LEE Byung-hun, one of the most famous actors from Korea, has pursued his passion of becoming an actor in the most conventional way possible. Having inherited his father's passion of movies, he began his career by attending and finally passing an open audition given by one of the public television networks like many other acting aspirants of the day. After joining KBS's resident actors in 1991, he became the new face of the youthful generation with the popular drama Tomorrow Love (1992-1994), and subsequently left his imprint on Korean cinema history with his leading part in Park Chan-wook's Joint Security Area /JSA in 2000. 

He has always devoted his distinct voice and physique first and foremost to the service of the director's vision, inhabiting some of the most unforgettable characters in Korean films. His life has become rather inextricably linked to the industry's progressive successes; he was not only one of the early Hallyu stars, he is also one of the fortunate few who featured in films garnering 10 million admissions, and even works in Hollywood. As he returns to theaters this week with Concrete Utopia, one of the summer season's blockbusters, we're going back in time to look back at this unique career.

Concrete Utopia (2023), by Um Tae-hwa

After a massive earthquake devastates Seoul and its surrounding area, just one apartment building remains standing. When its inhabitants realize that thousands of survivors are converging there pleading for refuge from the cold and food, they determine that only the original residents will be permitted inside the perimeter. Lee is one of them, and his commitment to keep the outsiders out impresses his neighbors, who elect him as their leader. But he swiftly becomes addicted to power and violence. Early reactions have praised Lee's portrayal of the character, calling it a career-defining performance.

The Man Standing Next (2020), by Woo Min-ho

Based on the assassination of President Park Chung-hee in 1979, this film attempts to comprehend the moral quandary that caused Kim Gyu-pyeong, the KCIA director at the time played by Lee, to (allegedly) assassinate the man he was meant to serve. The film takes a near-clinical approach to the power conflicts and corruption within the authoritarian regime and how they may have led to its demise. This compelling and suspenseful political thriller won several accolades and was submitted for Academy Awards in 2021. 

Inside Men (2015), by Woo Min-ho

Lee plays a criminal who loses his hand after attempting to steal documents indicating a shady deal involving a politician running for president and a prominent journalist in Inside Men (2015). He resolves to exact his vengeance by collaborating with a prosecutor. Lee stated that he picked this film because he wanted to play a character who was not fixed in stone. The big problem for him was speaking in Jeolla Province dialect, something he had never done before. That wasn't a huge concern to him, he quipped, because "I can act in English, so this was nothing." Cho Seung-woo, Lee's co-star, considered this as Lee's greatest performance.

Masquerade (2012), by Choo Chang-min

In Masquerade (2012), Lee Byung-hun portrays both King Gwang-hae and a jester who is hired to pretend to be the King to trick assassins. Everything goes smoothly until the King becomes ill, and the impersonator ends up having to continue playing the part, eventually making his version of the King more appreciated than the genuine one. Lee had his work cut out for him already, but the fact that the sequences were filmed out of order made it even more difficult to achieve the fitting tone and emotions for each take. "But I had a lot of fun doing it," he said. "Later, I was so engrossed in it that the director, Choo Chang-min, had to ask me to 'tone it down a bit.'"

I Saw The Devil (2010), by Kim Jee-woon

No one who has seen the film will be surprised to learn that Lee's work in I Saw the Devil (2010) was intense. Even if his previous two collaborations with director Kim Ji-woon had made him feel at ease, playing a guy who lost his fiancée to a serial killer (Choi Min-shik) and plays a game of cat and mouse with him was evidently exhausting. "There was some kind of energy that I couldn't describe throughout filming, and I was very exhausted by being crushed by it."

Once In A Summer (2006), by Joh Keun-shik

In August 2006, Lee was already a star, with Japanese fans flocking to the Once in a Summer set to meet him. In this one, Lee played a prominent but reclusive professor who recalls his first love from 1969, when he was a college student fighting for democracy at a time of turbulence in the country. When he volunteers to help modernize an isolated village, he meets a lovely and joyful girl, but their relationship is endangered by dark secrets and political upheaval.

A Bittersweet Life (2005), by Kim Jee-woon

This neo-noir thriller was one of the most important films that introduced Lee to filmgoers all over the world. Lee brings to life the complicated character in this fascinating story by portraying a captivating combination of intensity and sensitivity. The film, directed by Kim Jee-woon, develops as a superb examination of devotion, vengeance, and unexpected emotions, as Lee portrays a gangster who refuses to kill his boss' mistress, which makes him the target of the entire gang.

Bungee Jumping Of Their Own (2001), by Kim Dai-seung

In this film, Lee Byung-hun and the late actress Lee Eun-joo played two college students who fall in love instantly and resolve to perform bungee jumping together one day. Lee carries on with his life after her unexpected death, marries, and becomes a high school teacher. One day, he finds something oddly similar in one of his students, particularly the way he speaks. As he reflects on the past, he becomes persuaded that his previous lover has been reborn. When Lee Eun-joo questioned her co-star if it was difficult to play the same role as a college student and as a married man and teacher, Lee stopped before answering: “Well, even if aspects like speech, personality, and appearance change over time, the fundamentals remain constant. I attempted to be loyal to the character's emotions."

Joint Security Area /JSA (2000), by Park Chan-wook

Joint Security Area is the film that launched Park Chan-wook's career, but it also established Lee as a recognized actor. It delves into the complicated and strained ties between North and South Korea through a high-stakes investigation into an incident on the world's most fortified border. Lee plays a South Korean sergeant who admits to murdering two North Korean troops, but his account is challenged by his North Korean counterpart. Lee Byung-hun gives an enthralling portrayal as a troubled and disturbed figure who seeks to conceal the truth about the tragedy.