Jang Dong-gun
Encyclopedia
Early life
Spending his childhood in Yongsan-guYongsan-gu
Yongsan-gu is a district of Seoul, South Korea. Its name means "Dragon Hill", derived from the hanja characters for dragon and hill/mountain . It sits to the North of the Han River under the shadow of Seoul Tower. Geographically, it is located right in the center of Seoul. It is home to roughly...
, Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, he later went on to the Korea National University of Arts
Korea National University of Arts
Korea National University of Arts is a national university in Seoul, South Korea. Korea National University of Arts was established in 1993 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea as the only national university of arts with an aim to serve as a leading institution which cultivates...
, dropping out before obtaining a degree.
Career
Jang Dong-gun first entered the entertainment world in a talent contest in 1992. He began by acting in TV dramas such as The Last Match, co-starring Shim Eun-haShim Eun-ha
-Profile:Shim Eun-ha debuted in 1994 in the basketball-themed TV drama The Last Match, and quickly became the nation's most popular and talked-about star...
, and he eventually made his film debut in Repechage (1997) together with Kim Hee-sun
Kim Hee-sun
Kim Hee-sun is a South Korean actress from Seoul who has been acting in Korean TV dramas and films for over a decade.Kim debuted on TV as a year 11 student and later majored in Drama at Chung-Ang University...
.
By the late 1990s he had become quite popular in Korea, but he also became one of the very first Korean stars to garner a fan following in other parts of Asia, after several of his TV dramas were screened there in the late nineties. In 1999, after acting in the critically acclaimed Nowhere to Hide as Park Joong-hoon
Park Joong-hoon
Park Joong-hoon is a South Korean actor.- Life :Park was born and raised in Seoul. After graduating from the department of drama and film of Chung-Ang University, he started his career as an actor in the film Cambo...
's younger partner, Jang moved on to star in a feature that was filmed on location in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
. Titled Anarchists
Anarchists (film)
Anarchists is a 2000 South Korean action film, directed by Yu Yong-Sik and written by Park Chan-wook. Set in Shanghai in 1924, the film is about a covert cell of insurrectionist anarchists who attempt to overthrow the Japanese government's occupation of Korea through propaganda of the deed...
, this tale of five young terrorists from 1930s China helped to elevate his status even further.
Jang's real breakout came in early 2001 in Friend, which smashed the box office record set by Shiri
Shiri
Shiri may refer to any of the following:*Shiri , scientific name Coreoleuciscus splendidus*Shiri , a 1999 South Korean film which takes its name from the fish*Shiri , a fantasy subculture*Shiri Appleby, American actress...
to become (at the time) the biggest Korean film of all time. After playing the nice guy in almost all his previous roles, this portrayal of a tough-talking gangster from Pusan led him to local stardom. The following year he also starred in the popular action blockbuster 2009 Lost Memories
2009 Lost Memories
2009 Lost Memories is a 2002 South Korean science fiction action thriller film directed by Lee Si-myung. It was distributed by CJ Entertainment and was released on February 1, 2002.-Plot:...
set in a futuristic Great Japan.
After appearing in the low-budget film The Coast Guard by controversial director Kim Ki-duk
Kim Ki-duk
Kim Ki-duk is a South Korean filmmaker noted for his idiosyncratic "art-house" cinematic works. His films have received many distinctions in the festival circuit. He is not related to the Kim Ki-duk who directed Yonggary in the 1960s...
, Jang then took the lead role in Kang Je-gyu
Kang Je-gyu
Kang Je-gyu is a South Korean film director. He studied in Chungang University.He firstly got his prize in Korea Youth Film festival and Korea Scenario Awards in 1991.-Career:...
's Taegukgi, an epic film about two brothers set during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. Sure enough, this film would beat Friends record with an astounding 11 million tickets sold. By this time, Jang's name had become known widely throughout Asia.
Jang followed this up with The Promise
The Promise (2005 film)
The Promise is a 2005 Chinese epic fantasy film directed by Chen Kaige and starring Jang Dong-gun, Hiroyuki Sanada, Cecilia Cheung and Nicholas Tse. The film is based on the wuxia romance The K'un-lun Slave, written by P'ei Hsing at the time of the Tang Dynasty.First released in mainland China on...
