Personal details
Born:
- Birthday: 1979-01-16
- Born Place: Daegu, South Korea
Jo Woo-jin
Jo Woo-jin (born Jo Shin-je on January 16, 1979) is a highly respected South Korean actor known for his versatile and impactful performances across film and television. After starting his career in theater in 1999, he worked for years before achieving his breakthrough with a memorable role as Director Jo in the noir crime thriller Inside Men (2015). This pivotal role established him as a master of character acting, capable of portraying everything from menacing villains to tough officials and even characters with a humorous or warm side. His critical success continued, earning him the Best Supporting Actor award at the 40th Blue Dragon Film Awards for the movie Default (2018). Jo Woo-jin is widely known to K-drama audiences for his beloved role as the loyal Secretary Kim in Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (Goblin) (2016-2017) and for his powerful portrayals in recent hits like the agent Han Tae-suk in Happiness (2021) and the chilling gang leader Byun Ki-tae in the Netflix series Narco-Saints (2022), for which he also won a Baeksang Arts Award. He continues to be a fixture in major Korean productions, with recent film work including Kingmaker (2022) and the upcoming film Mantis (2025).
