Lee Joon-gi

Lee Joon-gi

Lee in 2022

Born 17 April 1982 (age 42)

Daeyeon-dong, Nam-gu, Busan, South Korea[1]

Education Seoul Arts College

 Actor
Occupations
 singer

 dancer

 model

Years active 2001–present

Agent Namoo Actors[2]

Korean name

Hangul 이준기

Hanja 李準基

Revised Romanization I Jun-gi

McCune–Reischauer Yi Chungi
 Website www.leejoongi.co.kr

Lee Joon-gi (Korean: 이준기; born 17 April 1982)[3] is a South Korean actor, singer, also
a writer, dancer, and model. He rose to fame on his first leading role playing a clown in
the critically acclaimed film The King and the Clown (2005) and gained further
recognition in the romantic comedy My Girl (2005−06). Since then, he has diversified
into other genres such as historical dramas (sageuk) and action thrillers. He is also
known for his roles in Iljimae (2008), Arang and the Magistrate (2012), Moon Lovers:
Scarlet Heart Ryeo (2016), Lawless Lawyer (2018), and Flower of Evil (2020).
The popularity of his work overseas, especially in Asia, have established him as a
top Hallyu star.[4][5][6]
Early life[edit]
Lee Joon-gi was born in Daeyeon-dong, Nam-gu, Busan, South Korea[1] but spent his
schooling years in nearby Changwon.[7] He first became interested in the performing arts
as a high school student after watching a performance of Hamlet. After finishing high
school, he went against his parents' wishes for him to enter university and moved to
Seoul to pursue a career in the entertainment industry.[7] For the next several years, Lee
worked at various part-time jobs such as waiting tables while auditioning for roles and
also debuted as a print and commercial model in 2001.[8][9] He was accepted into the
Seoul Arts College on a scholarship[10][11] and graduated in 2007.[12]
Career[edit]
2005: King and the Clown and rising fame[edit]