, a $30 million pan-Asian production by Chinese director Chen Kaige
Chen Kaige
Chen Kaige is a Chinese film director and a leading figure of the fifth generation of Chinese cinema. His films are known for their visual flair and epic storytelling.-Early life:...
in which he played opposite Hong Kong star Cecilia Cheung
Cecilia Cheung
Cecilia Cheung Pak-Chi is a Hong Kong actress and cantopop singer. She is the ex-wife of Nicholas Tse, thus being the daughter-in-law of Patrick Tse and Deborah Lee. She and Nicholas have two sons, Lucas and Quintus Tse...
. Meanwhile, he was cast in Typhoon
Typhoon (2005 film)
Typhoon is a 2005 South Korean action film directed by Kwak Kyung-taek and starring Jang Dong-gun, Lee Jung-jae and Lee Mi-yeon.-Plot:...
as a modern-day pirate who has been betrayed by both North and South Korea. Directed by Friends Kwak Kyung-taek
Kwak Kyung-taek
Kwak Kyung-taek is a South Korean film director best known for his 2001 record-breaking film Friend.- Career :Friend, a drama where conflicting criminal alliances turn old friends into enemies, set a new Korean box office record with an audience of 8 million, and he received the Holden Award for...
, Typhoon
Typhoon (2005 film)
Typhoon is a 2005 South Korean action film directed by Kwak Kyung-taek and starring Jang Dong-gun, Lee Jung-jae and Lee Mi-yeon.-Plot:...
set a new record in 2005 for the highest production budget in Korean film history at $15 million.
For the next four years, Jang kept a low profile in the Korean entertainment sphere as he worked on his Hollywood debut The Warrior's Way
The Warrior's Way
The Warrior's Way is a 2010 fantasy action film starring South Korean actor Jang Dong-gun, Kate Bosworth, Geoffrey Rush, Danny Huston, and Tony Cox...
, also starring Kate Bosworth
Kate Bosworth
Catherine Ann "Kate" Bosworth is an American actress. Bosworth starred in the television series Young Americans, in which she played Bella Banks. She became known with a leading role in 2002's Blue Crush. The following year, Bosworth played the teenage girlfriend of porn star John Holmes in...
and Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Rush
Geoffrey Roy Rush is an Australian actor and film producer. He is one of the few people who has won the "Triple Crown of Acting": an Academy Award, a Tony Award and an Emmy Award. He has won one Academy Award for acting , three British Academy Film Awards , two Golden Globe Awards and four Screen...
. The film encountered problems with post-production and distribution, and was only released in 2010.
He returned to the silver screen in 2009 as the nation's youngest (and most eligible) head of state in Jang Jin
Jang Jin
Jang Jin was born on 28 November 1971 in Seoul, South Korea. He is a leading theatre director, playwright, movie director, screenwriter, and producer in South Korea.-Profile:...
's comedy Good Morning, President.
He reunited with director Kang Je-gyu
Kang Je-gyu
Kang Je-gyu is a South Korean film director. He studied in Chungang University.He firstly got his prize in Korea Youth Film festival and Korea Scenario Awards in 1991.-Career:...
in My Way, set during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
which tells the story of a Korean soldier who is drafted by the Japanese army to fight in the Battle of Normandy
Battle of Normandy
The Invasion of Normandy was the invasion and establishment of Allied forces in Normandy, France, during Operation Overlord in World War II. It was the largest amphibious operation in history...
. Being a large-scale, ambitious pan-Asian collaboration based on a true story, My Way is already the most expensive Korean movie to date (with an estimated budget of $28 million). Also starring Joe Odagiri
Joe Odagiri
, born is a Japanese actor.-Career:Commonly known just as Odajō, and also known for his unusual hairstyle and eclectic style of dressing, he is the epitome of Cool Japan...
and Fan Bingbing, My Way will be simultaneously released in Korea and Japan in December 2011.
He is set to start filming Weixian Guanxi
Dangerous Liaisons (2012 film)
Dangerous Liaisons is 2012 Chinese-South Korean film by Hur Jin-Ho is based novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. It was first adapted into in South Korea film in 2003 entitled Untold Scandal which stared Bae Yong-jun and Jeon Do-yeon....
