Choi Min-soo (born March 27, 1962) is a South Korean actor. He is known as one of the most acclaimed actors in South Korea.

Life and career

Choi's family has been active in acting, and singing. Choi is the son of

Choi Moo-ryong Choi Moo-ryong (February 25, 1928 – November 11, 1999) was South Korean actor, producer, and director who is father of Choi Min-soo Biography Choi was born in Paju, Gyeonggi province, Korea. Choi was one of popular actors of the 1960s along wi ...

, a popular actor of the 1960s and 1970s, and

Kang Hyo-shil Kang Hyo-shil (10 February 1932 – 2 November 1996) was a South Korean film and stage actress. Biography Kang was born in Pyongyang in 1932, now the capital of North Korea. Kang's parents were Kang Hong-shik, a noted singer, and actor during t ...

, an actress. His maternal grandmother is Jeon Ok, referred to as 'Queen of Tears' for her excellence at acting for tragic dramas. His grandfather is Kang Hong-shik, an actor, a film director and singer active during the Japanese occupation period. Kang Hong-sik and Jeon Ok were the first married couple in Korean entertainment history. Kang went over to

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

along with his daughter Kang Hyo-son who later became a famous actress of North Korea. Kang Hong-shik was honored as "Merited artist" as well. Choi graduated from Lila Elementary School, Seongdong Middle School, Dongbuk High School and Seoul Arts College. Choi debuted to the film industry in 1985 with '' Son of God'', a film adapted from Park Bong-seong's same titled

manhwa (; ) is the general Korean term for comics and print cartoons. Outside Korea, the term usually refers to South Korean comics. is greatly influenced by Japanese Manga comics. Modern Manhwa has extended its reach to many other countries. ...

. Choi has three sisters and one half sister from his father's second marriage with Kim Ji-mee, and one little half brother and half sister from his father's other marriage. Choi met his wife June Elizabeth Kang from an international Miss Korea Beauty Pageant in 1993 where Kang was being represented as Miss Canada. Choi proposed to Kang after a three-hour meeting and they were married June 18, 1994 in Seoul. They have two children, Christian (born 1996) and Benjamin (born 2001).

Controversies

Choi took a voluntary leave from acting following a scandal in 2008. He was involved in an assault case in April 2008 after a street-side argument ended in violence. An elderly man saw Choi cursing at another driver and rebuked him. The situation escalated and Choi assaulted the man. The actor attempted to drive away, but the man grabbed onto the hood of the car and refused to let go. Choi was let go by police when the victim declined to press charges, but the public reaction was swift and condemning. The actor apologized profusely for his behavior and swore to live in exile in the mountains, away from his wife and children, for a year. In 2015, Choi punched the main production director of the KBS variety show, A Look At Myself. Choi later withdrew from the program. In 2019, Choi was sentenced to two years probation for retaliatory driving due to an incident which took place on September 17, 2018. Both Choi and the prosecution have appealed the sentence.

Filmography

Film

:*Note; the whole list is referenced.

Television

Awards

:*Note; the whole list is referenced. *

2014 MBC Drama Awards The 2014 MBC Drama Awards () is a ceremony honoring the outstanding achievement in television on the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) network for the year of 2014. It was held on December 30, 2014 and hosted by Shin Dong-yup and Girls' Gene ...

: Golden Acting Award, Actor ('' Pride and Prejudice'') *

2007 MBC Drama Awards The 2007 MBC Drama Awards () is a ceremony honoring the outstanding achievement in television on the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) network for the year of 2007. It was held on December 30, 2007 and hosted by Shin Dong-yup and Hyun Young. ...

: Golden Acting Award, Actor in a Historical Drama ('' The Legend'') * 2004

MBC Drama Awards The MBC Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony presented by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually in December. Unlike its counterparts in KBS and SBS, MB ...

: Top Excellence Award, Actor (''Han River Ballad'') * 2001 37th

Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were first introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the Hankook Ilbo newspap ...

: Best Film Actor ('' Libera Me'') * 2000

SBS Drama Awards The SBS Drama Awards (), also known as SBS Awards Festival, is an awards ceremony presented annually by Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually on December 31. The hi ...

: Big Star Award (''Legends of Love'') * 2000 37th Grand Bell Awards: Best Actor (''Phantom: the Submarine'') * 1996 19th Golden Cinematography Awards: Most Popular Actor * 1996 34th Grand Bell Awards: Best Actor (''

Terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

'') * 1995

: Grand Prize/Daesang ('' Sandglass'') * 1995 22nd Korea Broadcasting Awards: Best TV Actor ('' Sandglass'') * 1995 16th Blue Dragon Film Awards: Best Actor, Popular Star Award (''

'') * 1995 31st

: Best TV Actor ('' Sandglass'') * 1993 14th Blue Dragon Film Awards: Popular Star Award * 1993 31st Grand Bell Awards: Most Popular Actor * 1993 29th

: Best TV Actor (''Walking Up to Heaven'') * 1992

: Excellence Award, Actor (''What Is Love'') * 1992 28th

: Most Popular TV Actor (''What Is Love'') * 1992 13th Blue Dragon Film Awards: Popular Star Award * 1991 12th Blue Dragon Film Awards: Popular Star Award * 1990 11th Blue Dragon Film Awards: Best Supporting Actor ('' North Korean Partisan in South Korea'') * 1989 25th

: Best New Film Actor (''Last Dance with Her'') * 1987 11th Golden Cinematography Awards: Best New Actor (''Long Journey & Tunnel'')

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Choi, Min-soo 1962 births 20th-century South Korean male actors 21st-century South Korean male actors South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors Living people People from Seoul Male actors from Seoul Best New Actor Paeksang Arts Award (film) winners