Lee Joon-gi, Ahn Bo-hyun, Ha Ji-won: These Korean celebrities pack a real punch with their martial arts background

After a two-year hiatus, K-drama star Lee Joon-gi is back with a new drama this month.

Judging from the trailer, Again My Life seems to be packed with action scenes — just like many of his previous dramas — but that's of no surprise with his proficiency in martial arts.

In the drama, Joon-gi stars as Kim Hee-woo, a prosecutor who is murdered while investigating corrupt politician Jo Tae-seob (Lee Kyung-young). Given a second chance to find justice for himself, Hee-woo is thrown back in time to begin life as an 18-year-old university student again.

The cast includes Kim Ji-eun, Jung Sang-hoon and Kim Jae-kyung. Again My Life premieres April 8 on Viu. 

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Besides Joon-gi, here's a list of other Korean celebrities who can pack a real punch.

Lee Joon-gi

Besides having a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Joon-gi also has a black belt in traditional Korean martial arts taekwondo and taekkyeon, as well as hapkido — a hybrid Korean martial art.

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The 39-year-old rose to fame after his first lead role in the 2005 historical drama The King and the Clown. He made his Hollywood debut in the 2016 film Resident Evil 6: The Final Chapter — where lead actress Milla Jovovich expressed her admiration for his martial arts skills in an Instagram post — and followed up with thriller dramas Lawless Lawyer (2018) and Flower of Evil (2020).

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Ahn Bo-hyun

You may know him from his lead role in the current ongoing drama Military Prosecutor Doberman, or the 2021 Netflix movie My Name. But before going into modelling and acting, Ahn Bo-hyun started out as a boxer.

Through his boxing years in middle school and Busan Sports High School, Bo-hyun, 33, attained a few gold medals — including one from a national boxing competition where he represented his hometown.

Check out one of his boxing matches:

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Park Hyung-sik

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He wielded swords in Hwarang and fought off zombies in Happiness, so it will not be a surprise that Park Hyung-sik has a martial arts background.

He learned kumdo — a Korean martial art derived from Japanese kendo — for around seven years and earned himself a black belt.

While Hyung-sik, 30, is known for his role in Strong Woman Do Bong Soon (2017) and other romance dramas, we have to admit that the idol-turned-actor has a knack for the action genre.

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Lee Si-young

Lee Si-young grabbed our attention as the badass female lead in Sweet Home (2020) with her ripped physique and mean fighting skills. Training probably wasn't too difficult for her since she was a successful amateur boxer. 

The actress gained interest in the sport after taking it up in preparation for an MBC show in 2010. Though the drama didn't make it to the screens, the 39-year-old pursued it and competed in amateur matches, winning a few titles such as 24th National Amateur Boxing Championships in 2013 and even making it to the South Korean women's national team in the same year. 

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If you liked her in Sweet Home, check out her badass roles in Poseidon (2011), The Guardians (2017) and the ongoing Disney+ drama Grid.

Ha Ji-won

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It would be a crime not to mention action queen Ha Ji-won. With an inclination to action dramas and films, Ji-won has always been determined to act without a stunt double. She has learned kendo, Korean Buddhist martial art Sunmudo and boxing, to name a few.

The 43-year-old was even chosen as the most talented female Korean star by martial arts director Jung Du-hong. 

Her filmography consists of many fighting roles, such as in the martial arts film Duelist (2005), historical dramas King 2 Hearts (2006), Empress Ki (2013), and more.

In a 2020 interview, Ji-won expressed her love for doing action scenes, saying that action is another language that she can express with her body.

Lee Jong-suk

Lee Jong-suk's charismatic role as professional shooter and multi-millionaire on a quest for revenge in W: The Two Worlds (2016) was a heart-stealer for sure, and part of the sex appeal was definitely the fighting scenes. 

The 32-year-old's black belt in taekwondo definitely showed through in the drama as he singlehandedly took down villains in multiple scenarios. 

Hopefully, we'll see more of him kicking butt in his upcoming thriller drama Big Mouth.

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Jang Hyuk

Besides being trained in taekwondo, Jang Hyuk, 45, also did boxing for 10 years and then practised jeet kune do for another decade.

He chooses to do most of his fight scenes on his own rather than use a stunt double and while you might think it is due to his incredible athleticism, the actor shared in the tvN live talkshow Taxi that it was due to the trauma of seeing a stuntman getting injured on set at the beginning of his acting career.

From his 1997 acting debut in the SBS drama Model, Jang Hyuk has come a long way. Prior to his popular roles in the Slave Hunters (2010) and You Are My Destiny (2014), he made his Hollywood debut in the 2008 film Dance of the Dragon which was filmed entirely in Singapore.

His upcoming historical drama Red Single Heart premieres next month, so make sure you don't miss it!

Jung Hae-in

You might have fallen in love with him as the cute second lead Han Woo-tak in While You Were Sleeping (2017), or maybe as Son Ye-jin's onscreen sweetheart Seo Joon-hee in Something in the Rain (2018).

The 34-year-old heartthrob — who has a black belt in taekwondo — shared in an interview that he had to learn different kinds of martial arts in preparation for his last drama Snowdrop (2021).

Check out one of his fight scenes in the 2021 Netflix series D.P.

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syarifahsn@asiaone.com