In over twenty years of his career he has established himself as one of the most important actors of all time hallyu (there wave Korean drama that took the world by storm), today Gong Yoo has achieved international fame with his first role as villain in his career, that of the “recruiter” of Squid Game. Born Gong Ji-cheol, the actor born in 1979 has made his way into the world of k-drama and Korean cinema before joining the cast of the most watched Netflix series of all time. Let’s discover his whole story, from his career to his private life.
Who is Gong Yoo: his career from his beginnings to success
Born in Busan – the second most populous city in South Korea – on July 10, 1979, Gong Yoo attended Dongin High School before graduating in Theater at the private Kyung Hee University in Seoul. Born Gong Ji-cheol (his stage name derives from the fusion of the surnames of his parents who, according to some genealogical reconstructions, would be descendants of the Confucius family), the actor made his debut in 2001 in the fourth season of the series School. His career will take off thanks to k-drama. In the summer of 2007 he will be in the cast of Coffee Princewhich will mark the beginning of his rise to success.
After completing his military service (mandatory in South Korea), Gong Yoo will find more and more space in the world of cinema with the leading role in the romantic comedy Finding Mr. Destiny. 2016 will be a breakthrough year, as Yoo will take part in the touching A Man and a Woman and the internationally successful thriller Train to Busanpresented at the Cannes Film Festival. In the same year he will star in k-drama Goblinsa true cult in Korea, while in 2021 he will join the cast of Squid Game. In the most watched series ever on Netflix, Gong – who has now become one of the most famous Korean actors in the world – plays the ‘recruiter’, who enlists the participants in the deadly game in the Seoul subway stations; he will also appear in the first episode of the second season, released in 2024.
The physical ‘defect’ and the actor’s private life
Gong Yoo – as mentioned – is today one of the best-known Korean actors in the world and has become a symbol of hallyu to the sound of successes, from the role of dokkaebi in Goblins to that of the ‘recruiter’ in Squid Game. Among his secrets there is certainly a great dedication to the world of acting, but also a physical ‘defect’ that helped him in his most famous performances. The actor, in fact, has eyes of a slightly different size and has a small asymmetry of gaze, which allows him to play with facial expressions and almost take on two looks at the same time. Today Gong Yoo lives on the island of Jeju and maintains a certain confidentiality about his private life, but in the past he has caused the world of gossip and Korean gossip to chat for a long time about his relationship with the actress Im Soo-jung, with who starred in the film Finding Mr. Destiny.
