Jo Jeong-ik (born 21 January 1983), better known by his stage name Yoo Gun, is an American-born

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n actor.

Early life

Jo Jeong-ik was born in

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Korean American Korean Americans () are Americans of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America () may refer to all ethnic Koreans residing in the United States, the specific designation of Korean American impli ...

parents. He came to

in the 1990s as a teenager. He is a first cousin of

coloratura soprano A coloratura soprano () is a type of operatic soprano voice that specializes in music that is distinguished by agile run (music), runs, leaps and Trill (music), trills. The term ''coloratura'' refers to the elaborate ornamentation of a melody, whi ...

Sumi Jo Sumi Jo, OSI (; ; born 22 November 1962) is a South Korean lyric coloratura soprano known for her Grammy Award-winning interpretations of the bel canto repertoire. Life and career Early life and education Jo was born Jo Su-gyeong in Ch ...

Career

Under the

stage name A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...

Yoo Gun, he began his entertainment career in 1997 as a singer in South Korean

boy band A boy band is a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their Teenage, teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Many boy bands ...

Oppa. Yoo rose to popularity through his first leading role in the 2006

television drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...

'' Hello, God!'' ( 안녕하세요 하느님); he played a mentally challenged character based on "Charlie" in the novel ''

Flowers for Algernon ''Flowers for Algernon'' is a short story by American author Daniel Keyes, which he later expanded into a novel and adapted for film and other media. The short story, written in 1958 and first published in the April 1959 issue of ''The Magazin ...

''. Supporting roles followed in the comedy films '' Dasepo Naughty Girls'', '' Project Makeover'', '' Mission Possible: Kidnapping Granny K'', and '' My Mighty Princess''. Yoo underwent six months of martial arts training for his next leading role in the action drama ''Fight'', which aired on cable in 2008. Besides appearing in the TV series ''Bad Couple'', ''Can't Stop Now'', and '' Prosecutor Princess'', he also made his theater debut in 2010 in the stage play ''Thief's Diary''. In 2011, he renounced his U.S. citizenship in order to serve in the South Korean army. Yoo enlisted as an ordinary soldier in March 2011, and was later transferred to the Defense Media Agency in October 2011, where he took over as DJ of the military radio program ''This is Friends FM Yoo Gun''. He also appeared on the KFN (Korean Forces Network) TV program ''March'' in 2012. After his discharge in December 2012, Yoo quickly resumed his career, appearing on the travel program '' The World is Delicious'' ( 오감만족 세상은 맛있다) in an episode about

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, followed by a cameo on the melodrama '' That Winter, the Wind Blows''. Yoo then headlined the

KBS1 KBS 1TV is a South Korean free-to-air television channel that launched on 31 December 1961 and is owned by Korean Broadcasting System. The channel offers more serious programming than its sister channel KBS2, and airs with no commercials. Hi ...

daily drama '' A Tale Of Two Sisters'' in 2013.

Filmography

Note: the whole section is referenced.

Television series

* '' Graceful Friends'' (JTBC, 2020) * '' 365: Repeat the Year'' (MBC, 2020) (cameo, ep. 1–2) *'' I Wanna Hear Your Song'' (KBS2, 2019) *'' The Last Empress'' (SBS, 2018–2019) *'' Sweet Enemy'' (SBS, 2017) *'' Dr. Frost'' (OCN, 2014) *'' Hotel King'' (MBC, 2014) *'' Steal Heart'' (jTBC, 2014) *'' A Tale of Two Sisters'' (KBS1, 2013) *'' That Winter, the Wind Blows'' (SBS, 2013) ( cameo, ep. 4) *''

KBS Drama Special ''KBS Drama Special'' () is a South Korean anthology series created and broadcast by KBS2, with each episode having a different story, cast, director and scriptwriter. The format is based on its predecessor '' Drama City'' and MBC's Best Theate ...

'' – "Texas Hit" (KBS2, 2010) *'' Prosecutor Princess'' (SBS, 2010) *''Can't Stop Now'' (MBC, 2009) *''

Drama City Drama City () is an anthology television series that was broadcast by Korea Broadcasting System (KBS) via KBS2TV from 1984 to 2008. 1984's "Drama Game" lost its popularity several times since 1997, and the title, broadcast time was moved to ...

'' – "LoveForSale.com" (KBS2, 2008) *''Fight'' (tvN, 2008) *''Here He Comes'' (MBC, 2008) *''Bad Couple'' (SBS, 2007) *''Hello, God!'' (KBS2, 2006) *'' Something About 1%'' (MBC, 2004)

Film

* ''Insane'' (2016) *''Where are To Go?'' (2013) *'' My Mighty Princess'' (2008) *''Mission Possible: Kidnapping Granny K'' (2007) *'' Project Makeover'' (2007) *'' Dasepo Naughty Girls'' (2006)

Variety show

*''Buy Together'' (MBC Every 1, 2009) *''Yoo Gun's Love Fighter'' (Mnet, 2007–2008)

Music video

*''As a Man, Not a Friend'' ( Lee Seok-hoon, 2013) *''Love Actually'' (JJ, 2007) *''Handkerchief'' ( Kim Dong-wan, 2007)

Theater

*''Crash Course in Love'' (2010) *''Thief's Diary'' (2009)

References

External links

Yoo Gun
at Star Fox Entertainment
Yoo Gun Fan Cafe
at Daum * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yoo, Gun 1983 births Living people Male actors from Arizona Former United States citizens South Korean male television actors South Korean male film actors South Korean male stage actors Seoul Institute of the Arts alumni L&Holdings artists