Yoo Seung-ho (born 17 August 1993) is a South Korean actor. He rose to fame as a child actor in The Way Home (2002), and has continued acting in films and televisions series, including teen drama Master of Study (2010), suspense thriller Blind (2011), andromantic comedy Operation Proposal (2012). Yoo starred in ongoing drama (2015-2016) of Remember: War of the Son and Imaginary Cat, and latest release
Early life[edit]
Yoo Seung-ho was born and raised in Incheon. The younger of two siblings, Yoo later said his family had been poor.[1]
Career[edit]
Beginnings as child actor[edit]
Yoo made his entertainment debut in a N016 cellphone commercial in 1999. The advertising agency responsible for the campaign had been looking for a "new face," not a professional model, so Yoo's mother sent in a photo of her son and he was chosen.[1]
When he was seven years old, Yoo began his career as a child actor in 2000, first appearing in television dramas. But Yoo rose to stardom in his first film The Way Home, playing a bratty city boy who learns to appreciate country life when he's forced to spend the summer with his deaf-mute grandmother. The low-budget film was a surprise box office hit in 2002, drawing more than 4 million admissions.[2] Thereafter affectionately labeled as "Korea's Younger Brother," Yoo also starred in Heart Is... (2006) about a boy and his beloved dog,[3] and Unforgettable (2008) about schoolchildren from a remote island who go on a field trip to a candy factory in Seoul during the 1970s.[4][5]
He also continued acting in television, appearing in Magic Warriors Mir & Gaon (2005), an adventure series for children. Yoo further built his filmography playing the younger counterparts of male protagonists in television dramas, including general Yi Sun-sin in Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-sin (2004), King Seongjong in The King and I (2007), andGwanggaeto the Great in The Legend (2007).[6]
In 2009, Yoo starred in City of Fathers, a film about a rebellious teenager with kidney cancer, his alcoholic adoptive father and his pimp biological father; followed by 4th Period Mystery, in which two students hunt for a murderer after finding a body in their classroom. Beginning episode 34, he also appeared as Kim Chunchu in the period epic Queen Seondeok, one of the highest-rated Korean dramas of that year.
Teen leading roles[edit]
Now in his teens, Yoo was cast in one of the major roles in Master of Study (2010), a Korean screen adaptation of Japanese manga Dragon Zakura, about a group of underdog students at a low-ranking high school who study to get into a top university with the help of a strong-willed lawyer-turned-educator.[7][8][9][10] Yoo had previously appeared in T-ara's music video "Lies" with Master of Study costar Park Ji-yeon.[11]
He then played a more adult role in Flames of Desire, as the second-generation son of a wealthy chaebol family who is uninterested in the battles of succession among his relatives and becomes a married man at 21.[12] Later that year, Yoo sang a duet with singer/actress IU titled "Believe in Love." The song's lyrics was based on a diary that Yoo had written while seeing orphans of war in the slums of Sri Lanka for the charity program Love Request.[13]
In 2011, Yoo trained in swordplay and martial arts in his role as an assassin in Warrior Baek Dong-soo, an action-period drama based on the manhwa by Lee Jae-heon.[14] He was also one of the voice actors for Leafie, a Hen into the Wild, which was adapted from a bestselling children's novel by Hwang Sun-mi and became one of the highest-grossing Korean animated films of all time. Yoo's character is the duckling Greenie, who is raised lovingly by his adoptive mother Leafie, an escaped farm hen.[15] He then played a motorcycle delivery guy who witnesses a hit and run, but whose testimony contradicts that of a sight-impaired ex-police officer, in the thriller Blind. [16]
Yoo also landed in the news that year for declining "special admission" offers from prestigious Korean universities upon his graduation from Baekshin High School in Goyang,Gyeonggi Province.[17] He said he decided to forgo college in order to pursue acting full time, instead of having a difficult time balancing school work and his acting career, adding that he "didn't want to enter a university, until I find what I really want to study."[18][19][20] His decision was received positively, amidst mounting criticism of celebrity college students with lackluster attendance records.[21]
In 2012, Yoo was cast in his first role as a leading man in Operation Proposal, a Korean remake of the Japanese drama Proposal Daisakusen, about a baseball player who regrets never confessing his love for his childhood best friend, until he gets the chance to repeatedly travel back in time to win her heart and prevent her from marrying someone else.[22][23]
This was followed by a supporting role as the Jade Emperor, ruler of the heavens, in the fantasy/period drama Arang and the Magistrate.[24] Afterwards, he starred in the melodrama Missing You, playing a cold man who hides a vengeance-filled heart behind his seemingly gentle smile.[25][26][27]
Known in the press as "Little So Ji-sub" for his resemblance to the said actor, in 2013 Yoo starred in the music video for So's single "Eraser." This was his second time to promote So's musical endeavors, after "Lonely Life" in 2008.[28][29] Following that, Yoo's first photo book titled Travel Letter, Spring Snow, And... was published; it was the last project shot by celebrity photographer Bori before her death on 9 April 2013.[30]
