Jin Goo (; born July 20, 1980) is a South Korean

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. He won Best Supporting Actor at the

Grand Bell Awards The Grand Bell Awards (), also known as the Daejong Film Awards, is an awards ceremony presented annually by The Motion Pictures Association of Korea for excellence in film in South Korea. The Grand Bell Awards retains prestige as the oldest co ...

and

Blue Dragon Film Awards The Blue Dragon Film Awards () is an annual awards ceremony that is presented by ''Sports Chosun'' (a sister brand of the ''Chosun Ilbo'') for excellence in film in South Korea. The Blue Dragon Film Awards considers only blockbusters and popula ...

for his role in

Bong Joon-ho Bong Joon Ho (, ; born September 14, 1969) is a South Korean filmmaker. Bong Joon Ho filmography, His work is characterized by emphasis on social and class themes, genre fiction, genre-mixing, black comedy, dark comedy, and sudden tone shifts. ...

's 2009 noir thriller ''

Mother A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ges ...

''. He is also known for his role in the critically and commercially successful series ''

Descendants of the Sun ''Descendants of the Sun'' () is a 2016 South Korean television series starring Song Joong-ki, Song Hye-kyo, Jin Goo, and Kim Ji-won. It aired on KBS2 from February 24 to April 14, 2016, for 16 episodes. KBS then aired three additional spec ...

''.

Career

2003–2008: Beginnings

Jin Goo made his television debut in the 2003 gambling

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

'' All In'', as the younger version of the protagonist character played by

Lee Byung-hun Lee Byung-hun (; born July 12, 1970) is a South Korean actor. He has received acclaim for his work in a wide range of genres, most notably '' Joint Security Area'' (2000); '' A Bittersweet Life'' (2005); '' The Good, the Bad, the Weird'' (2008) ...

. They reunited onscreen in Kim Jee-woon's

film noir Film noir (; ) is a style of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas that emphasizes cynicism (contemporary), cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of Ameri ...

'' A Bittersweet Life'', and Jin would later join Lee when he established his own management agency, BH Entertainment. In 2005, Jin starred in the one-episode drama ''Saya, Saya'' ("Bird, Bird"), adapted from the novel written by

Shin Kyung-sook Kyung-sook Shin, also Shin Kyung-sook or Shin Kyoung-sook (, born 12 January 1963), is a South Korean writer. She was the only South Korean and only woman to win the Man Asian Literary Prize in 2012 for '' Please Look After Mom''. Life Kyung-so ...

about a mother and son who are both

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

. It won the top award in the

TV movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a terrest ...

miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...

category of

Prix Italia The Prix Italia is an international television, radio-broadcasting and web award. It was established in 1948 by RAI – Radiotelevisione Italiana (in 1948, RAI had the denomination RAI – Radio Audizioni Italiane) in Capri and is honoured with th ...

, and the jury praised it as "a magical, moving and poetic story about the power of love with high quality performances." After a

guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...

as a

Korean language Korean is the first language, native language for about 81 million people, mostly of Koreans, Korean descent. It is the national language of both South Korea and North Korea. In the south, the language is known as () and in the north, it is kn ...

teacher on the

webisode A webisode (portmanteau of "web" and "episode") is an episode of a series that is distributed as part of a web series or on streaming television. It is available either for download or in streaming, as opposed to first airing on broadcast or cab ...

s of Japanese drama ''Joshi Deka!'', Jin returned to Korean television in 2008's '' Spotlight'', a glimpse into the lives of broadcast news reporters covering the city

beat Beat, beats, or beating may refer to: Common uses * Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact * Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact * Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of inte ...

. To prepare for his role, Jin followed a cub reporter for a day, and realized they didn't have time to bathe or even wash their faces. Though he appeared in little-seen mystery romance ''

The ESP Couple ''The ESP Couple'' () is a 2008 Cinema of Korea, South Korean supernatural romance film starring Jin Goo and Park Bo-young. The film marks editor Kim Hyung-joo's debut as a director. Synopsis Su-min (Jin Goo) is a college student who keeps his ps ...

'', Jin would become known for playing strong moody characters, such as a low-ranking thug in

Yoo Ha Yoo Ha (; or spelled Yu Ha; born 9 February 1963) is a Koreans, South Korean film director, screenwriter and a contemporary poet. He directed the critically acclaimed films ''Marriage Is a Crazy Thing'' (2002), ''Once Upon a Time in High School ...

's '' A Dirty Carnival'', and a

serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

in ''Truck''. For his portrayal of a secretive doctor in

arthouse An art film, arthouse film, or specialty film is an independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made prima ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit physical or psychological fear in its viewers. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with Transgressive art, transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements of the genre include Mo ...

Epitaph An epitaph (; ) is a short text honoring a deceased person. Strictly speaking, it refers to text that is inscribed on a tombstone or plaque, but it may also be used in a figurative sense. Some epitaphs are specified by the person themselves be ...

'', Jin received a Best New Actor trophy from the Golden Cinematography Awards.

