SEOUL • An autopsy on Korean actor Kim Joo Hyuk revealed that he died from a fatal head injury in a car crash on Monday.

The police and the National Forensic Service said on Tuesday the immediate cause of Kim's death was a head injury, serious enough to have instantly killed him. They added that there was no evidence of a heart attack, which was previously reported as a possible cause of the car accident.

A more detailed autopsy result will become available after about a week, the police said.

Kim, 45, was driving a Mercedes-Benz SUV down Yeongdong-daero when it crashed into a Hyundai Grandeur near an I-Park apartment complex in Samseong-dong, southern Seoul, on Monday at around 4.30pm.

Kim's car then crashed into the wall of an apartment block and flipped down the stairs. Firefighters extricated him from the vehicle at around 5pm and took him to Konkuk University Medical Centre. He died at the hospital at around 6.30pm.

While the police still have not found found electronic recording devices from either car, they said on Tuesday that there have been a number of misunderstandings concerning the accident. Previously, the driver of the Grandeur had told the police that Kim seemed to be in pain, clutching his chest, after the SUV crashed into his car from the back.

But after analysing footage of the accident recorded by a vehicle behind Kim's car, which was secured on Monday, the police said the actor's car had crashed into the right side of the Grandeur.

Kim appeared on both the small and big screens, becoming best known for leading roles in the television drama Lovers In Prague (2005) and in films such as My Wife Got Married (2008) and Yourself And Yours (2016).

He was at the height of his career, having won his first film award last Friday for his portrayal of a ruthless North Korean mobster in Confidential Assignment, which also starred Hyun Bin.

He had three upcoming movies slated for release next year. He had finished shooting his part for the film Drug War,which is still in production, said reports. He played a China-based drug lord in the film.

Kim also starred in the film Heung-bu, which wrapped up on Aug 18.

He had agreed to star alongside Hyun Bin once more in the period zombie movie Rampant and had finished one of his four shoots for the film.

KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK