Park Seo-joon’s MCU debut in the upcoming 2023 sequel The Marvels follows a line of previously successful appearances in several Korean tv series and movies. His international profile was already on the rise after taking on roles in the internationally well-received 2019 movie Parasite and then again in the Korean romantic drama Itaewon Class.
He’s shown to have brilliant range and clearly not afraid to take on new challenges. He’s played the narcissistic boss with a troubled past, a demon-hunting MMA fighter, and a somewhat goofy but lovable police academy trainee. Park has been able to thrive in any given genre and is clearly a Chameleon when it comes to acting. He’s excelled in previous roles, but his part in The Marvels is clearly just a sign of the great things to follow in his career moving forward.
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10 Chronicles of Evil (2015)
CJ Entertainment
In the intensely gripping crime drama, Chronicles of Evil, Park takes on the role of Cha Dong-jae. A highly decorated police chief, Chief Officer Choi, is attacked one night by his taxi driver and accidentally kills him in self-defense. Worrying about how the incident will affect his reputation and upcoming promotion, he covers up the murder rather than call for an ambulance.
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY
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However, there’s someone else who doesn’t want to let him get away with it so easily, and the next day Choi finds that the body has been hung from a crane and now everyone knows about it. He takes on the investigation to try and scrub out any links to him, and in the process finds himself tangled in a highly dramatic series of events he could never have predicted. Viewers will find themselves fully invested in the story as they watch Choi try to figure out the cause of the events that follow the accidental murder and sort out past mistakes.
9 The Beauty Inside (2015)
Yong Film
Beauty standards in South Korea are high and sometimes seemingly unachievable. That’s why The Beauty Inside was such a brilliantly suitable drama series for South Korean entertainment. Furthermore, it’s a wonderfully genuine movie that has the message of true love transcending external beauty.
The main character, Woo-jin, has the unpleasant experience of waking up every day as someone else. On the inside, he’s always the same old Woo-Jin. However, age, nationality, and gender change for him on a daily basis. Park plays the role of one of Woo-jin’s many faces. Regardless of his situation, he does manage to find love in the form of Yi-soo. Yi-soo knows about his condition but falls in love with him anyway. The movie follows them both as they navigate a relationship with one of the pair constantly changing appearances every day. It’s an easy, feel-good movie that highlights the importance of internal beauty.
8 Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth (2016 – 2017)
KBS
Park plays Moo Myung in the highly intriguing historical drama, Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth. The series portrays a group of elite warrior youth known as ‘Hwarang’ during the Kingdom of Silla. With a star-studded cast, the series managed to pull off high-quality acting and a well-presented storyline. Furthermore, when viewers learned of who would be cast in the series, Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth was released to an already eager and interested audience which definitely helped its success. There’s plenty of action to keep the pace moving steadily with wholesome comedic charm from the relationships of the characters. It’s an interesting approach, as due to the predominantly male casting, different kinds of relationships could be explored rather than your generic romantic connections. The bromances evident in the series is a joy to watch and a refreshing take on the value of true friendships.
7 Fight for My Way (2017)
KBS2
Fight for My Way was an incredibly well-received Korean romantic comedy, winning several awards at the 2017 KBS Drama Awards. Park is a down on his luck, ex-Olympic hopeful taekwondo athlete called Ko Dong-man, working as a pest exterminator. Due to family debt and financial costs relating to his sister’s life-changing surgery, his dreams had to take a backseat.
The series shows the sheer determination of Ko Dong-man, alongside his friends, to achieve their dreams regardless of the challenges that stand in their way. Ko Dong-man shows perseverance of character and trains for a career in the UFC as an MMA fighter, rather than live out the rest of his days as a pest exterminator. Park does a brilliant job at portraying a character that the audience can relate to and use as inspiration to persevere for their own dreams.
6 Midnight Runners (2017)
Lotte Entertainment
Park is hilarious in his role as Hwang Ki-joon in Midnight Runners. In fact, he did such a brilliant job in this movie that he won the award for Best New Actor at the 2017 Daejong Film Awards!
