Hsu was 48 when she died of pneumonia after contracting influenza while on a trip with her family to Japan. Rumours of her death first spread online on Sunday and was eventually confirmed by her younger sister, Taiwanese entertainer Dee Hsu, on Monday morning, via the latter's manager. Her body was later cremated in Tokyo.

The ashes of late Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu have been brought home by her mother, sister, and husband. The family flew to Taiwan to retrieve an urn containing Hsu's remains on Feb. 5, reported Taiwanese media Liberty Times . Her husband, Koo Jun Yup, was later seen with the urn at Songshan Airport in Taipei.

Eyewitnesses at Hsu's cremation described Koo as inconsolable. He was reportedly seen in tears as he carried his wife's urn home.