Authorities in Seoul said on Wednesday that Lee Sun-kyun, a well-known South Korean actor who won an Oscar for his performance in "Parasite," was discovered dead in a car. 

The actor had been the subject of a lengthy police investigation into allegations of drug usage, according to a report by The Washington Times.

Upon first arrival, police and emergency personnel in northern Seoul discovered Lee in an automobile, appearing to be unconscious.

The Seongbuk police station in Seoul said that emergency personnel later verified his death. Lee, 48, had been reported missing, so police had been searching for him.

They flatly refused to say whether they had concluded that Lee committed suicide or not. Yonhap news agency and other South Korean media sites reported early Wednesday that Lee's family had informed the police that he had left home after leaving a note that appeared to be a suicide note.

Lee was in the 2020 Oscar-winning film "Parasite," which took home the top prize in four categories.

In the 92-year history of the Academy Awards, the class satire became the first South Korean film to win best picture. It was also the first non-English-language film to win the award. Lee portrayed the patriarch of an affluent household in the film.

The whole cast, including Lee, took home an Oscar in 2020 from the Screen Actors Guild for their work in the film's ensemble cast. "Dr. Brain" (a science fiction thriller) earned him an International Emmy Award nomination last year.

Long before "Parasite," Lee had already established himself as a beloved South Korean actor.

He first became famous for his performance in the 2007 TV drama "Coffee Prince," and he went on to star in several successful TV dramas like "Behind The White Tower," "Pasta," and "My Mister (2018)."

There were claims that Lee used illicit narcotics at the home of a bar hostess, and the authorities were looking into those claims.

Yonhap reports that Lee denied knowing the pills were prescribed to him and said he was misled into taking them.

Unverified internet rumors on his personal life and suspected drug use proliferated as a result of the probe, which garnered substantial tabloid coverage. The hostess was one of two individuals Lee sued, and he claimed they blackmailed him.

Upon his initial summons to appear before police in Incheon, a city close to Seoul, in late October, he humbly bowed multiple times and expressed his apologies to his family and followers.