Huge pop star's cause of death revealed after singer's tragic end aged just 30

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief A three-hour hugging marathon in Seoul, South Korea, is set to be among the first public engagements of Jin, the oldest member of K-pop supergroup BTS, after being discharged on Wednesday from his 18 months of mandatory military service. Some 1,000 fans of the pop star were chosen in a raffle. They will meet him on Thursday at this year’s BTS FESTA, an annual celebration of the band’s debut anniversary, to be held at the Seoul Sports Complex.

Xdinary Heroes are hitting the road stateside!

Bae Suzy has recently opened up about her time in K-pop girl group Miss A compared to her life as an actress.Upon the release of her new movie Wonderland, the actress and former Miss A member sat down with South Korean media, per SBS Star, to discuss her new project and beginnings as a K-pop idol, sharing that she is much more content in life now.Bae first entered the public eye when she debuted in JYP Entertainment girl group Miss A in 2010, and remained part of the group until their disbandment in 2017. She has since made several solo releases as a singer, but has primarily been working her acting career.The singer-actress shared that she often feels “[caught] off guard” when watching old footage of days as a K-pop idol, though admitting that she finds those memories “endearing”.

My Name Is Gabriel later this month, starring Park Bo-gum and other South Korean celebrities.Filmed in Chiang Mai, Chongqing, Guadalajara and Dublin, My Name Is Gabriel will follow the five celebrities as they are assigned new AI-generated lives and then sent to live in a foreign city. The upcoming series follows the entertainers as they try their hand at living ordinary lives for 72 hours.My Name Is Gabriel will star Reply 1988’s Park Bo-gum, The Worst of Evil’s Ji Chang-wook, comedian Park Myung-soo (Infinity Challenge), actress Yeom Hye-ran (The Glory) and TV host Gabee.In a new trailer for the series, the five stars reflect on their experiences from the show.

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent It’s not just Netflix which is cashing in on the K phenomenon. Federation Kids & Family has clinched a brace of first-wave deals with major international broadcasters on “Gangnam Project,” its new K-pop-inspired tween live-action series.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Leading K-pop acts including Enhypen, INI and Kep1er, which this week released new album “Kep1ergoing,” are all set to appear next month at KCON LA 2024. The CJ ENM-backed event in Los Angeles, comprising a convention and multi-act concert series, will feature at least 25 group and solo acts from South Korea. It runs over three days from July 26-28 at the Crypto.com Arena, LA Convention Center and Gilbert Lindsay Plaza and has set Korean tech giant Samsung as its title sponsor.

Dua Lipa is ready to hit the road this summer!

T-ARA singer Areum is reportedly currently under police investigation on charges of the alleged abuse, exploitation and neglect of her two children.South Korean news outlet Korea JoongAng Daily reported on June 4 that the Gwangmyeong Police Station in Gyeonggi had handed Areum over to the Ansan branch of the Suwon Prosecutors’ Office on charged of the alleged the abuse, exploitation and neglect of her two children.Her mother is also said to be involved and is being simultaneously investigated on exploitation charges, with both women reportedly being barred from making contact with Areum’s sons.The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office had previously dismissed the case in early-May, after police failed to find corroborating evidence against either party.However, the publication reports that experts had concluded that Areum’s claims against her ex-husband were as “not reliable” after analysing testimonies by the two children. The outlet reports that Lee is now being suspected of pressuring her children into making such statements about their father.Investigations into Areum first began after her ex-husband, businessman Kim Young-gul, filed a complaint to police against her and her mother in February this year.

Noah Centineo‘s Owen Hendricks will be back for the second season of The Recruit. But who else will join him?