In January 2006
After bit-part roles in several dramas and films, Lee had his first major acting role in the
2005 film The King and the Clown, in which he played the historical figure Gong-gil, an
effeminate clown in the Joseon period.[13] The film, which achieved both critical and
commercial success, propelled the then-unknown actor into Asia-wide stardom.[14]
[15]
Apart from winning numerous Best Newcomer recognition at the Korean Film
Awards, Grand Bell Awards and Baeksang Art Awards,[16][17][18] Lee also won the Best
Actor Award at the Max Movie Awards.
Producer Lee Joon-ik revealed the story of how he chose Lee for The King and the
Clown, despite being an unknown and relatively new actor, by just seeing him do
handstands, saying, "Just because of handstands, Lee Joon-gi became the person he is
today."[19] After the film, Lee became "an icon" of the South Korean "pretty boy" trend.[20][21]
[22][23]
Lee has since tried to downplay this kkonminam image, saying that his character
Gong-gil in the film felt like being in foot-irons so he wanted to escape from the image:
"After my performance in The King and the Clown, I found myself at the forefront of this
‘pretty boy’ trend, whether or not that was my intention. Suddenly, people were
interested in me, and there was all this praise and criticism all at the same time.
Everything was just so overwhelming. I felt like I was floating on air."[24]
Lee was against the halving of screen quotas in South Korea that allows foreign films to
be shown in theaters on certain days, while domestic films are allotted another number
of days. He believed that without the screen quotas, The King and the Clown would not
have been as successful in competing against foreign films.[25][26]
2006–2007: Overseas popularity[edit]
Lee was then cast in SBS's My Girl alongside Lee Da-hae and Lee Dong-wook. The
romance comedy series became a hit during its run both domestically and across Asia,
further catapulting Lee into Korean Wave stardom.[27][28]
For his follow-up film Fly, Daddy, Fly, directed by Choi Jong-tae and produced by Dyne
Film-Guardtec, he was reportedly paid ₩100 million, relatively low given his rising
popularity following King and the Clown. This is because the contract was signed in
early December before the film's release when Lee was an unknown actor.[29][30] The film
garnered much attention and media coverage among Chinese viewers.[31]
In 2007, Lee filmed a joint Korea-Japan movie entitled Virgin
Snow with Japanese actress Aoi Miyazaki, in which he plays a Korean exchange
student.[32] Virgin Snow was successful as it placed 9th at the box office chart and set a
new ticket admissions record for a Korean film released in Japan.[33] Lee later received
the Rising Star Award at the 27th Hawaii International Film Festival.[34] The same year,
he participated in the film May 18, which is based on the events surrounding
the Gwangju Massacre of 1980. 18 May achieved excellent box office results, and was
later awarded the Gold Orchid Best Feature Film for the year of 2007.[34] However, there
was criticism that both of these productions, along with Fly, Daddy, Fly, had "either
fallen short of expectations at the box office or cast Lee in minor roles."[24]
Lee also took on his first drama leading role in MBC action drama, Time Between Dog
and Wolf, in which he played a vengeful NIS agent with a violent streak.[35][36] He won the
Excellence Award at the 2007 MBC Drama Awards for his performance. Director Kim
Jin-min opined some years later that it was a turning point for Lee as the role enabled
him to shed his "pretty boy" image and also highlight his martial arts background.[37][38]
2008–2009: Tourism ambassadorship and contractual dispute[edit]
 In Shanghai in May 2009
From April to July 2008, Lee played the titular role in SBS's Iljimae, a period-action
drama based on Chinese folklore from the Ming dynasty about a masked Robin Hood-
esque character during the Joseon era.[39][40] The final episode achieved a rating of 31.4%
viewership, and Lee later received the Top Excellence Award at the 2008 SBS Drama
Awards. The drama was also aired in Japan on the channel TV Tokyo.[24]
On 29 July 2008, Lee was chosen as the Ambassador for the 2008 Seoul Hallyu
Festival. He was also appointed the first Honorary Legal System Officer since the
constitution of the Government Legislation Agency to commemorate their 60th
anniversary.[41]
In September 2008, Lee had a contractual dispute with his agency Mentor
Entertainment, whom he was signed to since March 2004 in an exclusive contract for
five years. Lee was being sued for ₩500 million for breach of contract and for
supposedly hiding ₩1 billion in an attempt to "established his own agency in association
with his manager". Lee countered that he "underwent significant financial damage as
the company was poor in dealing with tax affairs and profit distribution" and he is said to
have notified them of contract cancellation in February.[42]
On 5 August 2009, Lee was appointed promotional ambassador of the Korea Tourism
Organization.[43][44] The same year, he starred in the comedic-action drama Hero, playing
a reporter.[45][46]
2010–2012: Military service[edit]
In February 2010, upon the expiration of Lee's contract with Mentor Entertainment, he
signed with a newly established independent agency, JG Company.[47]
On 3 May 2010, Lee enlisted in the Republic of Korea Army to serve his mandatory
military service. He first underwent five weeks of basic training at Nonsan military
training camp, earning top scores in marksmanship,[48] and was later drafted into active
duty.[49][50] He was assigned to the public relations department of the Ministry of National
Defense[51][52] He had initially applied for a postponement because he was in the midst of
shooting Grand Prix with actress Kim Tae-hee, and was cast to star in television
drama Faith. He was also chosen to represent Korea as a goodwill ambassador at
the 2010 Shanghai Expo.[53] However, Military Manpower Administration declined and
sent a final notice for enlistment, leading him to pull out of both projects.[54]
In August, Lee co-starred with fellow actor Ju Ji-hoon in military musical, Voyage of
Life to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Korean War.[55] The musical was also
co-produced by the Ministry of National Defense and Korea Musical Theatre
Association, and was shown from 21 to 29 August in the National Theater of Korea.[56]
[57]
After serving 21 months of active duty, Lee was discharged on 16 February 2012 from
the Defense Media Agency at Yongsan-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul.[58][59] On the day when
he was discharged, Lee held a fan meeting, "Reunion JG" at Sangmyung Art Center,
Seoul.[60] This was followed by fan event tour of Japan, titled Coming Back in Nagoya,
Yokohama and Osaka from 16 to 19 March.[61]
2012–2013: Comeback[edit]
In May 2012, Lee co-starred with Shin Min-a in MBC's period horror-romance Arang
and the Magistrate, his first project after being discharged.[62][63] The series was a success
and became the most expensive drama to be sold to Japan by MBC.[64] Lee was later
recognized at the Seoul International Drama Awards, winning the Outstanding Korean
Drama Actor award.[65]
On 27 September 2012, Lee Joon Gi's JG Style was shown on Mnet Japan,
documenting Lee's comeback to the entertainment industry. The series was later
awarded the Grand Prize in the Korean wave category at the Skapa Award 2012 in
Japan.[66][67]
In 2013, Lee starred in the action thriller Two Weeks, playing a father struggling to save
his daughter from leukemia while fighting a murder charge.[68][69] He received Top
Excellence Award in the male category at the 2nd APAN Star Awards.[70]
2014–present: Historical dramas and action roles[edit]
Lee signed with a new management agency, Namoo Actors.[71] He then starred in the
period drama Gunman in Joseon (2014) and won critical acclaim for his acting and
action scenes, winning the Outstanding Korean Drama Actor for a second time at
the Seoul International Drama Awards.[72][73][74] The drama topped the ratings for its time
slot and also garnered attention overseas, especially in China where it surpassed 200
million views in a month on Tencent QQ's video-viewing platform.[75][76] This was followed
by the vampire romance series Scholar Who Walks the Night in 2015,[77][78] which earned
Lee a "Top Ten Stars" award at the MBC Drama Awards. The same year, he was cast
in his first Chinese movie, Never Said Goodbye.[79][80]
In January 2016, Lee was cast in the lead role of Wang So in Moon Lovers: Scarlet
Heart Ryeo, a Korean remake of the Chinese television series, Scarlet Heart.[81][82] The
20-episode drama, budgeted at US$13 million, premiered on 29 August 2016.[83] The
production was not well received domestically,[84] but averaged 100 million cumulative
views per episode during its simulcast on the Chinese video hosting site Youku and led
to a rise in popularity for Lee in China.[85][86][87] On 1 November, Lee hosted a free fan
meeting titled “My Love Lee Joon-gi” where fans were able to watch the final episode
of Moon Lovers with him in attendance.[88]
In October 2016, Lee signed as a new model for Lotte Duty Free Shop. He also co-
starred in a promotional web drama titled 7 First Kisses for the company.[89] Lee then
made his Hollywood debut with an appearance in the sixth and final installment of
the Resident Evil series titled, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter which was released
worldwide in January 2017.[90][91]
In 2017, Lee starred in tvN's crime procedural drama Criminal Minds, based on
the American series of the same name.[92] His convincing acting performance as a
criminal profiler garnered him plaudits from critics and viewers.[93][94]
In 2018, Lee returned to tvN and was cast in Lawless Lawyer, his first legal drama and
the first time he has portrayed a lawyer.[95][96] He reunited with director Kim Jin-min, who
previously worked with him in Time Between Dog and Wolf.[97]
In 2020, Lee was cast in the tvN thriller melodrama The Flower of Evil, reuniting him
with Criminal Minds co-star Moon Chae-won.[98] He was praised for his chemistry with
Moon portraying a married couple.[99][100] Lee's name was the most searched keyword on
domestic search engines for three consecutive weeks, based on data compiled by Good
Data Corporation.[101] For his performance, Lee was nominated for Best Actor –
Television at 57th Baeksang Arts Awards.[102]
In 2022, Lee made a comeback to the small screen with SBS drama Again My Life, his
return to terrestrial television in six years since 2016.[103]
In 2023, Lee starred in the second season of the tvN historical fantasy drama Arthdal
Chronicles, where he portrayed a set of twins.
Personal life[edit]
Lee enjoys learning and practicing different types of martial arts during his spare time.
[104]
His father had signed him up for martial arts lessons as a child to keep him out of
trouble and he continued practicing into adulthood, mostly to prepare for specific roles.
Due to his proficiency in taekwondo and several other forms of martial arts, he rarely
uses a stunt double for fight scenes[105][106] and is recognized within the industry as one of
the country's top action stars.[107][97][38][108]
Filmography[edit]
Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref.

