Jin Seonkyu, born in 1977, first thought of becoming a PE teacher; he had long been practicing martial arts and weightlifting to this purpose. But one day in 1996, when he was in high school, a friend invited him to visit a theater company. Fascinated by all these actors having such a good time rehearsing in a rather modest space, he gave up his initial plan and decided to major in acting at the Korea National University of Arts, despite suffering from a crippling shyness at ...More

Jin Seonkyu, born in 1977, first thought of becoming a PE teacher; he had long been practicing martial arts and weightlifting to this purpose. But one day in 1996, when he was in high school, a friend invited him to visit a theater company. Fascinated by all these actors having such a good time rehearsing in a rather modest space, he gave up his initial plan and decided to major in acting at the Korea National University of Arts, despite suffering from a crippling shyness at the time. After graduating in 2004, he created Performance Delivery Service Ganda with a group of friends, and together they presented their first production later that year in the form of an a cappella musical named <Behind the Mirror>. Despite many hardships, ten years later it had become one of the most famous troupes in Daehangno, Seoul’s theater district. In 2008, Jin made his debut on the big screen as an extra in Kim Jeewoon’s <The Good, The Bad, And The Weird>. After that, he often appeared in minor or supporting roles, notably in <Poongsan> (2011), <Helpless> (2011), <Venus Talk> (2013), and <Tabloid Truth> (2013), all the while remaining active on the stage. He was first noticed by public with his turn as a civil servant supporting the revolution during the early years of the Joseon dynasty in historical TV series <Six Flying Dragons> (2015). His breakthrough role came two years later when he played the right-hand man of a ruthless Korean gangster from China in the Don Lee vehicle <THE OUTLAWS> (2017). He initially didn’t pass the first round of auditions because he was deemed too kind-looking for the role, but he kept calling back the director until the latter gave in and offered him a second chance. He seized it, this time showing up with a bald head, which turned out to be a true game-changer. Particularly praised for his command of the distinctive Yanbian dialect of Korean, the result of intensive lessons, he took home the Blue Dragon Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. That same year, he also appeared in the crime thriller <The Merciless>, the political thriller <The Mayor> and the historical court drama <The Fortress>. In 2018, he was given his first starring role on the big screen in the smash hit comedy <Extreme Job>, one of Korea’s most successful films ever, catapulting him to stardom. Next for him what the period zombie drama series <Kingdom> (2019) on Netflix, followed by the films <Long Live the King> (2019) and <Man of Men> (2019). He then starred as spaceship engineer Park Tiger in Jo Sunghee’s sci-fi comedy <SPACE SWEEPERS> (2021), and in 2022, he was cast as one of the leads in the historical crime thriller series <Through the Darkness> (2022), playing one of Korea’s first criminal profilers. In <Confidential Assignment2: International> (2021), he appeared as the leader of a North Korean criminal organization that motivates the return of the special North-South joint unit formed by Hyun Bin and Yoo Haijin.Less