‘Trustworthy’ Yoo Hae-jin Becomes a 40 Million Actor

Actor Yoo Hae-jin [Photo by KeyEast]

Actor Yoo Hae-jin has joined the 40 million viewers club.

The film Pawn (director Jang Jae-hyun), released on the 22nd of last month, surpassed 10 million cumulative viewers on the 24th, its 32nd day since release, becoming the first film this year to reach 10 million viewers. With this, Yoo Hae-jin now has four films with over 10 million viewers: The King and the Clown (2005), Veteran (2015), Taxi Driver (2017), and Pawn.

In Pawn, Yoo Hae-jin played the character Go Young-geun, who is closest to the audience's perspective. He was praised for showing the dignity of a mortician aspiring to be president while lightening the potentially heavy atmosphere of the film with his unique cheerful wit. Director Jang Jae-hyun said, “Yoo Hae-jin watches the entire film like a director,” and “He is a master actor who flawlessly fills every gap in the movie.”

Yoo Hae-jin first gained recognition with his sly performance as the clown Yuk-gap in the first 10 million viewer film The King and the Clown (director Lee Joon-ik). In Veteran (director Ryu Seung-wan), he portrayed Choi Dae-woong, a ruthless aide to a chaebol family, showing a grim and humorless side. In Taxi Driver (director Jang Hoon), he played Hwang Tae-sul, a taxi driver in Gwangju, delivering a sincere performance with a strong regional dialect that left a lasting impression. Through films such as Lucky (2016), 1987 (2017), Intimate Strangers (2018), Night Owl (2022), and Sweet & Sour: 7510 (2023), he has earned the reputation of a “trusted actor,” and is currently reviewing his next project.