Midnight Runners follows Ki-joon and his friend as they attempt to rescue a girl they see kidnaped on a night out. The two friends are not police officers but students at the Korean National Police University. However, when they can’t get the police to intervene, they take matters into their own hands. After some hilarious exploits throughout the comedic crime drama, they do eventually manage to take down the criminal ring and save the girl. They call in the police knowing fine well they will get into trouble for going against orders. The series ends perfectly, with the original kidnaped girl approaching the two friends as they carry out their court-ordered community service, to thank them for saving her.
5 What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim (2018)
tvN
Park plays the unlikeable and immensely narcissistic Lee Young Joon in What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim. Lee Young Joon couldn’t care less for the people around him and suits the stereotype of a self-absorbed Vice Chairman of a large company. One day he finds his world turned upside down when his highly competent secretary, Kim Mi So, resigns from her position.
It’s only because of this that Lee Young Joon realises how much he depends on Kim Mi, after taking her for granted for 9 years and attempts to convince her to stay. Their relationship changes throughout the series, as they find some common ground and heal through past trauma together. Kim Mi even finds herself falling for the once insufferable Lee Young Joon! What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim is an engaging mystery drama with plenty of comedic relief and a budding love story.
4 Be With You (2018)
Movie Rock
Be With You is a beautifully executed fantasy romance based on the novel ‘Ima, Ai ni Yukimasu’. While lying on her deathbed, Soo Ah makes a promise to both her husband and son, that one year after her passing she will return on a rainy day. Miraculously, this does indeed happen, however, she has no memory of those she once loved so dearly. The film follows them while she integrates herself into their lives once more, and they all get a second chance at the happiness that was taken away from them when she died. In a heart-wrenching twist of fate, she cannot stay forever and must leave when the rainy season ends. Their second chance at happiness is brief yet precious and really tugs on your emotions.
Park makes a brief appearance as Soo Ah’s grown-up son. The short time he appears at the end of the movie gives it a satisfying and wholesome end.
3 The Divine Fury (2019)
KeyEast
Park plays the role of Yong-hoo, an MMA fighter turned demon hunter in The Divine Fury. This movie is a thrilling horror with some pretty impressive action moments dotted throughout. As a child, Yong-hoo already questioned his father’s Christian faith after his mother died giving birth to him. He then loses his father in a car accident which just solidifies his doubts and turns him atheist, resenting the Christian faith and the Almighty.
After a fight in the States, he starts bleeding from his palms and no doctor is able to understand why. He’s ultimately led to finding a priest who confirms it’s a ‘stigmata’. They’re attacked and Yong-hoo is able to defeat the demon when the stigmata helps him exorcise it. The priest sees potential in Yong-hoo’s demon-busting abilities and the two join forces to rid Seoul of its demon infestation.
2 Parasite (2019)
Parasite was a well-received thriller which explores the themes of wealth inequality and class conflict. It’s a dramatic satire that will sink it’s claws into you right from the start, until it reveals its shocking end. There’s the Kim family, living in poverty, and there’s the Park family, super wealthy and living in luxury. The Kims take up employment from the Park family and weasel their way into their home. Things go well for a while, until veils are dropped and everything goes terribly wrong.
Park Seo-joon’s part in the movie, Min, is a small part but undeniably integral to the whole movie. Min is good friends with Ki-Woo, the son of the Kim family, and is leaving to study in the States. He offers his current position tutoring the Park family’s daughter to Ki-woo; a role which ultimately introduces the two main families together and is the start of all the drama.
1 Itaewon Class (2020)
Netflix
Park takes on the role of ex-con Park Sae Ro Yi in Itaewon Class. Upon leaving prison, Park Sae Ro Yi opens up a bar-restaurant in Itaewon, Seoul. He hasn’t however forgotten the role that both his old classmate Jang Guen Won and Jang’s corrupt CEO father had in the death of his father and subsequent two-year prison sentence. Alongside his group of friends, Park seeks revenge on Jang and his father in a story that shows the battle against the discriminatory inequality of differing social classes. Itaewon Class is a refreshingly honest commentary on the abuse of power by the rich.
It’s no surprise that the drama series won Best Drama Series at the 25th Asian Television Awards. Itaewon Class was an instant success on an international scale, and this only helped strengthen Park’s career and ongoing opportunities.
