Ma Dong-seok (born Lee Dong-seok on March 1, 1971), also known as Don Lee, is a South Korean–American actor. With his breakout performance in ''

Train to Busan ''Train to Busan'' () is a 2016 South Korean action horror film directed by Yeon Sang-ho and starring Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi, Ma Dong-seok, Kim Su-an, Choi Woo-shik, Ahn So-hee, and Kim Eui-sung. The film mostly takes place on a high-speed train ...

'' and subsequent leading roles, he has become one of South Korea's most successful actors. He was Gallup Korea's Film Actor of the Year in 2018.

Early life

Ma was born on March 1, 1971. He has American citizenship. He lived in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

and attended Columbus State before returning to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

to pursue his acting career.

Career

Ma rose to fame for his

supporting roles ''Supporting Roles'' ( es, Papeles secundarios) is a 1989 Cuban drama film directed by Orlando Rojas. The film was selected as the Cuban entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 62nd Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.Ma ...

in the films '' The Neighbor'', '' Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time'', and ''

The Unjust ''The Unjust'' (; lit. "Bad deal" or "Unfair trade") is a 2010 South Korean action crime film by Ryoo Seung-wan. It is a dark and bitter denunciation of corruption in the South Korean justice system. It was a critical and commercial success, with ...

''. He then played leading roles in ''

Norigae () is a typical, traditional Korean accessory used in , which can be hung on (coat strings) of a woman's or on her . The functions as a decorative pendant and is both a good-luck charm hoped to bring something such as eternal youth, wealth ...

'', ''Murderer'', and '' One on One. Ma's role in the zombie film ''

'' propelled him to international popularity. His subsequent leading roles in films '' Derailed'', ''

The Bros ''The Bros'' is a 2017 South Korean comedy-drama film directed by Chang You-jeong. The film stars Ma Dong-seok, Lee Dong-hwi and Lee Hanee. Plot Seok-bong is a penniless history teacher who dreams of discovering lost treasure. His younger brothe ...

'', '' The Outlaws'', ''

Unstoppable Unstoppable may refer to: Film and television * Unstoppable (2004 film), ''Unstoppable'' (2004 film), an American film directed by David Carson * ''Unstoppable: Conversation with Melvin Van Peebles, Gordon Parks, and Ossie Davis'', a 2005 America ...

'', ''

Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

'', ''

The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil ''The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil'' () is a 2019 South Korean action thriller film directed by Lee Won-tae. The film stars Ma Dong-seok, Kim Mu-yeol and Kim Sung-kyu. The narrative revolves around three characters: a serial killer, the gangste ...

'', '' The Bad Guys: Reign of Chaos'' and '' The Roundup'' along with supporting roles in '' Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days'' and ''

Ashfall The Ashfall Fossil Beds of Antelope County in northeastern Nebraska are rare fossil sites of the type called lagerstätten that, due to extraordinary local conditions, capture an ecological "snapshot" in time of a range of well-preserved fossil ...

'' have met with critical and commercial successes led him to Most Bankable Star of Korean Cinema. Although known for his 'tough guy' persona roles, Ma is often celebrated and criticized for playing similar roles in his movies. In 2019, he joined the cast of the MCU film '' Eternals'' as

Gilgamesh sux, , label=none , image = Hero lion Dur-Sharrukin Louvre AO19862.jpg , alt = , caption = Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyr ...

which marked his Hollywood debut. On television, Ma is known for his roles in the hit OCN series ''

Bad Guys A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. '' Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character ...

'' and ''

Squad 38 ''Squad 38'' () is a South Korean television series starring Ma Dong-seok, Seo In-guk and Choi Soo-young. It aired on cable network OCN on Fridays and Saturdays at 23:00 ( KST) for 16 episodes from June 17, 2016 to August 6, 2016. Synopsis The ...

''. In 2022, Ma signed a contract with LDH Japan, another large Japanese agency. His 2022 release action crime thriller '' The Roundup'', sequel to his 2017 film ''The Outlaws'' not only opened to unanimous positive reviews but also became the highest grossing film of 2022 by surpassing 12 million admissions for the first time since 2019 and all time 3rd highest grosser in South Korea.

Other activities

Under his Westernized name, Don Lee, and before he turned to acting, Ma was the

personal trainer A personal trainer is an individual who creates and delivers safe and effective exercise programs for apparently healthy individuals and groups, or those with medical clearance to exercise. They motivate clients by collaborating to set goals, p ...

mixed martial artists Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

Mark Coleman Mark Daniel Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first UFC Heavyweight Champion, and the Pride Fig ...

and

Kevin Randleman Kevin Christopher Randleman (August 10, 1971 – February 11, 2016) was an American mixed martial artist, professional wrestler, and former UFC Heavyweight Champion. Randleman's background was in collegiate wrestling, in which he became ...

. With his production company Team Gorilla, Ma is currently involved in planning and writing screenplays. He worked on the screenplay for the film ''

Deep Trap ''Deep Trap'' () (previously known as ''Exchange'') is a 2015 South Korean crime thriller film starring Ma Dong-seok, Jo Han-sun and Kim Min-kyung, and directed by Kwon Hyung-jin. Based on an actual SNS crime, it depicts the terror experienced by ...

'', in which he starred. He is also the co-creator of the OCN Dramatic Cinema series '' Team Bulldog: Off-Duty Investigation''.

Armwrestling

Ma has been an amateur armwrestler since 2008, and he became the president of Korea Armwrestling Federation in 2018.

Personal life

In 2016, Ma was reportedly dating sports reporter and media personality Ye Jung-hwa. On October 20, 2022, Ma's agency stated that he and Ye has registered their marriage last year. The wedding ceremony will be held at a later date, due to

Covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

situation and busy schedules.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Ma Dong-seok
at Big Punch Ent * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Dong-seok 1971 births Living people People from Seoul Male actors from Seoul American male film actors American male television actors 21st-century American male actors South Korean expatriates in the United States American male actors of Korean descent People with acquired American citizenship Best Supporting Actor Paeksang Arts Award (film) winners