, a Chinese adaptation of French literature classic Dangerous Liaisons
Les Liaisons dangereuses
Les Liaisons dangereuses is a French epistolary novel by Choderlos de Laclos, first published in four volumes by Durand Neveu from March 23, 1782....
set in 1930s Shanghai, to be directed by Hur Jin-ho
Heo Jin-ho
Heo Jin-ho , born on August 8, 1963, is a South Korean film director and screenwriter. He is a graduate of Yonsei University with a degree in philosophy and has also studied filmmaking at the Korean Academy of Film Arts...
and co-starring Zhang Ziyi
Zhang Ziyi
Zhang Ziyi is a Chinese film actress. Zhang is coined by the media as one of the Four Young Dan actresses in the Film Industry in China, along with Zhao Wei, Xu Jinglei, and Zhou Xun...
and Cecilia Cheung
Cecilia Cheung
Cecilia Cheung Pak-Chi is a Hong Kong actress and cantopop singer. She is the ex-wife of Nicholas Tse, thus being the daughter-in-law of Patrick Tse and Deborah Lee. She and Nicholas have two sons, Lucas and Quintus Tse...
.
Jang is one of the highest paid actors and celebrity endorsers in Korea, consistently topping surveys by industry insiders of most bankable stars. He remains one of Korea's most beloved stars, not only for his projects but because of his gentle, kind image.
Personal life
The famously private actor surprised the country in November 2009 when he went public with his two-year romance with Ko So-young. Since co-starring together in the 1999 film Love Wind, Love Song, rumors about Jang and Ko had spread several times in the past, but both had consistently denied them. The announcement immediately sparked speculation of an impending marriage although it wasn't until March 2010 that Jang officially told his fans at a fan meeting that he would be marrying Ko in May. After months of media frenzy leading up to their nuptials, the two tied the knot on May 2, 2010 in an extravagant wedding ceremony at Seoul's Shilla HotelShilla Hotel
The Shilla is a South Korean operator of luxury hotels and duty free shops. It is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World.Man-Soo Lee is the current General Manager and CEO of The Shilla.-History:...
which was attended by their A-list celebrity friends, swarms of reporters and fans from around the world.
Their son was born on October 4, 2010.
Movies
All movies below are from South Korea except as indicated.- Dangerous LiaisonsDangerous Liaisons (2012 film)Dangerous Liaisons is 2012 Chinese-South Korean film by Hur Jin-Ho is based novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. It was first adapted into in South Korea film in 2003 entitled Untold Scandal which stared Bae Yong-jun and Jeon Do-yeon....
(2012
) - My Way (2011)
- The Warrior's WayThe Warrior's WayThe Warrior's Way is a 2010 fantasy action film starring South Korean actor Jang Dong-gun, Kate Bosworth, Geoffrey Rush, Danny Huston, and Tony Cox...
(2010
) - Good Morning, PresidentGood Morning, PresidentGood Morning, President is a 2009 South Korean film by Jang Jin about three presidents faced with the crisis of their life...
(2009) - The PromiseThe Promise (2005 film)The Promise is a 2005 Chinese epic fantasy film directed by Chen Kaige and starring Jang Dong-gun, Hiroyuki Sanada, Cecilia Cheung and Nicholas Tse. The film is based on the wuxia romance The K'un-lun Slave, written by P'ei Hsing at the time of the Tang Dynasty.First released in mainland China on...
(2005 ) - TyphoonTyphoon (2005 film)Typhoon is a 2005 South Korean action film directed by Kwak Kyung-taek and starring Jang Dong-gun, Lee Jung-jae and Lee Mi-yeon.-Plot:...
(2005) - Taegukgi: The Brotherhood of WarTaegukgi (film)Taegukgi Hwinallimyo is a 2004 South Korean war film directed by Kang Je-gyu. It tells the story about the effect of the Korean War on two brothers. The film's title is the name of the pre-war Flag of Korea as well as the postwar Flag of South Korea...
(2004) - The Coast Guard (2002)
- 2009 Lost Memories2009 Lost Memories2009 Lost Memories is a 2002 South Korean science fiction action thriller film directed by Lee Si-myung. It was distributed by CJ Entertainment and was released on February 1, 2002.-Plot:...
(2002) - Friend (2001)
- AnarchistsAnarchists (film)Anarchists is a 2000 South Korean action film, directed by Yu Yong-Sik and written by Park Chan-wook. Set in Shanghai in 1924, the film is about a covert cell of insurrectionist anarchists who attempt to overthrow the Japanese government's occupation of Korea through propaganda of the deed...
(2000) - Nowhere to Hide (1999)
- Love Wind, Love Song (1999)
- First Kiss (cameoCameo appearanceA cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
, 1998) - Holiday In SeoulHoliday In SeoulHoliday In Seoul is a 1997 South Korean film starring Choi Jin-sil....
