Kim Dong-wook
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Kim Dong-wook (born July 29, 1983) is a South Korean actor. After appearing in student
short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...
s and several minor parts, Kim became a star through his supporting role in the popular TV series '' Coffee Prince'' (2007), followed by box office hit '' Take Off'' (2009). He then starred in '' Happy Killers'' (2010) and ''
Romantic Heaven ''Romantic Heaven'' () is a 2011 South Korean melodrama about fate, love, loss, and redemption. Though the premise is sentimental, dealing with a variety of characters and their relationships in both life and the afterlife, it is very much in lin ...
'' (2011), his latest drama called
Find Me In Your Memory ''Find Me in Your Memory'' () is a 2020 South Korean television series starring Kim Dong-wook and Moon Ga-young. It aired on MBC TV from March 18 to May 13, 2020. Synopsis A love story between a man who remembers every second of his life and ...
(2020), but it was his acclaimed performance as an obsessed and tormented king in 2012 period drama '' The Concubine'', and Along with the Gods 1 and 2 that brought Kim the best reviews of his career yet.


Career

After officially debuting in ''A Crimson Mark'', Kim Dong-wook's first notable role was the angry, impoverished teenager in director
Byun Young-joo Byun Young-joo (born December 20, 1966) is a South Korean film director. Her films explore issues of women's rights and human rights. Career Byun Young-joo graduated with a law degree from Ewha Womans University and did her graduate studies at ...
's 2004
coming-of-age film Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...
''
Flying Boys ''Flying Boys'' is a 2004 South Korean film, written and directed by Byun Young-joo, and starring Yoon Kye-sang and Kim Min-jung. The film had 114,478 admissions in South Korea. Plot summary Min-jae is a high school senior who lives with his fa ...
''. He then broke into the mainstream as the bubbly waiter in MBC's 2007 hit romantic comedy series '' Coffee Prince''. In the popular 2009 sports flick '' Take Off'', he starred as a former night club bouncer who ends up being a member of Korea's national
ski jumping Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the final ...
team. In spite of the enormous physical challenge, Kim said it was a character he genuinely enjoyed playing. His
musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...
debut was in ''On Air: Season 2'', which was produced by his fellow alumni from the
Korea National University of Arts Korea National University of Arts is a national university in Seoul, South Korea. Korea National University of Arts was established in 1993 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea as the only national university of arts with an a ...
. A loose spin-off of the TV series '' On Air'', it takes place at a radio station and centers around an idol singer-turned- DJ and an older female PD. His follow-up the year after was the Korean production of ''
Legally Blonde ''Legally Blonde'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Robert Luketic in his List of directorial debuts, feature-length directorial debut, and scripted by Karen McCullah, Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith (writer), Kirsten Smith from ...
'', the Broadway musical based on the 2011 Hollywood film of the same name. He played Luke Wilson's role Emmett. Kim said "the show must go on, no matter what" mentality was what he found appealing yet tough about doing musicals. Kim then played lead roles in the omnibus film ''
Five Senses of Eros ''Five Senses of Eros'' () is a 2009 South Korean omnibus film with five short films depicting love and desire, but in different styles and genres. The shorts are: ''His Concern'', directed by Daniel H. Byun; ''I'm Right Here'' (), directed by Hu ...
'', thriller '' Happy Killers'', and melodrama ''
Romantic Heaven ''Romantic Heaven'' () is a 2011 South Korean melodrama about fate, love, loss, and redemption. Though the premise is sentimental, dealing with a variety of characters and their relationships in both life and the afterlife, it is very much in lin ...
''. But it was his performance in period thriller '' The Concubine'' that he gained significant attention on the big screen. According to critics one of the finest of achievements of the 2012 period thriller is Kim's engrossing performance as the tormented Prince Sung-won, who gradually loses his sense of judgment and emotional control in the face of obsessive love. Kim said of playing the intense role, "While feeling sorry for him, I also found the complexity of the character fascinating. That's what drew me in." In 2014, Kim made his acting comeback in the period drama series ''
More Than a Maid ''More Than a Maid'' () is a 2015 South Korean television series starring Jeong Yu-mi, Oh Ji-ho, Kim Dong-wook, Lee Si-a, Jeon So-min and Lee Yi-kyung. It aired on jTBC from January 23 to March 28, 2015 on Fridays and Saturdays at 21:45 ( KST) ...
''. He had his big screen comeback in action comedy ''Three Summer Nights'' (2015). Kim then played the leading role in the cable slice-of-life drama ''Riders: Get Tomorrow'' (2015), which won him the Best Character Award at the Korea Cable TV Awards. Kim played a significant role in the fantasy blockbuster '' Along With the Gods: The Two Worlds'' (2017) and its sequel, '' Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days'' (2018); which won him several Best Supporting Actor accolades. Kim was then cast in OCN's supernatural thriller '' The Guest'' (2018). The series was a hit and received positive reviews. In 2019, Kim starred alongside
Ko Sung-hee Ko Sung-hee (; born June 21, 1990) is a South Korean actress. She played her first leading role in the fantasy-period drama ''Diary of a Night Watchman ''Diary of a Night Watchman'' () is a 2014 South Korean television series starring Jung Il ...
in the romantic comedy film ''
Trade Your Love ''Trade Your Love'' is a 2019 South Korean romantic comedy film directed by Park Ho-chan and Park Soo-jin. It stars Kim Dong-wook and Ko Sung-hee. Plot Sung-seok and Hae-joo meet at a blind date and decide to enter into a contract marriage to ...
''. In April, Kim is set to star in the comedy drama ''
Special Labor Inspector ''Special Labor Inspector'' () is a 2019 South Korean television series starring Kim Dong-wook, Park Se-young, Ryu Deok-hwan and Kim Kyung-nam. It aired from April 8 to May 28, 2019 on MBC TV. Synopsis The series follows the story of a civil s ...
''. In 2020, Kim was cast in the romance drama ''
Find Me in Your Memory ''Find Me in Your Memory'' () is a 2020 South Korean television series starring Kim Dong-wook and Moon Ga-young. It aired on MBC TV from March 18 to May 13, 2020. Synopsis A love story between a man who remembers every second of his life and ...
''. In 2021, Kim played the role of a psychiatrist in the new drama
You Are My Spring ''You Are My Spring'' () is a 2021 South Korean television series directed by Jung Ji-hyun and starring Seo Hyun-jin, Kim Dong-wook, Yoon Park, and Nam Gyu-ri. The series follows the three main characters who come to deal with their interconnect ...
, co-starring with
Seo Hyun-jin Seo Hyun-jin (born February 27, 1985) is a South Korean actress and singer. Seo debuted as the main vocalist of South Korean girl group M.I.L.K. in 2001 and continued until the group disbanded in 2003. She contributed songs as a solo artist af ...
. In 2022, Kim as Hwang Kyung-min, who lives without forgetting the memories of school violence 20 years ago in the web series The King of Pigs.


