Lee Jun Ki Profile
Name: 이준기 / Lee Jun Ki (Gi) / Lee Joon Ki (Gi)
Profession: Actor, model and singer
Birthdate: 1982-Apr-17
Birthplace: Busan, South Korea
Height: 178cm
Weight: 66kg
Star sign: Aries
Blood type: B
Family: Parents and a younger sister
Lee Jun Ki Biography
Lee Jun Ki (Hangul: 이준기, Hanja: 李準基, born April 17, 1982, in Busan, South Korea) is a male South Korean actor and model. He rose to fame as Gong-gil in The King and the Clown. He has a mother, father, and one younger sister. He graduated from the Seoul Arts College with a major in Acting, and is a 1st degree in both Hapkido and Taekyon, and 3rd degree in Taekwondo. Besides Korean, Lee also speaks some Japanese and English. As of 2007, Lee is one of the top actors in South Korea.
Modeling
Lee Jun Ki started out as a model and held minor roles in Korean dramas. In 2001, he first appeared in the television commercial for the So Basic fashion label.
Acting
His first drama appearance was as a dissatisfied teenager in the KBS drama What should I do? He later appeared with a minor role in Star's Echo, a drama by MBC and Fuji TV in 2004.
In 2005, his first major acting role came in The King and the Clown (왕의 남자), where he took on the role of a feminine-appearing entertainer forced to satisfy King Yeonsan's sexual and emotional cravings taking place in the late 15th century. The film became one of the highest grossing South Korean-made movies in South Korea, unexpectedly replacing Taegukgi as the most-watched film in Korean history with over 12.3 million viewers, despite the low amount Lee was paid of just over $100,000 for the role.The poor fee was largely due to the contract that was signed by Lee before he rose to stardom with the role of Gong-gil from 'King and the Clown'. Lee was against the halving of screen quotas in South Korea that allows foreign films to be shown in theaters on certain days, while domestic films are alloted another amount of days. He believed that without the screen quotas, The King and the Clown would not have been as successful in competing against foreign films. He earned many Best Male New Comer awards for his role as Gong-gil in The King and the Clown in 2006.
His next role was as the supporting character on the Korean drama SBS's My Girl together with Miss Korea, Park Si Yeon, Lee Da Hae, and Lee Dong Wook. His movie, Fly, Daddy, Fly which was released as well, garnered much attention and media coverage due to Lee's overwhelming popularity.
Lee's popularity overseas is also noted, where in the 19th Tokyo International Film Festival, he was recognized as a top star. In China, Lee was the only Korean among 300 Asian stars invited to attend a Chinese television show which celebrated the Chinese New Year. During the Shanghai International Film Festival, Lee was approached by acclaimed Chinese director Chen Kaige, who proposed that the two should make a film together in China, which Lee thought was a great idea. "I'd love to make the movie if the script is good and the character is right," Lee said.
In 2007, Lee film a joint Korea-Japan movie entitled Virgin Snow with Japanese actress Aoi Miyazaki, where he plays a Korean exchange student. He was later able to hold his first meeting with his Japanese fans on March 10, 2007 in Osaka, Japan. The next day he talked about his acting career during a talk show that was recorded at the Swiss Hotel in Osaka later. Virgin Snow prove to be a success and was able to place 9th at the box office, setting a record for a Korean film released in Japan. He also starred in an action drama Time Between Dog And Wolf, his first drama ever as the lead role. Ratings took off at a relatively high 20% (approximately) however waning as the drama concluded.
At the 27th Hawaii International Film Festival (HIFF) has announced that Lee will be this year’s recipient of its Rising Star award. The award acknowledges the actor’s work, media image, and growing star-power in the global arena. The festival, which runs through October 18 – 28, will present the award at “An Evening with Lee Jun-ki” on Friday, October 19 along with a screening of the US premiere of one of his latest films. He also has a role in Korea’s summer blockbuster May 18, about the events surrounding the Gwangju Massacre of 1980. The film will also screen at HIFF and has been nominated for the festival’s top award, the Golden Orchid for Best Feature of 2007. The film covers one of the most tragic events in Korean history when the repressive regime of General Chun Doo-hwan resulted in a citizens uprising in the city of Gwangju which was subsequently crushed with government troops entering the city and firing into crowds of civilian demonstrators. The film has sold over seven million tickets at the local box office.
Recently he joined Hong Kong EEG, making he entry into the Chinese market. He will be acting with Nicholas Tse as well as Charlene Choi, in what is rumored to be a modern adaptation of "The Butterfly Lovers" Cast and movie is not yet confirmed.
Singing
A poll by Music website Jukeon asked "Who will be the most popular if they release an album?" Lee ended up being in first place with 66% of the votes. He released a mini album which contains three songs that he wrote for his fan meetings.
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