SEOUL - Veteran South Korean actress Kim Min-kyung died on Monday (Aug 16), said her management agency DaHong Entertainment. She was 61.

It released a statement on Tuesday, which did not reveal the cause of death. Her funeral is being held on Aug 18.

The star, who made her debut in 1979 in a theatrical group, had a career spanning 40 years and included stage, television and movie roles.

Winner of the newcomer award at the Korea Theater Festival in 1981, she went on to play long-suffering mother figures.

The prolific actress has appeared in movies such as horror flick Someone Behind You (2007), crime thriller Where The Truth Lies (2009) and romantic drama Microhabitat (2017). Some of her dramas include romances like The Moon Embracing The Sun (2012) and Flowers Of The Prison (2016).

She appeared this year (2021) in the supporting cast of K-dramas Mouse, about a psychopath, and A Good Supper, about an aspiring chef, as well as crime movie Pipeline.

An upcoming movie, crime thriller Spiritwalker, in which she had a role, won an award for excellence in action at the recent New York Asian Film Festival. It will be released later this year (2021).