Lee Min-ki (born January 16, 1985) is a South Korean actor, singer and model. Lee played his first TV leading role in the 2005 sports drama Taereung National Village, followed by the television series Love Truly (2006), Dal-ja's Spring (2007), Because This Is My First Life (2017), The Beauty Inside (2018), and My Liberation Notes (2022). He has also starred in feature films, most notably in the box office hits Tidal Wave (2009), Quick (2011) and Very Ordinary Couple (2013).
Lee Min-ki | |
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Born | (1985-01-16) January 16, 1985 (age 37) Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea[1] |
Alma mater | Konkuk University - Film Arts[1] Daekyeung University - Modeling [2] |
Occupation | Actor, singer, model |
Years active | 2004–present |
Agent | Sangyoung ENT |
Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1] |
Korean name | |
Hangul | |
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | I Min-gi |
McCune–Reischauer | I Mingi |
After honing his acting in one-act dramas, Lee Min-ki first gained popularity on television in romantic comedies Love Truly (2006) and Dal-ja's Spring (2007).[3][4] He then starred in the quirky low-rated cult series Evasive Inquiry Agency (2007)[5] and alternated mainstream films with indies such as Oishii Man (2009).[6][7] He gained favorable notices for his supporting roles in the thriller A Million as a hot-tempered Marine-turned-janitor who finds himself involved in a survival reality show;[8] and the disaster film Tidal Wave, in which he plays a lifeguard who makes a heartbreaking sacrifice when a fictional tsunami hits the Korean beach town of Haeundae.[9][10][11] Lee then solidified his bona fide movie star status with his leading roles in the action film Quick and romantic comedy Spellbound.[12][13][14]
Lee starred alongside Kim Min-hee in the relationship drama Very Ordinary Couple (2013), which was a hit at the box office and received rave reviews.[15][16] He followed with leading roles in thriller Monster (2014),[17][18] action noir For the Emperor (2014)[19] and drama film Shoot Me in the Heart (2015), based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Jeong Yu-jeong.[20][21]
In 2017, Lee was cast in the romantic-comedy drama Because This Is My First Life opposite Jung So-min; this is Lee's first television leading role in 10 years.[22] This was followed with the fantasy melodrama The Beauty Inside (2018), based on the 2015 romantic comedy film of the same name. He played a man who suffers from Prosopagnosia.[23]
In 2019, Lee returned to the small screen with the crime detective drama The Lies Within playing a role of a detective opposite Lee Yoo-young.[24] On January 13, 2020, it was announced that Lee would star in the occult thriller film Three Days alongside Park Shin-yang and Lee Re.[25]
In 2021, Lee starred alongside Nana in the MBC romantic comedy Oh My Ladylord.[26] After his contract with the former agency expired in September 2021, Lee signd a contract with Yeongsang ENT.[27] The same year, he joined the JTBC television series My Liberation Notes which premiered in April 2022. He played the role of Yeom Chang-hee, the second of three siblings with no proper goal in life.[28]
After performing a stylized version of "My Way" at the 2008 Mnet KM Music Festival, Lee lent his vocals to a track with Korean electronica/pop singer Sheean in a collaboration with Japanese electronica/Shibuya-kei artist FreeTEMPO. The song, titled "Power of Love," was released as a digital single, and Lee also appeared in the music video.[29] On August 11, 2009, he unveiled his musical debut No Kidding, a six track EP with a very indie-electro rock sound.[30] The album's title song "Eternal Summer" was the first and only single released.[31] In 2013, he released two singles titled "Those Days I Had with You" and "Everything" in collaboration with Gold Coast.[32]
Lee enlisted for his mandatory military service on August 7, 2014, and was assigned as a public service worker.[33][34] He was discharged in August 2016.[35]
Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
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2006 | Riverbank Legends | High school student #7 (cameo) | |
2007 | A Good Day to Have an Affair | College student | [36] |
2008 | Humming | Oh Chun-jae (cameo) | [37] |
Romantic Island | Lee Jung-hwan | [38] | |
2009 | Oishii Man | Kim Hyun-seok | [6] |
Tidal Wave | Choi Hyeong-sik | [39] | |
A Million | Park Cheol-hee | [8] | |
2011 | Quick | Han Ki-su | [12] |
