Veteran actress Kim Hye-ja has canceled her scheduled stage greeting for her comeback film âStill Radiant,â the filmâs team announced Wednesday, as concern over the 85-year-old actressâs health continues to grow.
According to NewsEn via Naver, Kim was set to greet the audience alongside director Song Il-gon ahead of the filmâs press screening at Megabox COEX in Seoul on the afternoon of October 15. The appearance was called off for âunavoidable reasons.â The post-screening press conference will instead feature co-stars Park Seo-kyung, Choi Ju-eun, Moon Seong-hyun, Cha Mi-kyung, and Cho Seong-ha with Song.
The cancellation comes just days after footage of Kim coughing at the 31st Busan International Film Festival sparked health rumors online. A representative for the filmâs distributor, Plus M Entertainment, told Maeil Business Star Today that Kim is âexperiencing nothing more than cold symptoms,â and that her festival schedule had simply been adjusted for her age and condition.
Kim walked the BIFF opening red carpet on October 6 with Song Il-gon, dressed in an elegant hanbok. Video from the venue showed her moving slowly with support from those around her and coughing several times with her hand over her mouth. She dismissed the speculation at the time as âjust a cold.â âStill Radiantâ marks her first screen role in nine years and was invited to the festivalâs Korean Cinema Today - Panorama section.
The concern follows a busy month for the actress, who is marking her 65th year in acting. On October 4, SBS aired the special documentary âStay With Us,â which chronicled three years of her life, including her final volunteer trip to Africa in 2025 and her work on âStill Radiant.â Kim has also been actively promoting the film, including an appearance on the popular YouTube channel MMTG.
âStill Radiantâ tells the story of Soon-ok, who reunites after 60 years with the close friend who shared the brightest moment of her life. The film opens on October 21.
