Yoo Ah-in

Yoo Ah-in
Born	Eom Hong-sik (1986-10-06) October 6, 1986 Daegu, South Korea
Education	Konkuk University - B.A in Film
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2003–present
Agent	StarK Management (2005–2013) United Artists Agency[1] (2014–present)
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Korean name
Hangul	유아인
Hanja	劉亞仁
Revised Romanization	Yu A-in
McCune–Reischauer	Yu A-in
Birth name
Hangul	엄홍식
Hanja	嚴弘植
Revised Romanization	Eom Hong-sik
McCune–Reischauer	Om Hongsik

Yoo Ah-in (born Eom Hong-sik^[2] on October 6, 1986) is a South Korean actor. He rose to fame in television series Sungkyunkwan Scandal (2010), and became best known for his leading roles in coming-of-age film Punch (2011), melodrama Secret Love Affair (2014), action blockbuster Veteran (2015), period drama film The Throne (2015),^[3] and historical drama series Six Flying Dragons (2015-2016). Yoo currently has three films, Punch, Veteran and The Throne, in the list of highest-grossing films in South Korea.

Career

Eom Hong-sik was born in Daegu and dropped out of high school to pursue acting.^[4] Using the stage name Yoo Ah-in, he made his acting debut in the teen series Sharp 1 in 2003. Various roles on film and television followed. Yoo portrayed a lost teenager in low-budget indie film Boys of Tomorrow, a lonely warrior in historical drama Chil-woo the Mighty, the energetic patisserie aspirant in comedy film Antique,^[5] and a cheeky assistant in romantic comedy He Who Can't Marry.

Yoo rise to fame eventually came in 2010 when he acted in fusion period drama Sungkyunkwan Scandal.^{[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]} Due to the drama's popularity, Yoo shot to stardom along with the rest of the young cast. This was followed by his first big-screen leading role in the coming-of-age film Punch, a critical and commercial hit in 2011.^{[14][15][16][17][18]} His costar, veteran actor Kim Yoon-seok predicted that "In the next 10 years, he will be one of the biggest names in Korean cinema."^[4]

However, Yoo's next project Fashion King was poorly received by audiences, particularly its controversial ending.^{[19][20][21][22]}

Considered one of the most outspoken and politically minded Korean actors of his generation, Yoo drew media attention in late 2012 when he tweeted a strongly worded criticism against the withdrawal of Ahn Cheol-soo from the presidential race.^[23][24] Yoo's unconventional image was strengthened by his willingness to make his social, artistic and philosophical interests public, and he is also the director of a "complex creative space" called Studio Concrete in Hannam-dong, Seoul, which he created with a group of seven artists of various media.^[3]

Cast as King Sukjong in the 2013 period drama Jang Ok-jung, Living by Love, a revisionist take on infamous royal concubine Jang Hui-bin,^[25] Yoo called the role one of the biggest challenges of his career and he garnered favorable press reviews for his mature, charismatic and versatile portrayal of the historical figure.^[4]

He then played the titular character in the film Tough as Iron, about a Busan pier worker who takes care of his mother afflicted with dementia and kidney disease.^[26] Yoo and Tough as Iron costar, Jung Yu-mi later collaborated again as voice actors in the animated film The Satellite Girl and Milk Cow.^[27]

In 2014, he appeared as a quirky supporting role in Lee Han's Thread of Lies (this was Lee's second film adaptation of a Kim Ryeo-ryeong novel after Punch). This was followed by a leading role in cable melodrama Secret Love Affair, in which Yoo played a piano prodigy who falls for a married, much older woman.^[28]

In 2015, Yoo starred in two top-grossing films.^[3] He played an amoral young millionaire who faces off with a detective in Ryoo Seung-wan's crime thriller/comedy Veteran, and as the tragic Crown Prince Sado in Lee Joon-ik's period drama The Throne, giving critics and audiences alike a taste of his versatility and growing competence in challenging roles.^{[29][30][31][32][33][34]} Veteran drew 13.4 million admissions, making it the 3rd all-time highest-grossing film in South Korean cinema history. The Throne is also placed #38 in the List of highest-grossing films in South Korea. Both films drew strong critical acclaim, and Yoo's acting performance in both films were highly praised. Yoo received numerous Best Actor recognition at prestigious award ceremonies such as the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards, Blue Dragon Film Awards, Korean Film Reporters Association Awards, Max Movie Awards, Chunsa Film Art Awards and Golden Cinematography Awards. In addition, Yoo is named as movie actor of the year in the 2015 Gallup Korea Survey, beating out other older and more experienced actors. He also placed #2 on the Korea Power Celebrity 40, a list compiled by the magazine Forbes Korea; it was his first time entering the Top 10.

Yoo was then cast in the historical drama series Six Flying Dragons, reuniting with Fashion King co-star, Shin Se-kyung.^[35][36] At the Baeksang Arts Awards, he became the first actor to be nominated as Best Actor in both the film and TV category. Eventually, Yoo's portrayal of an ambitious prince Yi Bang-won eventually garnered him the Best Actor award in the TV Category. Next, he plays a famous actor in Like for Likes, a movie inspired from Facebook which tells the story of a group of people who are interconnected through and addicted to their social media accounts, who share their daily lives with one another online and discover love.

Yoo is cast in the film, Burning along with Kang Dong-won. Helmed by critically acclaimed director Lee Chang-dong who is behind the award-winning film Poetry, the movie is about the intertwined lives of one woman, a chaebol man, and a deliveryman.^[37]

Filmography

Film

Television Drama

Variety Shows

Music video appearances

Endorsements

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Yoo Ah-In.

• Yoo Ah-in on Twitter
  
• Yoo Ah-in on Instagram
• Yoo Ah-in on Cyworld
• Yoo Ah-in Fan Cafe at Daum
• Yoo Ah-in at HanCinema
  
• Yoo Ah-in at the Korean Movie Database
• Yoo Ah-in at the Internet Movie Database