Lee Sang-woo
| Lee Sang-woo | |
|---|---|
| Born |
February 13, 1980 Seoul, South Korea |
| Education | Korea University - Food Science and Biotechnology (dropped out) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2005-present |
| Agent | HM Entertainment |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이상우 |
| Revised Romanization | I Sang-u |
| McCune–Reischauer | I Sangu |
Lee Sang-woo (born February 13, 1980) is a South Korean actor. He rose to fame in the 2007 television drama First Wives' Club, and has since played leading roles on The Road Home (2009), Don't Hesitate (2009), Life Is Beautiful (2010) and Feast of the Gods (2012).
Career
Lee Sang-woo launched his acting career in 2005, starring in a Drama City episode and a minor role in the television drama 18 vs. 29. This was followed by more supporting roles on television, including his big screen debut in Almost Love, a romantic comedy film headlined by Kwon Sang-woo and Kim Ha-neul. During this time, he also starred as one of the three leading actors of the independent film Don't Look Back (2006), which was the closing film of that year's Jeonju International Film Festival,[1] and won a critic's prize at the Locarno International Film Festival.[2]
Lee began his rise to fame with a supporting role in First Wives' Club, a popular drama which aired from 2007 to 2008 with a peak viewership rating of 41.3%.[3] For his performance, he received a New Star Award at the SBS Drama Awards.
It was not until 2009 that Lee was cast in his first mainstream leading role, in The Road Home, followed soon after by another daily drama Don't Hesitate. In the same year, he also appeared as one of the leading actors in Searching for the Elephant, an erotic-psychological thriller about three thirty-something men struggling with schizophrenia, sex addiction and infidelity.[4]
In 2010, Lee starred opposite Song Chang-eui in Life Is Beautiful, one of the few Korean dramas about an openly gay couple in a society still conservative when it comes to sexuality.[5] Despite the controversy, it was successful in the ratings,[6] and Lee would later work again with renowned screenwriter Kim Soo-hyun on A Thousand Days' Promise (2011) and Childless Comfort (2012).[7]
After a supporting role in Believe in Love (also known as My Love, My Family, 2011), Lee was once again cast in the leading role in Feast of the Gods (2012).[8][9] He later won the Excellence Award, Actor in a Special Project Drama at the MBC Drama Awards for Feast of the Gods and his supporting role in the period drama Horse Doctor.
In 2013, Lee joined the ensemble cast of Goddess of Marriage, followed by the adultery drama One Warm Word.[10][11][12] Unlike his previous calm and quiet roles, in 2014 he was cast as the leading man in Glorious Day, a peculiar character which Lee said he looked forward to playing since it most resembles his real-life personality.[13]
Filmography
Television series
| Year | Title | Role | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Drama City "No One Loves Me" |
Jo Seung-joo | KBS2 |
| 18 vs. 29 | Kang Bong-kyu | KBS2 | |
| Can Love Be Refilled? | Lee Sang-woo | KBS2 | |
| 2007 | Two Outs in the Ninth Inning | Lee Joon-mo | MBC |
| First Wives' Club | Koo Se-joo | SBS | |
| 2009 | The Road Home | Yoo Hyun-soo | KBS1 |
| Don't Hesitate | Han Tae-woo | SBS | |
| 2010 | Life Is Beautiful | Kim Kyung-soo | SBS |
| 2011 | Believe in Love | Han Seung-woo | KBS2 |
| A Thousand Days' Promise | Jang Jae-min | SBS | |
| 2012 | Feast of the Gods | Kim Do-yoon | MBC |
| Horse Doctor | Lee Sung-ha | MBC | |
| Childless Comfort | Ha In-chul (cameo) | jTBC | |
| 2013 | Goddess of Marriage | Kim Hyun-woo | SBS |
| One Warm Word | Kim Sung-soo | SBS | |
| 2014 | Let's Eat | Kim Sung-soo (cameo, episode 8) |
tvN |
| Glorious Day | Seo Jae-woo | SBS | |
| 2015 | High Society | Jang Kyung-joon (cameo, episode 1-4, 15-16) | SBS |
| All About My Mom | Kang Hoon-Jae | KBS2 |
Film
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Almost Love | Moon Young-hoon |
| Don't Look Back | Geun-woo | |
| 2008 | Beyond All Magic | Jun |
| 2009 | Searching for the Elephant | Jin-hyuk |
Music video
| Year | Song title | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | "Nitpicking" | Kim Gun-mo |
| 2007 | "Loving One Person" | Oh Hyun-ran |
| "My Angel" | Fly to the Sky | |
| "Pretty Today Too" | Fly to the Sky |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | SBS Drama Awards | New Star Award | First Wives' Club | Won |
| 2009 | 45th Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actor (TV) | Nominated | |
| Andre Kim Best Star Awards | Male Star Award | Won | ||
| KBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Daily Drama | The Road Home | Nominated | |
| 2011 | SBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Special Planning Drama | A Thousand Days' Promise | Nominated |
| 2012 | MBC Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Special Project Drama | Feast of the Gods, Horse Doctor | Won |
| 2013 | SBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Weekend/Daily Drama | Goddess of Marriage | Nominated |
| 2014 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Glorious Day | Nominated |
| 2015 | 4th APAN Star Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | All About My Mom | Nominated |
References
- ↑ "Jeonju Gears Up for Annual Movie Fest". The Chosun Ilbo. 31 March 2006. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Park, Soo-mee (28 November 2006). "Family issues and romance dominate new releases". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ "Good Old Wives' Club Nears 40% Viewer Rating". KBS Global. 10 July 2008. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Kim, Lynn (14 October 2009). "Elephant invited to int'l film festivals". 10Asia. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Yang, Sung-hee (20 May 2010). "Writer pushing buttons on TV, again". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Lee, Sooin; Nahm, Sooyeon (13 September 2010). "Drama reveals changing attitudes about homosexuality". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ "Lee Sang Woo Makes His Presence Felt Despite No Love Line". Drama Haven. 3 November 2011. Retrieved 2013-01-27.
- ↑ Kim, Myung-hyun (30 November 2011). "Lee Sang-woo to star in January series". 10Asia. Retrieved 2013-01-27.
- ↑ Hong, Lucia (18 April 2012). "Actor Lee Sang-woo extends contract with current agency". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-11-18.
- ↑ Lee, Sun-min (30 October 2013). "Lee Sang-woo back on SBS". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Lee, Cory (5 November 2013). "Lee Sang-woo to Pair Up with Han Hye-jin in New Drama". 10Asia. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ "One Warm Word Lee Sang Woo - The Producer Told Me To Reveal More In Acting". KDramaStars. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 2014-03-19.
- ↑ Jin, Eun-soo (26 March 2014). "Leads for Good Day confirmed". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-26.
External links
- Lee Sang-woo on Cyworld
- Lee Sang-woo at HM Entertainment
- Lee Sang-woo Fan Cafe at Daum
- Lee Sang-woo at HanCinema
- Lee Sang-woo at the Internet Movie Database