Squid Game star Lee Joo-sil dies 3 months after receiving heartbreaking cancer diagnosis

A star of the popular Netflix series Squid Game has died just three months after receiving a cancer diagnosis.

Lee Joo-sil featured in the second season of the Korean dystopian drama which gained popularity when it was first released in September 2021 on Netflix, following contestants participating in a life-risking game to win a cash prize.

When Squid Game returned for a second time in December 2024, Lee took on the role of the mother of undercover detective Hwang Joon-ho (played by Wi Ha-joon).

Just one month before the series returned to the streaming service, she was diagnosed with stomach cancer in November 2024.

The actor is now confirmed to have passed away at the age of 81.

The news broke on February 2, when the Korean newspaper The Chosun Ilbo reported that Lee had died at her family home in the city of Uijeongbu.

Lee started her acting career in the 1960s with roles in stage productions and as a voice actor before she went on to act in K-dramas. Her acting portfolio also extends to the 2016 zombie thriller Train to Busan, playing Mrs Woo. Here, she played the grandmother of the protagonist Seok-woo.

Clearly having a knack for supernatural themes, Lee took to the screen in a recurring role in the K-drama The Uncanny Counter. This sees paranormal hunters search for evil spirits from the afterlife.

Prior to her stomach cancer diagnosis, Lee was diagnosed with breast cancer in her fifties. She was also given a small amount of time to live upon receiving the news - less than a year, according to The Chosun Ilbo.

But Lee eventually overcame this and was declared cancer-free by doctors 13 years later.

Tributes from Squid Games fans have been shared online, with one Twitter user penning: "[...]may you rest in peace Now I can't watch this scene without crying," while sharing a heart-wrenching clip that Lee acted in the series.

Another wrote: "RIP Lee Joo-Sil haelmoni."

The third and final season of Squid Game is set to be released on Netflix on June 27, but it’s unclear whether Lee will make an appearance in it.

After season one, the creator of the show, Hwang Dong-hyuk, said he hadn’t planned to return to do subsequent seasons as he was so stressed that he lost 'eight or nine teeth'.

But in a BBC interview, he said the comeback was spurred by 'money'.

“Even though season one was such a huge success, the system means that honestly, I didn’t make much… so I had to do series two to help compensate me,” Dong-hyuk candidly claimed.