Personal life

Kim enlisted for his
mandatory military service Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
on August 30, 2012 at a training camp in
Nonsan Nonsan () is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. It is located at . The origin of Nonsan's geographical names is said to have come from the small garden " Nolmoe, " which rises in the middle of farming fields, where rice paddies ...
,
South Chungcheong Province South Chungcheong Province ( ko, 충청남도, ''Chungcheongnam-do''), also known as Chungnam, is a province of South Korea. South Chungcheong has a population of 2,059,871 (2014) and has a geographic area of 8,204 km2 (3,168 sq mi) located in ...
. He underwent five weeks of basic training and served for two years as a riot policeman for the
Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA; Hangul: ko, 서울지방경찰청; Hanja: ) is the primary police force for the South Korean capital city of Seoul; it is not an independent police force in of itself, but is one of 16 provincial sub- ...
. Kim was discharged on May 29, 2014. He doesn't use social media.


Philanthropy

On March 8, 2022, Kim donated million to the Hope Bridge Disaster Relief Association to help the victims of the massive wildfire that started in Uljin, Gyeongbuk and has spread to Samcheok, Gangwon.


Filmography


Film


Television series


Web series


Television shows


Musical theatre


Discography


Singles


Music Video Appearances


Awards and nominations


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Dong-wook South Korean male television actors South Korean male film actors South Korean male musical theatre actors South Korean male stage actors Korea National University of Arts alumni 1983 births Living people People from Chuncheon 21st-century South Korean male actors South Korean male web series actors