Following the passing of actor Lee Yong-joo, who played the role of a rookie soldier in tvN's 2013 show "Blue Tower," on the 29th, the cast members of "Blue Tower," who had shared a close bond for a long time, gathered at his wake.

Upon hearing the news of his passing, his "Blue Tower" colleague Kim Ho-chang posted a group photo taken with fellow cast members at the wake on his social media on the 30th to mourn the deceased. The photo captures actors Song Young-jae, Kim Ho-chang, Baek Bong-ki, and Director Min Jin-gi, among others, accompanying him on his final journey.

Kim Ho-chang wrote, "When I told the older brothers not long ago that I was going to quit acting, you said, 'Ho-chang, you're going to do well. Please, out of all the Tower family members, don't give up as the youngest and keep going until the end, because my intuition is good.'" He added, "I'll trust you, brother, and keep going until the end. Be happy there and don't hurt. We'll go see you again soon with the other brothers."

Previously, in an interview with this media outlet, Lee Yong-joo looked back on his chemistry with colleagues from various backgrounds, such as Choi Jong-hoon, Kim Jae-woo, Baek Bong-ki, Jung Jin-wook, and Kim Ho-chang, calling it "an exquisite casting." Expressing his affection for his colleagues, he said, "When I see Kim Jae-woo, a master of ad-libs, Kim Ho-chang with his psycho acting, and Baek Bong-ki and Jung Jin-wook, whose acting you can't help but hate, I sometimes feel a sense of crisis that I need to do even better."

Lee Yong-joo, who continued appearing in supporting and cameo roles in various projects and maintained YouTube activities even after the conclusion of the "Blue Tower" series, had practically stepped away from acting since 2022 to run a personal business before passing away due to a cardiac arrest on the morning of the 29th as his chronic condition, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, worsened. He was 44 years old.



(SBS Entertainment News, Reporter Kang Kyung-yoon)