Then and now: How K-drama's biggest leading men like Hyun Bin, Gong Yoo, Ju Ji-hoon were like

We've seen our fair share of Hollywood celebrities who don't seem to age — Keanu Reeves or Paul Rudd, anyone?

But the same can be said for celebrities who are much closer to our shores, such as our favourite K-drama leading men. These famous actors not only age like fine wine, but they also look as good as they did back in the day.

Who are we talking about? Well, only some of the biggest K-drama stars! So join us as we take a walk down memory lane to see how our favourite South Korean actors have aged over the years. 

Hyun Bin, 38

• My Lovely Sam-soon (2005)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEo--Ho4rfU[/embed]

This wasn't his debut project but Hyun Bin rose to fame after his turn as Hyun Jin-heon (owner of an upscale French restaurant) in the romantic comedy series My Lovely Sam-soon. He even shared scenes with another Korean heart-throb Daniel Henney. The only issue is his terrible haircut, but fortunately, that has been rectified by the time he plays a North Korean army captain in...

• Crash Landing on You (2019)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBbbXP3YQ3c[/embed]

Safe to say, Hyun Bin sports a more mature look here — being 15 years older tends to do that too but time has been very kind to him — as a dashing military captain. He has captured the hearts of audiences around the world, including his co-star Son Ye-jin. It's not surprising though, considering that he plays a charming character with a gentle side underneath his stoic facade.

Gong Yoo, 41

• Coffee Prince (2007)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkCzPOvlKT4[/embed]

Before he achieved 'daddy' status for his role in Train to Busan, a much younger Gong Yoo was busy making audiences swoon as the boyish Choi Han-kyul in Coffee Prince. His character mistakes a girl named Go Eun-chan (Yoon Eun-hye) for a guy and hires her to be his lover so he can avoid blind dates. Hijinks ensue, love blossoms and eventually, Han-kyul realises Eun-chan is a woman.

• Seobok (2021)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ufrTnXGMA0[/embed]

While we would have liked to say that Gong Yoo still makes hearts flutter in Seobok, the role he plays doesn't exactly scream "attractive". In this upcoming South Korean sci-fi action film, Gong Yoo plays an ex-agent from an intelligence agency and he's looking rather dishevelled and haggard. However, that could just be the look for the character so if you wanna see Gong Yoo at his best, check out this Esquire Korea article.

ALSO READ: What's the 1 thing that Gong Yoo really wants but can't get?

Ju Ji-hoon, 38

• Princess Hours (2006)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nR-YnNfF_5g[/embed]

It's such a coincidence that two of Ji-hoon's biggest roles are that of a prince. However, their characters couldn't be any more different. In the hit 2006 South Korean television series, Ji-hoon plays Crown Prince Lee Shin who is cold, aloof and treats his wife Shin Chae-kyeong badly because their marriage was arranged by their grandfathers. To be honest, he wasn't that much of a looker back then and that god-awful hairstyle wasn't doing him favours.

• Kingdom (2019)

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCxhzd10yT0[/embed]

After completing his military conscription though, he made a comeback with Netflix Original series Kingdom and boy, did Ji-hoon 'glow up'. He has aged visibly but he wears it well and is barely recognisable as the handsome Crown Prince Lee Chang who is on a journey to save his kingdom (pun intended) from a zombie plague and political conspiracy. Even our resident K-drama fan in the office was surprised that Ji-hoon is the same actor she saw in Princess Hours.

bryanlim@asiaone.com