''All In'' () is a 2003 South Korean television drama series that aired on SBS from 15 January to 3 April 2003, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 ( KST) for 24 episodes. Inspired by the life of professional

poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

player

Jimmy Cha Jimmy Cha ( Korean: 차민수, Hanja: 車敏洙, born January 15, 1951), also known as Ch'a Min-su, is a South Korean professional go and avid poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is ...

, it starred

Lee Byung-hun Lee Byung-hun (; born July 12, 1970) is a South Korean actor. He has received critical acclaim for his work in a wide range of genres, most notably ''Joint Security Area'' (2000); '' A Bittersweet Life'' (2005); '' The Good, the Bad, the Weird' ...

and Song Hye-kyo in a story about one's man's rise through the fiercely competitive world of

casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live enterta ...

gambling as he clashes with his rivals over money, success, and love. The drama was a ratings success in South Korea, with its final episode reaching a peak viewership rating of 47.7%, which is the 42nd highest-rated Korean drama episode of all time. It also won several awards, notably the Grand Prize ("Daesang") for Lee Byung-hun at the 2003

SBS Drama Awards The SBS Drama Awards (), also known as SBS Awards Festival, is an awards ceremony presented annually by Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually on December 31. The hi ...

Synopsis

Orphaned then taken in by his gambler uncle, Kim In-ha ( Jin Goo) often hangs out with his friends in the basement of a movie theater. He unexpectedly befriends Choi Jung-won, a model student and the rich son of the theater owner. In-ha and Jung-won both fall for Min Su-yeon (

Han Ji-min Han Ji-min (born November 5, 1982) is a South Korean actress. After minor roles in '' All In'' and ''Dae Jang Geum'', Han had her breakout role in revenge series ''Resurrection'' in 2005. This was followed by leading roles in period dramas ''Capi ...

), the daughter of the projectionist at the theater. When Su-yeon's father was killed by loan sharks, In-ha and Jung-won hatch a plan to avenge Su-yeon by setting fire to a gangster's hideout. But the fire spreads, accidentally killing the gang leader. In-ha is sentenced to seven years, while thanks to his family connections, Jung-won avoids jail time. As In-ha serves his sentence, Jung-won goes to the United States to study and Su-yeon decides to become a nun. Seven years pass, and by pure chance, the three all end up working at the same casino. In-ha (

) and Su-yeon ( Song Hye-kyo) fall in love, but are later separated when In-ha is forced to illegally immigrate to the U.S. He finds a job as a mafia hitman, and by a stroke of luck, again meets Su-yeon, and the two plan to get married. However, on their supposed wedding day, In-ha suffers a near-fatal gunshot wound and becomes comatose for 8 months. Unaware that In-ha is alive, the grieving Su-yeon returns to Korea. In-ha eventually recovers, but Jung-won ( Ji Sung) intervenes, saying that he is unworthy to love Su-yeon. In-ha decides to turn his life of misery around and becomes a professional gambler. He meets a business partner and, betting everything he has, returns to Korea to win back Su-yeon's love.

Cast

Main

as Kim In-ha ** Jin Goo as young In-ha * Song Hye-kyo as Min Su-yeon / Sister Angela **

as young Su-yeon * Ji Sung as Choi Jung-won **Go Dong-hyeon as young Jung-won * Park Sol-mi as Seo Jin-hee **Shin Ah as young Jin-hee

Supporting

* Lee Deok-hwa as Choi Do-hwan, Jung-won's father *

Sunwoo Eun-sook Sunwoo Eun-sook (born December 24, 1959) is a South Korean actress. Sunwoo made her acting debut in 1978, and rose to fame in the 1980s. Personal life Sunwoo married actor Lee Young-ha in 1981 when they were both at the peak of their careers ...

as Yoon Hye-sun, Jung-won's mother * Im Hyun-sik as Kim Chi-soo, In-ha's uncle *

Park Won-sook Park Won-sook (; born January 19, 1949) is a South Korean actress. Filmography Television series Film Variety show Music video Theater Books Awards References External links * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Park, Won-so ...

as Jang Hyun-ja *Jo Kyung-hwan as Chairman Seo Seung-don, Jin-hee's father *

Kim Tae-yeon Kim Tae-yeon (; born March 9, 1989), known mononymously as Taeyeon, is a South Korean singer. She debuted as a member of girl group Girls' Generation in August 2007, which went on to become one of the best-selling artists in South Korea and on ...

as Jenny * Huh Joon-ho as Yoo Jong-gu, In-ha's friend from prison * Choi Jung-won as Yoo Jung-ae, Hyun-ja's daughter *Choi Joon-yong as Park Tae-joon, In-ha's hometown friend who became a detective *Yoon Gi-won as Woo Yong-tae, In-ha's hometown friend who became a waiter * Baek Seung-hyeon as Yang Shi-bong, In-ha's hometown friend who is crippled *Jung Yoo-seok as Im Dae-soo ("Shorty") *Jung Ho-bin as Jung Joon-il *Park Jung-woo as Jjagoo *Im Dae-ho as Chun Sang-gu *Yoon Seo-hyun as Man-soo * Hong Yeo-jin as bar hostess * Cho Yeon-woo as yakuza * Kim Byung-se as Michael Jang * Yuko Fueki as Rie Ochida * Kim Hee-jung as office clerk *

Park Sang-myun Park Sang-myun (; born January 27, 1968) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his comic roles, notably in '' My Wife Is a Gangster'' (2001). Career Park Sang-myun graduated in 1987 with a Theater degree from Seoul Institute of the Art ...

as Im Dae-chi, gang boss *Kim Ha-kyun as Director Son * Choi Ran as Manager Jang Mi-ran *Park Joon-hee as Jo Jung-min *

Gi Ju-bong Gi Ju-bong (born September 3, 1955) is a South Korean actor. Career Gi began acting in 1977 and is notable for ''Offending the Audience'', ''Sorum ''Sorum'' is a List of South Korean films of 2001, 2001 K-Horror, South Korean horror film a ...

as Bae Sang-doo

Awards

;2003 39th

Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were first introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the Hankook Ilbo newspap ...

*Grand Prize (Daesang) for TV – ''All In'' *Best Actor for TV –

;2003

*Grand Prize (Daesang) –

*Top Excellence Award, Actress – Song Hye-kyo *Excellence Award, Actor – Ji Sung *Best Supporting Actor –

Heo Joon-ho Huh Joon-ho (, born April 14, 1964) is a South Korean actor. His name was previously officially romanized as Hur Joon-ho and is sometimes romanized unofficially as Heo Joon-ho. His father was Heo Jang-kang, a well-known Korean actor. Huh beg ...

*Top 10 Stars –

, Song Hye-kyo

Regional broadcast

* It first aired in Japan on cable channel KNTV from 8 March to 25 May 2003. Re-airings followed on terrestrial channel NHK once a week starting 16 April 2004. According to a poll conducted by

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Com ...

variety show ''SMAP Station'' in May 2007, ''All In'' ranked as the seventh most popular Korean drama in Japan. * In Thailand, it first aired on Channel 3 from 1 April to 24 June 2006. In Mongolia, it first aired on TV9 in 2006.

References

External links

* * * {{Works by Chorokbaem Media Seoul Broadcasting System television dramas 2003 South Korean television series debuts 2003 South Korean television series endings Korean-language television shows South Korean romance television series South Korean action television series Television series by Chorokbaem Media Television shows written by Choi Wan-kyu