Lee wins ‘Star of the Year’ at CineAsia Awards in H.K.

Movie star Lee Byung-hun was selected as the “Star of the Year” at the 2012 CineAsia Awards in Hong Kong on Thursday.

Lee is the second Korean to receive the award following pop star Rain in 2007.

“I love challenging new things and have tried them without fear. But at the same time I am scared and alone. When I first knocked on Hollywood’s door I felt like I was left in a big sea without knowing what to do or where to go,” Lee said at the awards ceremony. The actor added that the award will give him the strength to carry on.

John Chu, who directed Lee’s U.S. film “G.I. Joe,” praised the actor as a “game changer.”

Lee, who debuted as a small-screen actor in 1991, rose to global stardom when he starred as storm-shadow in U.S. blockbuster “G.I. Joe” in 2009. Lee’s latest domestic film, “Masquerade,” became the third-highest grossing movie in history here with more than 12.3 million people having seen the period film.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)