Joo Ji Hoon | 주지훈 | About

Joo Ji Hoon began as a model in 2003, shooting for Calvin Klein, Levi's and Reebok, and took small television parts until "Princess Hours" in 2006. Playing the crown prince of a Korea that still had a monarchy, opposite Yoon Eun Hye, he had a drama that peaked at 28.3% at home and travelled across Asia; the two of them shared Best New Actor and Actress at the MBC Drama Awards. "Lucifer" followed in 2007, and his first film, "Antique" (2008), was invited to the Berlin International Film Festival.

In 2009 he was convicted of using ecstasy and ketamine and given a six-month sentence suspended for a year, 120 hours of community service and a fine. He enlisted in February 2010, before he was due to, and was discharged in November 2011, having spent part of his service in "Voyage of Life", a musical staged for the sixtieth anniversary of the Korean War.

He came back in "I Am the King" (2012), playing both a prince and the slave he swaps places with, and took the lead in "Five Fingers" the same year. "Mask" (2015) put him opposite Soo Ae as a chaebol heir who trusts nobody. Then the run that made him: "Asura: The City of Madness" (2016), the two "Along with the Gods" films, the second of which is among the highest-grossing Korean releases ever made, and "The Spy Gone North" and "Dark Figure of Crime" in 2018 — a year that brought him Best Supporting Actor at the Buil Film Awards and the film critics' association, Best Actor from the critics for "Dark Figure of Crime", and Artist of the Year at the Asia Artist Awards.

Netflix's "Kingdom" (2019) and its second season, "Hyena" (2020) and "Blood Free" (2024) followed, and in 2025 "The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call" won him Best Actor at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards, at the Blue Dragon Series Awards and at the Seoul International Drama Awards, along with a Prime Minister's citation at the Korea Popular Culture and Arts Awards.