Park So-dam of 'Parasite' fame diagnosed with cancer, red carpet gigs halted
Korean movie star Park So-dam has unfortunately been diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer. The 30-year-old actress who gained worldwide recognition with her role in the Oscar-winning film ‘Parasite’ has been acting since 2013 and is an acclaimed actress in the Korean film industry. Her first acting role was in ‘Steel Cold Winter’. She landed her first main role in the anthology series film, ‘The Youth’, which also starred Super Junior’s Donghae and K-drama favorite, Jung Hae-in. She continued to act in Korean blockbusters like ‘Veteran’, ‘The Priests’ and even dabbled in K-dramas.
Having established herself as a movie actress, Park So-dam landed main roles in K-dramas like ‘Cinderella and the Four Knights’ and the 2020 melodrama ‘Record of Youth’. In 2019, her stint on ‘Parasite’ made her viral in the West for her role as the apathetic sister Gi-jeong who pretends to be the art therapist, Jessica. Park went on to film one movie titled ‘Fukuoka’ in 2020 after which she focused on variety shows and hosting award shows like the Golden Disc Awards and Busan Film Festival. She then landed the films ‘Special Cargo’, ‘Ghost’ and ‘Fifth Column’ which were all set for 2022.
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Park So-dam diagnosed with cancer
On December 13, Park’s agency, Artist Company released a statement. They reported that she had been diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer while going through a routine health check-up. Park So-dam had immediately gone through surgery on the advice of the doctors. She is now focusing on her recovery. The agency added that she was excited for the release of her latest film ‘Special Cargo’ which had the release date of January 12, 2022. Unfortunately, she will not be present for the premiere or to greet fans which she regrets. But while thyroid cancer is a difficult and long battle, it is treatable with surgery with the recovery rate being mostly high according to reports.
Park So-dam’s latest acting projects
Having already finished filming ‘Special Cargo’, it is Park’s first film since 2020. Along with her, it stars Song Sae-byeok of ‘Happy Together’ fame, drama actor Kim Eui-sung known for his roles in ‘Taxi Driver’ and ‘Steel Rain’, child actor Jung Hyun-joon, Yeon Woo-jin and Yeom Hye-ran from ‘The Uncanny Encounter’. ‘Special Cargo’ is an action film about Eun-ha a driver played by Park So-dam who has a delivery rate of 100% no matter the cargo. She gets in trouble when one day the cargo happens to be a small boy. Park also happens to have filmed the Japanese espionage film ‘Ghost’ in early 2021. It stars Honey Lee, ‘Squid Game’ star Park Hae-soo and Kim Dong-hee, known for the Netflix dramas ‘Itaewon Class’ and ‘Extracurricular’.