Lee Sun-kyun (born March 2, 1975) is a South Korean actor. After beginning his career in musical theatre, for many years Lee was relegated to minor and supporting roles onscreen, only getting to play lead characters in one-act dramas on
KBS ''
Drama City
Drama City (''Deurama Siti'', 드라마 시티) is the KBS to broadcast via KBS2TV in a collection of usually single episode short dramas, shown weekly. Each episode is a different story, and the cast changes every week.
1984's "Drama Game" ...
'' and
MBC ''Best Theater''. In one such ''Best Theater'' project, he worked with TV director Lee Yoon-jung on ''Taereung National Village'' (2005), which led to him being cast in her later series ''
Coffee Prince'' in 2007. ''Coffee Prince'', along with medical drama ''
White Tower'' brought Lee mainstream popularity, which he followed with ''
Pasta
Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...
'' (2010), ''
Golden Time'' (2012) and ''
My Mister
''My Mister'' () is a 2018 South Korean television series starring Lee Sun-kyun and Lee Ji-eun. The series was directed by Kim Won-seok, written by Park Hae-young and produced by Chorokbaem Media. It aired on tvN from March 21 to May 17, 201 ...
'' (2018).
Meanwhile, on the big screen, he received a Best Actor award from the
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival
The Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) is an international film festival that is held in Las Palmas in the island of Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria (, ; ), also ...
for his role in ''
Paju
Paju () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Paju was made a city in 1997; it had previously been a county (''gun'').
The city area of Paju is ,"Paju (Gyeonggi-do Province)." ''Naver Encyclopedia of Knowledge''. Naver, 2015. 4 Mar. 2016. ...
'' (2009), followed by critical acclaim for mystery thriller ''
Helpless'' (2012), romantic comedy ''
All About My Wife
''All About My Wife'' () is a 2012 South Korean romantic comedy film directed by Min Kyu-dong, about a timid husband who hires a professional Casanova to seduce his seemingly perfect but fearsome wife, hoping this will make her divorce him.Jung, Hy ...
'' (2012), and
crime
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...
/
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
''
A Hard Day
''A Hard Day'' (; lit. "Take It to the End") is a 2014 South Korean action thriller film written and directed by Kim Seong-hun, and starring Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Jin-woong. It was selected to compete in the Directors' Fortnight section of the ...
'' (2014). Lee also continues to collaborate with auteur
Hong Sang-soo
Hong Sang-soo (홍상수, born 25 October 1960) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter.
Early life
Hong's parents owned the film production company Cinetel Soul. Hong took the entrance exam and entered the theater department at Chun ...
, and his
arthouse film
An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...
s with Hong include ''
Night and Day'' (2008), ''
Oki's Movie
''Oki's Movie'' () is a 2010 South Korean drama film written and directed by Hong Sang-soo.
In a multipart narrative divided into four chapters, Hong fashions a new kind of love triangle. Oki is a young and beautiful college student majoring in fi ...
'' (2010), and ''
Nobody's Daughter Haewon
''Nobody's Daughter Haewon'' () is a 2013 South Korean drama film written and directed by Hong Sang-soo. The narrative is told in diary format and chronicles a few days in the life of a young woman (Jung Eun-chae) who falls into depression followin ...
'' (2013). In 2019, he starred in
Bong Joon-ho
Bong Joon-ho (, ; Hanja: 奉俊昊; born September 14, 1969) is a South Korean film director, producer and screenwriter. The recipient of four Academy Awards, his filmography is characterised by emphasis on social themes, genre-mixing, black h ...
's Oscar-winning
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
film ''
Parasite
Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...
''.
Career
Lee Sun-kyun entered 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 ...
in 1994, and graduated in the first ever batch of its School of Drama. In 2001, he made his acting debut as Brad Majors in the
stage musical
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, movement ...
''
The Rocky Horror Show
''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to the science fiction and horror B movies of the 1930s through to the early 1960s, the musical tells the story of a newly engaged couple ...
''.
2007–2012: Acting beginnings
Playing small supporting roles for many years, he eventually achieved his breakthrough in 2007 with the critically lauded
medical drama
A medical drama is a television show or film in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment. Most recent medical drama (film and television), dramatic programming go beyond the events pertaining to the chara ...
