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Lee Byung Hun is a famous actor, making an impression on Korean and Asian audiences by his character images with ups and downs and thorny fates. He is also one of the few rare Korean male stars participating in blockbuster projects of the cinema capital Hollywood. Besides, Lee Byung Hun’s scandalous private life used to cause many controversies on social media.
Biography
- Full name: Lee Byung Hun
- Year of birth: July 12th, 1970
- Birthplace: Seoul, South Korea
- Height: 1m77
- Occupation: Actor
- Instagram: @byunghun0712
- Wife: Lee Min Jung / Instagram: @216jung
Career
He grew up in a wealthy family that consisted of his businessman father (who passed away in 2000), his mother, and one younger sister. His younger sister, Lee Eun Hee, was crowned Miss Korea in 1996. Lee Byung Hun himself graduated with a degree in French literature from Hanyang University, then went on to earn a master’s degree in Theater and Cinematography at Chung Ang University before becoming famous.
Different from the idols who followed the image of “flower boys” at that time, Lee Byung Hun impressed the audience with his extremely masculine appearance as soon as he entered the Kbiz entertainment world. It is this difference that is the actor’s strong point, helping him win the hearts of the audience, especially women.
In 2000, after appearing in 2 dramas, Joint Security Area and All In, Lee Byung Hun’s career began to flourish. The box office success of these projects helped him become an A-lister acclaimed throughout Korea.
Following the success, the next film that Lee Byung Hun participated in titled A Bittersweet Life (2005) marked a big leap in his career. With an excellent transformation into a mafia, the actor was praised by experts as the top action star in Korea. A Bittersweet Life was then brought to the Japanese market, bringing Lee Byung Hun’s name to vast Asia.
After establishing a solid position in the Korean entertainment industry, the handsome actor continuously kept up his fame through a series of works in both domestic film and dramas such as: Masquerade, Beautiful Lady, Iris , Squid Game, etc. On the other hand, with his talent, Lee Byung Hun is also a rare Korean male artist to be invited by Hollywood filmmakers to collaborate in blockbusters like G.I.Joe, Terminator, Red 2, etc.
During more than 3 decades of diligently appearing on the screen, Lee Byung Hun has bagged 4 prestigious Daesang awards, was given the title of the “king of national movie ratings” and he fully deserves it. Most recently, the 1970-born actor returned to the screen with the Korean psychological drama Our Blues (2022), along with many other stars such as Shin Min Ah, Kim Woo Bin, etc. After the first episodes aired, the work has been praised by the audience and promises to achieve high ratings.
Controversies & Personal Life
Besides his top-tier career, Lee Byung Hun is also known as a lady-killer in Kbiz. The actor’s private life is always filled with women. He even got into love rumors with a series of famous beauties Kim Tae Hee, Choi Ji Woo, Yoon Eun Hye, Han Hyo Joo, Kim Min Hee, etc.
After experiencing many turbulent love stories, in 2013, Lee Byung Hun got married to actress Lee Min Jung. Lee Byung Hun is thought to have a fulfilling married life with a beautiful wife and a successful career. However, less than a year later, the actor suddenly got into an affair scandal with 2 girls which shocked the entertainment industry.
He and Lee Min Jung now have two children together.
At that time, his wife Lee Min Jung was still pregnant with their first son. This has created a wave of indignation, causing the male artist to be turned away by the audience and face the risk of marriage breakdown.
Later, despite being deemed as not guilty by the court, Lee Byung Hun’s reputation was severely affected. However, his wife forgave the actor, and Lee Byung Hun’s popularity has largely been restored with various successful projects.
In particular, the former female gymnast, who held a Canadian passport, alleged that she met Lee while he was on a promotion tour of the movie ”The Good, The Bad, The Weird”, and later moved to Korea to be with him, only to be ghosted.
In response, Lee Byung Hun’s agency admitted that the actor went out with the former female gymnast in late 2008 and early 2009. However, they later received blackmail calls from several unidentified men, asking for 2 billion won and threatening to distribute groundless rumors about their relationship.