K-pop.Yesterday (Wednesday May 29), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs Of Staff (JCS) claimed the supreme leader of North Korea had floated more than 260 balloons across the border since Tuesday (May 28).According to a JCS official, the fallen inflatables contained “various pieces of trash, such as plastic bottles, batteries, shoe parts and even manure” (via the Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency). No damage has been reported as of yet.Reuters noted that North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea “regularly” send balloons containing anti-Pyongyang leaflets, food, medicine, money and USB sticks loaded with K-pop music videos and dramas across the border.North Korea had warned last Sunday (May 26) that it would send “mounds of wastepaper and filth” over to South Korea in a “tit-for-tat” retaliation (via Consequence).The JCS said this marked the largest number of North Korean balloons sent into the South, following similar instances between 2016 and 2018.In response to the latest action, the military deployed personnel from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear response teams, as well as bomb disposal units to collect the objects for a detailed analysis.“These acts by North Korea clearly violate international law and seriously threaten our people’s safety,” the JCS said.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Two South Korean superstars Gianna Jun and Gang Dong-won head the cast of “Tempest,” an espionage action drama series being readied by streaming service Disney+ for release next year. The contemporary Korea-set story sees Jun portray a highly-accomplished diplomat and former ambassador to the U.S.

Catch The Young is one of the rising acts in the South Korean music scene, and we want Just Jared readers to get to know them!

The Korean Herald reports.Despite being rushed to the hospital, the singer died an hour after her body was found.An autopsy of her death showed that Ram was also suffering from fatty liver disease, as well as liver lesions, according to a Korean news outlet.Namyangju Police Station filed a report that the singer was drinking with her friends, the outlet added. She excused herself to go to the bathroom at around 9:55 p.m.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor The Match Factory has finalized global sales for the Cannes competition title “The Substance,” directed by Coralie Fargeat and starring Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid. The Match Factory has sold to Italy (I Wonder Pictures), Spain (Elastica Films), Scandinavia (Nonstop Entertainment), South Korea (Challan), Hong Kong (Golden Scene Company), CIS (VLG.FILM LTD.), Ukraine and Baltics (Adastra Cinema), Taiwan (Catchplay), Australia and New Zealand (Madman Entertainment), Poland (Monolith), Greece (Feelgood Entertainment), the former Yugoslavia (MCF Megacom), Bulgaria (Beta Film) and Romania (Independenta Film 97).

Jim Halterman Spoiler Alert: The following interview discusses events from “The Good Doctor” series finale “Goodbye,” streaming on Hulu as of May 22. If you’re looking for the right prescription for a solid series finale consisting of high emotional stakes, happy and sad tearful moments followed by a big dose of hope, then “The Good Doctor” delivered on all of those elements in Tuesday’s series finale, which wrapped up seven seasons on ABC. The drama, which premiered on September 20, 2017, followed the journey of autistic surgeon Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) as he grew from surgical resident not only to being a successful doctor at San Jose’s St. Bonaventure Hospital, but also a husband, father and friend to the colleagues he worked with over the years.

IVE’s Liz recently covered songs by Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon and IU on the South Korean singing competition King of Masked Singer. Liz appeared as a contestant on the show on its May 19 episode disguised and referred to as Hourglass.

The following story contains mentions and details of sexual assault and suicide. Late K-pop singer Goo Hara was recently revealed to have lent crucial aid to investigative reporters as the Burning Sun scandal unfolded in 2019.The BBC World Service‘s investigative team, BBC Eye, published an extensive documentary yesterday (May 19) titled Burning Sun focused on the 2019 scandal in South Korea of the same name.

K-pop boy band Blitzers appeared on Britain’s Got Talent on Saturday night - but it was quickly pointed out that the group are already successful. A band member said: “We are the first K-pop band to be on Britain’s Got Talent and from here we have a dream to go to Wembley Stadium. We have a lot of fans in South Korea so we would love to be famous in the UK.” They went on to explain that they are already famous in South Korea having released five singles and winning awards after they formed in 2021.

EXCLUSIVE: Focus Features has acquired U.S. rights and select international territories on upcoming thriller Last Breath, starring Woody Harrelson, Finn Cole and Simu Liu. Focus will distribute the Alex Parkinson-directed title in the U.S. with Universal Pictures International handling select territories including France, Scandinavia, Australia and New Zealand, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and Vietnam. 

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor France TV Distribution has closed several territory deals for Sylvain Desclous’ “The Victoria System,” starring Damien Bonnard and Jeanne Balibar. The film has been acquired by Spentzos in Greece, Divisa Red in Spain, Arna Media in the CIS, NK Content in South Korea, AVJET in Taïwan and Mars in Turkey. The film centers on David Kolski, who is overseeing the construction of the highest tower ever built in France.