was selected as the closing movie at one of Asia's biggest film events, the Pusan International Film Festival.
It was unusual for such a high-profile actress to undertake such a sexually explicit role.
South Korean actors and entertainers, especially the women, must have squeaky-clean public personas off - and frequently on - camera. Some actors will simulate the act of kissing rather than having their lips touch, to maintain their chaste images.
Lee was found by her brother hanging from a necktie in a walk-in closet of her apartment, just outside Seoul. Police said Lee apparently tried to first kill herself by cutting her wrist with a knife.
A note was found nearby, apparently in her own blood, saying, 'Mom, I am sorry and I love you'.