(1997) - Repechage (1997)
Television dramas
- All About Eve (2000)
- Ghost (1999)
- Springtime (1999)
- Love (1998)
- Ready Go! (1998)
- Myth of a Hero (1997)
- Model (1997)
- Medical Brothers (1997)
- Icing (1996)
- The Last Match (1994)
- Il Ji MaeIljimaeIljimae is a Korean drama broadcast from May to July 2008 on SBS. It is loosely based on a comic by Ko Woo Yung that was based on a Chinese folktale from the Ming dynasty. It was produced by Lee Yong Suk. The plot is different from the original comic because the production company could not get...
(1993) - Our Heaven (1992)
Discography
- Dong-gun & Bon-seung (1998)
- Flying (1995)
- Friendship by Jang Dong-gun & Jun Chul (1994)
- Jang Dong-kun (Our Heaven OSTSoundtrackA soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
) (1993)
Awards
- 2009: Andre KimAndré KimAndre Kim was a South Korean fashion designer based in Seoul, South Korea. He was known predominantly for his evening and wedding gown collections.-Biography:Andre Kim was born in Goyang, Gyeonggi, Korea, as Kim Bong-nam...
Star Awards - Best Star Award - 2007: Korea Broadcast Advertising Festival - Best Couple Award with Soo AeSoo AePark Soo-ae , known simply as Soo Ae, is a South Korean actress.- Career :Soo Ae nearly became a member of a pop idol group. Fresh out of high school, a record agent approached the young stunner on the street in the trendy Apgujeong area. She spent six months in grueling practice, but in the end...
for Maxim CFTelevision advertisementA television advertisement or television commercial, often just commercial, advert, ad, or ad-film – is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization that conveys a message, typically one intended to market a product... - 2007: Chunsa Film Art AwardsChunsa Film Art AwardsThe Chunsa Film Art Awards have been presented in South Korea since the founding of the prize by the Korea Film Directors' Society. The awards take their name from pen-name of the early Korean actor and filmmaker, Na Woon-gyu. Prizes are given for Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress and Best...
- Korean WaveKorean waveThe Korean Wave, also known as the Hallyu , refers to spread of South Korean culture around the world. The term was coined in China in mid-1999 by Beijing journalists surprised by the fast growing popularity of Korean entertainment and culture in China...
Cultural Award - 2005: Max Movie Awards - Best Actor for TyphoonTyphoon (2005 film)Typhoon is a 2005 South Korean action film directed by Kwak Kyung-taek and starring Jang Dong-gun, Lee Jung-jae and Lee Mi-yeon.-Plot:...
- 2004: Blue Dragon Film AwardsBlue Dragon Film AwardsThe Blue Dragon Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony that is presented annually by Sports Chosun for excellence in film in South Korea....
- Best Actor for TaegukgiTaegukgi (film)Taegukgi Hwinallimyo is a 2004 South Korean war film directed by Kang Je-gyu. It tells the story about the effect of the Korean War on two brothers. The film's title is the name of the pre-war Flag of Korea as well as the postwar Flag of South Korea... - 2001: Blue Dragon Film AwardsBlue Dragon Film AwardsThe Blue Dragon Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony that is presented annually by Sports Chosun for excellence in film in South Korea....
- Popularity Award - 2001: Asia Pacific Film FestivalAsia Pacific Film FestivalThe Asia Pacific Film Festival, first held in 1954, is film festival held annually in an Asian country designated by the Board of Directors of the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific.Awards are handed out for:*Best Film*Best Director...
- Best Supporting Actor for Friend - 2000: Blue Dragon Film AwardsBlue Dragon Film AwardsThe Blue Dragon Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony that is presented annually by Sports Chosun for excellence in film in South Korea....
- Popularity Award - 1999: Blue Dragon Film AwardsBlue Dragon Film AwardsThe Blue Dragon Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony that is presented annually by Sports Chosun for excellence in film in South Korea....
- Best Supporting Actor for Nowhere to Hide - 1999: Baeksang Arts Awards - Popularity Award
- 1997: Blue Dragon Film AwardsBlue Dragon Film AwardsThe Blue Dragon Film Awards is an annual awards ceremony that is presented annually by Sports Chosun for excellence in film in South Korea....
- Best New Actor for Repechage - 1997: MBC Drama Awards - Best Actor for Medical Brothers
- 1994: Baeksang Arts Awards - Best New Actor, TV category for The Last Match