Kdrama Stars Pay Their Respects To Director Kim Jong Hak

In the wake of Kim Jong Hak's death, which police have now ruled a suicide, many of the stars he directed came to pay their respects. Those present included actors from the director's earlier works and some of the cast members of his most recent drama, "Faith: The Great Doctor."

Among those attending the wake were Park Sang Won and Chae Si Ra, who starred in "Years of Upheaval," Bae Yong Jun and E Jiah of "The Legend," plus Kim Hee Sun, Lee Min Ho, Ryu Duk Hwan and Park Se Young of "Faith."

In a blog post, Song Ji Na, the writer with whom Kim Jong Hak frequently worked, said she felt especially bad for the "Faith" actors because they might feel somehow responsible for causing the director to take his life.

"My heart especially hurt because of the 'Faith,' actors," wrote Song Ji Na. "Hee Sun, who came with a pale face after two long recordings, Min Ho, who hurriedly got on a plane and flew overnight, Duk Hwan, who came and sat in the dark shadows, or Se Young, who burst into tears as soon as she arrived."

The cast recently filed a lawsuit against Kim Jong Hak charging him with breach of duty, embezzlement and fraud because he failed to pay the actors who appeared in the 2012 drama. After he was charged, the police filed an injunction that kept the director from traveling to China where he was working on a new drama.

 Kim Hee Sun felt guilty because her name was on the lawsuit. She could not stop crying at the wake.

"Staff and rookie actors who had no power asked her to back them up with her famous name, so she put her name on the papers in a case that would go against not the director himself, but against the production company," said Song. "And she's crying over that."

Song said she should not be so hard on herself.

"She waited three years to join "Faith" and her role was the only one that made the director laugh when things got difficult," said Song.

Kim Jong Hak was found dead on Tuesday in a motel. He left a note apologizing to his family.
"The old actors and staff who were in Kim Jong Hak's early pieces as well as the young actors and staff of his last piece were all there in one room," wrote Song of the wake. "It was like a scene from a dream. Perhaps he wanted us all to come together like this and dine? Was that it?"