''
White Tower'' and the highly popular romantic series ''
Coffee Prince''. Besides ''Coffee Prince'', he has worked with director Lee Yoon-jung two other times—in the sports-themed ''Taereung National Village'' in 2005, and in slice-of-life drama ''
Triple
Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble":
Sports
* Triple (baseball), a three-base hit
* A basketball three-point field goal
* A figure skating jump with three rotations
* In bowling terms, three strikes in a row
* ...
'' in 2009.
Lee was appointed as ambassador for the Health Insurance Review Agency in 2007, and won an award from the Korea Advertisers Association in 2008.
Despite his burgeoning fame, Lee then turned to low-budget
arthouse films to polish his acting caliber. ''
Night and Day'', ''Lost in the Mountains'', ''
Oki's Movie
''Oki's Movie'' () is a 2010 South Korean drama film written and directed by Hong Sang-soo.
In a multipart narrative divided into four chapters, Hong fashions a new kind of love triangle. Oki is a young and beautiful college student majoring in fi ...
'', ''
Nobody's Daughter Haewon
''Nobody's Daughter Haewon'' () is a 2013 South Korean drama film written and directed by Hong Sang-soo. The narrative is told in diary format and chronicles a few days in the life of a young woman (Jung Eun-chae) who falls into depression followin ...
'' and ''
Our Sunhi
''Our Sunhi'' () is a 2013 South Korean film written and directed by Hong Sang-soo. Hong won the Silver Leopard award for Best Director at the 66th Locarno International Film Festival.
Plot
Sunhi ( Jung Yu-mi) is a recent film school graduate wh ...
'' were all directed by
Hong Sang-soo
Hong Sang-soo (홍상수, born 25 October 1960) is a South Korean film director and screenwriter.
Early life
Hong's parents owned the film production company Cinetel Soul. Hong took the entrance exam and entered the theater department at Chun ...
, an auteur renowned for his realistic portrayal of ordinary lives.
["LEE Sun-kyun"]
Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2012-09-01. Lee also headlined ''
Paju
Paju () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Paju was made a city in 1997; it had previously been a county (''gun'').
The city area of Paju is ,"Paju (Gyeonggi-do Province)." ''Naver Encyclopedia of Knowledge''. Naver, 2015. 4 Mar. 2016. ...
'', for which he won the Best Actor award at the
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival
The Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival ( es, Festival Internacional de Cine de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) is an international film festival that is held in Las Palmas in the island of Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria (, ; ), also ...
held in Spain. Film distributor Myung Film quoted the judging committee as handing Lee high points for portraying the anguish his character felt for loving his wife's younger sister.
With ''
Pasta
Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...
'', in which he played a brilliant-but-abrasive chef, Lee successfully shook off his "gentle" TV drama image, and the series' popularity made him a bankable romantic leading man. ''
Petty Romance
''Petty Romance'' () is a 2010 South Korean 18-rated romantic comedy film about the fiery relationship between an adult cartoonist and a former sex columnist. The film was a moderate hit, selling 2,048,296 tickets nationwide.
Lead actors Lee Sun- ...
'' reunited him with his ''My Sweet Seoul'' co-star
Choi Kang-hee, and
one-upmanship
One-upmanship, also called "one-upsmanship", is the art or practice of successively outdoing a competitor. The term was first used in the title of a book by Stephen Potter, published in 1952 as a follow-up to ''The Theory and Practice of Gamesmans ...
action comedy ''Officer of the Year'' (also known as ''Arrest King'') soon followed.
Lee showed his support for the revival of Drama Special (formerly
Drama City
Drama City (''Deurama Siti'', 드라마 시티) is the KBS to broadcast via KBS2TV in a collection of usually single episode short dramas, shown weekly. Each episode is a different story, and the cast changes every week.
1984's "Drama Game" ...
) by starring in ''Our Slightly Risque Relationship'' (his acting was later recognized at the
KBS Drama Awards
The KBS Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony presented by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually on 31 December. The highest honor of the ceremony is the "Gra ...