Military service[edit]
Yoo quietly enlisted for his mandatory military service as a regular soldier on 5 March 2013, reportedly working as a trainer of new recruits.[31] He drew praise for doing so at age 19, as majority of Korean men choose to carry out their army duty shortly after high school or during university, unlike most male Korean celebrities who choose to delay their enlistment until they turn 29.[32][20][33][34][35] Yoo was discharged on 4 December 2014.[36][37]
Comeback[edit]
As his first post-army project, Yoo appeared in the music video for Naul's "You From the Same Time" in 2015. He was next cast as a stubborn webcomic writer raising a cat in the TV adaptation of webtoon Imaginary Cat.[38][39] Yoo is also set to star in the upcoming period film Joseon Magician directed by Kim Dae-seung, followed by a leading role as a lawyer with hyperthymesia defending his father on death row in legal thriller series Remember – War of the Son.[40][41]
Filmography[edit]
Film[edit]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | The Way Home | Sang-woo |
| 2003 | Happy Ero Christmas | Children's angel choir |
| 2004 | Don't Tell Papa | Kim Cho-won |
| 2006 | Heart Is... | Chan-yi |
| 2008 | Unforgettable | Gil-su |
| 2009 | Astro Boy | Astro Boy (voice, Korean dubbed)[42] |
| City of Fathers | Kim Jong-chul | |
| 4th Period Mystery | Han Jung-hoon | |
| 2011 | Leafie, A Hen into the Wild | Greenie (voice) |
| Blind | Kwon Gi-seob | |
| 2012 | Fragments of Sweet Memories (3D short film)[43] | |
| 2015 | Joseon Magician | Hwan-hee |
| 2016 | Kim Seon-dal | Kim Seon-dal |
Television series[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Daddy Fish | Jung Da-um | MBC |
| 2001 | MBC Best Theater "Boys Don't Cry" | Doo-san | MBC |
| MBC Best Theater "It Happened in the Parking Lot" | MBC | ||
| 2003 | MBC Best Theater "All That Ramen" | Joon-young | MBC |
| MBC Best Theater "Winter Bird's Dream" | Joon-ho | MBC | |
| Love Letter | young Lee Woo-jin | MBC | |
| 2004 | MBC Best Theater "Hi, Clementine" | Se-beom | MBC |
| Sweet Buns | young Lee Shin-hyuk | MBC | |
| Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-sin | young Yi Sun-sin | KBS1 | |
| Precious Family | Park Joon-yi | KBS2 | |
| 2005 | Sad Love Story | young Seo Joon-young | MBC |
| Magic Warriors Mir & Gaon | Mir | KBS2 | |
| 2006 | Alien Sam | Wang Hae-ryong | Tooniverse |
| 2007 | The King and I | young Seongjong | SBS |
| The Legend | young Damdeok | MBC | |
| 2009 | Queen Seondeok | Kim Chunchu | MBC |
| You're Beautiful | Customer at convenience store (cameo, episode 9) | SBS | |
| 2010 | Master of Study | Hwang Baek-hyun | KBS2 |
| Flames of Desire | Kim Min-jae | MBC | |
| 2011 | Warrior Baek Dong-soo | Yeo Woon | SBS |
| 2012 | Operation Proposal | Kang Baek-ho | TV Chosun |
| Arang and the Magistrate | Jade Emperor, King of Heaven | MBC | |
| Missing You | Kang Hyung-joon/Harry Borrison | MBC | |
| 2013 | Studying Humans | Documentary narrator[44] | KBS1 |
| 2015 | Imaginary Cat | Hyun Jong-hyun | MBC Every 1 |
| 2015-2016 | Remember - War of the Son | Seo Jin-woo | SBS |
Music video[edit]
| Year | Song Title | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "Have You Ever Been Lovesick?" | Lyn |
| "Photo" | Dragonfly | |
| 2004 | "I Was Thankful" | Tim |
| 2008 | "Don't Go, Don't Go" | Brown Eyes |
| "Lonely Life" | So Ji-sub | |
| 2009 | "Take Care of Her" | Jo Sung-mo |
| "Lies (Part 1)" | T-ara | |
| 2010 | "Like a Star" | Taeyeon and The One |
| "Believe in Love" | IU and Yoo Seung-ho | |
| 2011 | "Whenever You Play That Song"[45] | Huh Gak feat. LE of EXID |
| 2013 | "Eraser"[46] | So Ji-sub |
| 2015 | "You From the Same Time" | Naul |
Discography[edit]
| Year | Song Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Believe in Love" | Duet with IU |
Photo book[edit]
| Year | Title | Publisher | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Travel Letter, Spring Snow, And... | Wisdom House | ISBN 9788959137268 |
Endorsements[edit]
Awards and nominations[edit]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Young Artist Awards | Recipient | The Way Home | Won |
| 2005 | KBS Drama Awards | Best Young Actor | Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-sin, Precious Family | Won |
| 2007 | 1st Korea Movie Star Awards | Best Young Actor | Heart Is... | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | Best Young Actor | The King and I | Won | |
| 2008 | 2nd Mnet 20's Choice Awards | Hot Younger Male | N/A | Won |
| 2009 | 4th Andre Kim Best Star Awards[48] | Male Star Award | N/A | Won |
| MBC Drama Awards[49] | Best New Actor | Queen Seondeok | Won | |
| 2010 | 46th Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actor (TV) | Master of Study | Nominated |
| 26th Korea Best Dressed Swan Awards | Best Dressed, TV Actor category | Won | ||
| KBS Drama Awards | Best Couple Award with Park Ji-yeon | Nominated | ||
| Netizens' Award, Actor | Nominated | |||
| Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Nominated | |||
| 2012 | MBC Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries | Arang and the Magistrate, Missing You | Nominated |
| 2013 | New Soldiers Education Unit[50] | Excellence Award from the Battalion Commander | N/A | Won |
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