The Hotel Venus Boy Japanese production [109]

2004
Flying Boys Dong-wan [109]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.

2005 The King and the Clown Gong-gil

2006 Fly, Daddy, Fly Go Seung-suk [29]

May 18 Kang Jin-woo [110]

2007
Virgin Snow Kim Min Korean and Japanese co-production [32]

Never Said Goodbye Jun-ho Chinese production [79]

2016
Resident Evil: The Final
Commander Chu Hollywood debut [90]

Chapter

Television series[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref.

2003 Nonstop 4 Himself Cameo

Drama City – "What Should I Cameo (ep.

Seong-ho [109]

Do?" 234)
2004

Star's Echo Chan-gyu [111]

2005 My Girl Seo Jung-woo [28]

2006 The 101st Proposal Himself Cameo (ep. 1) [112]

2007 Time Between Dog and Wolf Lee Soo-hyun / Kay [36]
Year Title Role Notes Ref.

2008 Iljimae Yong / Lee Geom [39]

2009 Hero Jin Do-hyuk [45]

2012 Arang and the Magistrate Kim Eun-oh [63]

2013 Two Weeks Jang Tae-san [68]

Park Yoon-kang / Hasegawa

2014 Gunman in Joseon [72]

Hanjo

The Scholar Who Walks the Night Kim Sung-yeol [77]

2015
She Was Pretty Himself Cameo (ep. 9) [113]

2016 Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo 4th Prince Wang So [114]

2017 Criminal Minds Kim Hyun-joon [92]

2018 Lawless Lawyer Bong Sang-pil [96]

2019 Hotel del Luna Exorcist Cameo (ep. 3) [115]

2020 Flower of Evil Baek Hee-sung / Do Hyun-soo [116]

2022 Again My Life Kim Hee-woo [117]

2023 Arthdal Chronicles Adult Eun-seom / Saya Season 2 [118]

Web series[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref.