Spellbound | Ma Jo-goo | [14] | |
2013 | Very Ordinary Couple | Lee Dong-hee | [15] |
2014 | Monster | Tae-soo | [18] |
For the Emperor | Lee Hwan | [19] | |
2015 | Shoot Me in the Heart | Seung-min | [21] |
2018 | Detective K: Secret of the Living Dead | Jeon In-kyul (Special appearance) | [40] |
2022 | Decibel | (Special appearance) | [41] |
TBA | Three Days | Priest Van | [42] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
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2004 | My Older Brother | Kang Min-ki | Drama Special | |
2005 | Oh! Sarah | Kim Dong-kang | ||
Be Strong, Geum-soon! | Noh Tae-hwan | [43] | ||
Booyong of Mt. Kyeryong | Hyeong-soo | Drama Special | [44] | |
Taereung National Village | Hong Min-ki | [45] | ||
Rainbow Romance | Lee Min-ki | [46] | ||
2006 | Love Truly | Nam Bong-ki | [4] | |
2007 | Dal-ja's Spring | Kang Tae-bong | [3] | |
Evasive Inquiry Agency | Park Mu-yeol | [5] | ||
2012 | Flower Band | Joo Byung-hee | Guest, Episodes 1-2 | [47] |
2017 | Because This Is My First Life | Nam Se-hee | [22] | |
2018 | What's Wrong with Secretary Kim | young Mi-so's father | Cameo, Episode 10 | [48] |
The Beauty Inside | Seo Do-jae | [23] | ||
2019 | The Lies Within | Jo Tae-sik | [49] | |
2021 | Oh My Ladylord | Han Bi-soo | [50] | |
2022 | My Liberation Notes | Yeom Chang-hee | [51] | |
Year | Song title | Artist | Ref. |
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2004 | "Hit'm" | Nina | |
2005 | "Only One for Me" | Soul Star | |
2007 | "After... The Break-up" | The Name feat. Choi Jin-yi | [52] |
2008 | "My Girl" | The One | |
2012 | "The Day Before" | Nell | [53] |
2013 | "I'm Sorry" | Han So-hyeon | [54] |
Album information | Track listing |
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Power of Love
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Track listing
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Power of Love Part 2
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Track listing
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We Can't Forget the Reason
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Track listing
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No Kidding
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Track listing
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Those Days I Had with You
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Track listing
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Everything
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Track listing
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Year | Song title | Notes |
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2006 | "Like Candy 2" | Track from Love Truly OST |
"Before Sadness Comes" | Track from Rainbow Romance OST[55] | |
2009 | "Frozen Mountain" "Neanderthal Man II" "Disappears Like That" "A Match for You" |
Tracks from Oishii Man OST[56] |
2012 | "Not in Love" "jaywalking" |
Track from Flower Band OST[57] |
Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
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2004 | KBS Drama Awards | Best Actor in a Special/One-Act Drama | My Older Brother | Nominated | |
2005 | KBS Drama Awards | Best Actor in a Special/One-Act Drama | Oh! Sarah, Booyong of Mt. Kyeryong | Nominated | |
MBC Drama Awards | Best New Actor | Be Strong, Geum-soon! | Won | [58] | |
2007 | 43rd Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actor (TV) | Love Truly | Nominated | |
28th Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best New Actor | A Good Day to Have an Affair | Nominated | ||
KBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Dal-ja's Spring, Evasive Inquiry Agency | Nominated | ||
Popularity Award, Actor | Nominated | ||||
2009 | 2nd Style Icon Awards | New Movie Icon | — | Won | [59] |
30th Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Haeundae | Nominated | ||
2010 | 46th Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actor (Film) | Won | [60] | |
2014 | 50th Baeksang Arts Awards | Most Popular Actor (Film) | Monster | Nominated | |
2018 | 13th Soompi Awards | Actor of the Year | Because This Is My First Life | Nominated | |
Best Couple Award with Jung So-min | Nominated | ||||
2019 | 14th Soompi Awards | Best Couple Award with Seo Hyun-jin | The Beauty Inside | Nominated | |
2021 | MBC Drama Awards | Best Couple Award with Nana | Oh! Master | Nominated |
Baeksang Arts Award for Best New Actor – Film | |
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