). He has continually defended the importance of the short drama format as a training ground for young talent, acknowledging its contribution to his own career.
2012–2017: Rising success
In 2012, he starred in two consecutive well-reviewed big-screen hits—mystery thriller ''
Helpless'' and romantic comedy ''
All About My Wife
''All About My Wife'' () is a 2012 South Korean romantic comedy film directed by Min Kyu-dong, about a timid husband who hires a professional Casanova to seduce his seemingly perfect but fearsome wife, hoping this will make her divorce him.Jung, Hy ...
''. Reuniting with ''Pasta'' director Kwon Seok-jang, Lee played a
trauma
Trauma most often refers to:
* Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source
* Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event
*Traumatic i ...
doctor in ''
Golden Time''. His third collaboration with Kwon was ''
Miss Korea
Miss Korea ( ko, 미스코리아) is a national beauty pageant in South Korea.
Lee Seung-hyeon won the title on October 26, 2022.
History
The first Miss Korea competition took place in 1957 and was sponsored by the Korean newspaper Hankook I ...
'', a drama set amidst the
IMF crisis in the 1990s.
Lee returned to the theater opposite wife
Jeon Hye-jin in
Mike Bartlett's stage play ''Love, Love, Love'' in 2013. The following year, he headlined the film ''
A Hard Day
''A Hard Day'' (; lit. "Take It to the End") is a 2014 South Korean action thriller film written and directed by Kim Seong-hun, and starring Lee Sun-kyun and Cho Jin-woong. It was selected to compete in the Directors' Fortnight section of the ...
'', which screened at the
Directors' Fortnight
The Directors' Fortnight (french: Quinzaine des Réalisateurs) is an independent selection of the Cannes Film Festival. It was started in 1969 by the French Directors Guild after the events of May 1968 resulted in cancellation of the Cannes festiv ...
section of the
2014 Cannes Film Festival
The 67th Cannes Film Festival was held from 14 to 25 May 2014. New Zealand film director Jane Campion was the head of the jury for the main competition section. The Palme d'Or was awarded to the Turkish film '' Winter Sleep'' directed by Nuri Bi ...
, and became a critically acclaimed
sleeper hit
In the entertainment industry, a sleeper hit is a film, television series, music release, video game, or some other entertainment product that was initially unsuccessful on release but became a success later on. A sleeper hit may have little promo ...
at the box office. In 2015, Lee starred in
courtroom drama
A legal drama is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in which a system of justice play ...
film ''
The Advocate: A Missing Body''.
2018–present: Return to television and resurgence
In 2018, Lee starred in the critically acclaimed television series ''
My Mister
''My Mister'' () is a 2018 South Korean television series starring Lee Sun-kyun and Lee Ji-eun. The series was directed by Kim Won-seok, written by Park Hae-young and produced by Chorokbaem Media. It aired on tvN from March 21 to May 17, 201 ...
''.
The same year he starred in the action thriller film ''
Take Point
To take point, walk point, be on point, or be a point man is to assume the first and most exposed position in a combat military formation, that is, the leading soldier or unit advancing through hostile or unsecured territory. The term can be a ...
''.
In 2019, Lee is set to star in the legal television series ''
Prosecutor Civil War''.
In 2021, Lee is appearing in political drama film ''
Kingmaker
A kingmaker is a person or group that has great influence on a royal or political succession, without themselves being a viable candidate. Kingmakers may use political, monetary, religious and military means to influence the succession. Origina ...
'' as political strategist. The film is set to release in December.
Personal life
Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea. He married his girlfriend of seven years, actress
Jeon Hye-jin on May 23, 2009.
[Oh, Seol-hye (3 May 2012)]
"Lee Sun-gyun "My wife speaks honest and direct""
StarN News.
Their sons were born on November 25, 2009, and August 9, 2011.
Filmography
Theater
Discography
Awards and nominations
State honors
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Sun-kyun
21st-century South Korean male actors
South Korean male film actors
South Korean male television actors
South Korean male musical theatre actors
South Korean male stage actors
Korea National University of Arts alumni
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners
1975 births
Living people
People from Seoul
Actresses from Seoul