2016 7 First Kisses Episode 1–2 [89]

Himself
Secret Queen
2018 Episode 6 [119]

Makers

Reality show[edit]

Year Title Notes Ref.

World Special "LOVE" – Indonesia with Lee Joon-gi and Kim Ha-
2009 March 21 and 28 [120]

neul

2012 Lee Joon-Gi's JG Style [121]

2013 Lee Joon-Gi's JG World

2018 Lee Joon-Gi's JG Island

Musical[edit]
Year Title Role Ref.

Voyage of
2010 [55]

Life

Discography[edit]
Albums[edit]

Year Name Track listing

1. "One Word"
2006 My Jun, My Style
Year Name Track listing

2. "Don't Know Love"

3. "Foolish Love" (Babo Sarang)

Nam Hyun-joon - One & Only 1. "Fly High" feat. Seo In-young
1. "J Style"
2. "Soliloquy"
2009 J Style 3. "I'm Ready"
4. "Selfless Dedicated Tree"
5. "Fiery Eyes" (Japanese album)
1. "Together"
Deucer[122]
2. "The Rain"
2012 Released: 16 March (limited edition) 3. "Born Again"
25 April (regular edition) 4. "Sweet Memory"
1. "The Answer (Intro)"
CBC / Case by Case[123] 2. "Tonight"
3. "Case By Case"
Released: 29 January 4. "Closer"
5. "Lost Frame"
2013
1. "Fever"
My Dear[124] 2. "My Dear"
3. "Fiery Eyes (New ver.)"
Released: 10 December 4. "Foolish Love (New ver.)"
5. "Selfless Dedicated Tree (New ver.)"
1. "Ma Lady"
2. "U"
Exhale[125] 3. "For A While"
2014
Released: 21 November 4. "Bring Da Beat" (Feat. Yoo Seung-chan)
5. "Ma Lady (Inst.)"
6. "For A While (Inst.)"

Thank You[126] 1. "Thank You"

2016 2. "Now"
Released: 3 December 3. "We Wish You a Merry Christmas"

Delight[127] 1. "Accepted"
2018 2. "For Us"
Released: 10 December 3. "Can't Be Slow"

Soundtrack[edit]

Title Year Album Ref.

 Arang and the Magistrate OST part
"One Day" 2012 [128]

Bibliography[edit]
Year Title Notes ISBN

2009 "Lee Joon-gi Sawasdee Khrab" Photobook ISBN 978-8996333319

"Hello Korean 1 with Lee Joon-gi" (Korean, Korean Textbooks + ISBN 978-8994011141 Kore
2010
English, Chinese, Japanese edition) Audio CD an Edition

"O'boy - for Splendid 2wenties of Lee Joon-

2011 Photobook ISBN 978-4903323527
gi" (Published in Japan)

"Time Between Dog and Wolf with Lee

2012 Drama making book ISBN 928-9201878
Joon-gi"

"Hello Korean 2 with Lee Joon-gi" (Korean, Korean Textbooks + ISBN 978-8994011332 Kore
2013
English, Chinese, Japanese edition) Audio CD an Edition

"Hello Korean 3 with Lee Joon-gi" (Korean, Korean Textbooks + ISBN 978-8994011417 Kore
2014
English, Chinese, Japanese edition) Audio CD an Edition

Ambassadorship[edit]
Year Activities Ref.

2006 Honorary Ambassador for the 10th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival [129]

Honorary PR Ambassador for the exhibition of 'Immortal painter'-Van Gogh [130]

2007
Honorary Ambassador for anti-piracy film [131]
 Year Activities Ref.

Goodwill Ambassador for cultural exchange between Korea and China [132]

2008
Honorary Ambassador for Seoul Hallyu Festival [41]

2008–
Honorary Legal System Officer (名譽法制官) [41]

2009

2009–
Honorary Tourism Ambassador for the Korea Tourism Organization [43]

2010

Honorary PR Ambassador for the 2010 Shanghai Expo: Korea Pavilion in Shanghai,
2010 [133]

China

2015–
Promotional ambassador of Ritz-Carlton Seoul [134]

2016

Awards and nominations[edit]

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

Andre Kim Best

2007 New and Superior Star Award Lee Joon-gi Won [135]

Star Awards

APAN Star Awards 2013 Top Excellence Award Two Weeks Won [70]