2009–2015: Breakthrough and continued acting

Jin's breakthrough would be his critically acclaimed supporting turn in 2009's ''

''. His performance in the

thriller earned him recognition from the

, the University Film Festival of Korea, and the

. In 2010, Jin shed his hardboiled image to play a down-to-earth, aspiring

chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...

in '' Le Grand Chef 2: Kimchi Battle''. He said the film was a great pleasure to make since cooking is a hobby of his, though emulating a professional chef meant undergoing "200 hours of chopping

radish The radish (''Raphanus sativus'') is a flowering plant in the mustard family, Brassicaceae. Its large taproot is commonly used as a root vegetable, although the entire plant is edible and its leaves are sometimes used as a leaf vegetable. Origina ...

es" in order to perfect the motion. He added that after the filming, he was able to make

kimchi Kimchi (; ) is a traditional Korean side dish (''banchan'') consisting of salted and fermented vegetables, most often napa cabbage or Korean radish. A wide selection of seasonings are used, including '' gochugaru'' (Korean chili powder), ...

with his mother, which proved to be a memorable experience. 2011 was a busy year for Jin. Besides appearing in conspiracy thriller ''Moby Dick'', he had a starring role as one of three desperate

Joseon Joseon ( ; ; also romanized as ''Chosun''), officially Great Joseon (), was a dynastic kingdom of Korea that existed for 505 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon in July 1392 and replaced by the Korean Empire in October 1897. The kingdom w ...

soldiers in '' The Showdown''. He also made his

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

debut as Nathan in a Korean production of the

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...

''. He next starred in '' 26 Years'', based on Kang Full's

manhwa Manhwa () is the general Korean term for comics and print cartoons. Outside Korea, the term usually refers to Korean comics. Modern Manhwa has extended its reach to many other countries. These comics have branched outside of Korea by acce ...

about a plot to assassinate the man responsible for the

Gwangju Massacre The Gwangju Democratization Movement, also known in South Korea as May 18 Democratization Movement (), was a series of student-led demonstrations that took place in Gwangju, South Korea, in May 1980, against the coup of Chun Doo-hwan. The upr ...

. Jin had been attached to the project since pre-production began in 2008, but investors backed out due to the politically controversial content. Online donations from thousands of private individuals enabled filming to resume in 2012. Jin was the only holdover from the original cast; initially cast as the young policeman, he now played the more central role of the gangster. In 2013, he played the titular character in TV series '' Ad Genius Lee Tae-baek'', a success story about a man who comes up to

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

from the countryside armed with nothing but a

high school diploma A high school diploma (sometimes referred to as a high school degree) is a diploma awarded upon graduation of high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary s ...

and a gift for drawing, and through sheer hard work, fights his way to become the best ad man and

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

in the business. Supporting roles followed in thriller '' The Target'', period blockbuster '' The Admiral: Roaring Currents'', and nostalgic musical drama '' C'est Si Bon''. In 2015, Jin starred in ''

Northern Limit Line The Northern Limit Line or North Limit Line (NLL) – 북방한계선 (in ROK) – is a disputed maritime demarcation line in the Yellow (West) Sea between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the north, and the Republic of Kore ...

'', a naval thriller about the

Second Battle of Yeonpyeong The Battle of Yeongpyeong (or Second Battle of Yeonpyeong) () was a confrontation at sea between North Korean and South Korean patrol boats along a disputed maritime boundary near Yeonpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea in 2002. This followed a simi ...

2016–present: Rising popularity

2016 was a remarkable year for Jin Goo. He was cast as an elite

special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

soldier in ''

'', a romantic melodrama written by Kim Eun-sook. The drama was a critical and commercial success in Asia, and led to a surge in popularity for Jin. Later in the year, Jin starred in MBC's melodrama '' Night Light''. In 2017, Jin starred in the action film '' One Line'', where he played a legendary swindler who joins with a student ( Im Si-wan) to rob a bank. He then starred in

JTBC JTBC (shortened from Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company; ; stylized in all lowercase) is a South Korean nationwide pay television network. Its primary shareholder is JoongAng Holdings, with a 25% stake. It was launched on December 1, ...

's action melodrama '' Untouchable''. In 2019, Jin starred in the legal drama '' Legal High'', a remake of the Japanese television series of the same name. In December 2020, Jin signed with new agency Varo Entertainment.

Personal life

Marriage and family

Jin married his girlfriend on September 21, 2014. The couple welcomed a baby boy in June 2015. They welcomed their second child, a baby girl, in November 2016.

Military service

Jin completed his mandatory military service in the

Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ), also known as the ROK Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and Amphibious warfare, amphibious operations. The South ...

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. Not to be confused with civilian police, who are legally part of the civilian populace. In wartime operations, the military police may supp ...

Filmography

Film

Television series

Web series

Music video appearances

Musical theatre

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jin, Goo South Korean male film actors South Korean male television actors South Korean male musical theatre actors Male actors from Seoul People from Dongdaemun District 21st-century South Korean male actors 1980 births Living people