2021 Popular Star Award, Actor Flower of Evil Nominated

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

KT Seezn Star Award Nominated

2017 Fabulous Award Criminal Minds Won [136]

Asia Artist Awards Asia Celebrity Won

2020 Flower of Evil [137]

Best Artist Award Won

Asia Model Awards 2007 K-Wave Special Award Lee Joon-gi Won [138]

Baeksang Arts Best New Actor – Film King and the Clown Won
Awards
2006 [139][18]

InStyle Fashionista Award Lee Joon-gi Won

2007 Most Popular Actor Fly, Daddy, Fly Won [140]

2009 Best Actor – Television Iljimae Nominated [141]

2014 Two Weeks Nominated

Most Popular Actor (TV)

Moon Lovers:
2017 Nominated
Scarlet Heart Ryeo

[102]
2021 Best Actor – Television Flower of Evil Nominated
Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

Most Popular Actor (TV) Nominated

Best New Actor Nominated

Blue Dragon Film Popular Star Award Won

2006 King and the Clown [142]

Awards

Best On-Screen Couple

Won
Award (with Kam Woo-sung)

2006 Nominated [143]

Busan International
Male Rising Star Award
Film Festival
Nominated [144]

Lee Joon-gi
2007
China Fashion
South Korean Artist of the Year Won [145]

Awards

Chunsa Film Art King and the Clown

Nominated
Awards
2006
Golden Cinema Best New Actor
Won [146]

Film festival

[147]
Grand Bell Awards 2006 Won

Popularity Award Won

Korean Wave Popularity Award Won

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

Hawaii
International Film 2007 Rising Star Award Lee Joon-gi Won [34]

Festival

Top Excellence Award Nominated

KBS Drama Excellence Award Won [148]

2014 Gunman in Joseon
Awards

Best Couple Award (with Nam Won [149]

Sang-mi)

Korean Film
2006 Best New Actor King and the Clown Won [16]

Awards

Korean Martial Arts Time Between Dog

2009 Martial Arts Actor Award Won [150]

Federation and Wolf, Iljimae

Korea Youth Film

Best New Actor Lee Joon-gi Won [151]

Festival
2006

Max Movie Awards Best Actor King and the Clown Won [152]

MBC Drama Time Between Dog

2007 Excellence Award Won [153]

Awards and Wolf

[154]
2009 Top Excellence Award Hero Nominated
Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

Popularity Award Won

Top Excellence Award Nominated

Arang and the
2012 [155]

Magistrate
Best Couple Award (with Shin Won
Min-a)

2013 Excellence Award Two Weeks Nominated [156]

Top Excellence Award Nominated

Scholar Who Walks
2015
the Night
Top 10 Stars Award Won [157]

2007 Best Pretty Boy Nominated [158]

Lee Joon-gi
Mnet 20's Choice
Hot Global Star Nominated
Awards
2008 [159]

Hot Drama Star, Male Iljimae Nominated

Mnet KM Music Grace (by Lee Soo-

2006 Best Actor in a Music Video Won [160]

Festival young)

[161]
SBS Drama 2008 Top Excellence Award Iljimae Won
Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

Netizen Popularity Award Won

Top 10 Stars Won

Grand Prize (Daesang) Nominated

Top Excellence Award Nominated

Hallyu Star Award Moon Lovers: Won [162]

2016
Scarlet Heart Ryeo
Awards

Top 10 Stars Award Won [163]

Best Couple Award (with Lee Ji- Won [164]

eun)

Top Excellence Award, Actor in

a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Won [165]

Drama
2022 Again My Life

Grand Prize (Daesang) Nominated [166]

Seoul International Time Between Dog

2008 Most Popular Actor Won [167]

Drama Awards and Wolf

[65]
2013 Outstanding Korean Actor Arang and the Won
Magistrate
 Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the
nomination

Award
Year Category Nominee / Work Result Ref.
ceremony

2015 Gunman in Joseon Won [73]

Shanghai
International Film 2007 Overseas Star Award Lee Joon-gi Won [168]

Festival

Grand Prize, Korean wave Lee Joon-gi's JG

Skapa Awards 2012 Won [66]

category Style

Soompi Annual
Actor Of The Year Criminal Minds Won [169]

Awards
2018
StarHub's Night of
Best Male Asian Star Lawless Lawyer Won [170]

Stars Awards

Taiwan's KKTV Moon Lovers:

2016 Actor of The Year Won [171]

Awards Scarlet Heart Ryeo

Tourism Authority
2009 Special plaque of Appreciation Lee Joon-gi Won [172]

of Thailand

REFERENCE:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Joon-gi