This series looks back at the works that shaped today’s top stars. “Lee Kun-hee’s Fame” highlights signature projects, scenes and lines that trace their careers. <Editor’s note>
Singer-actor Park Ji-hoon, known to many as a former Wanna One member with a boyish image, is drawing new attention for a darker screen presence. He showcased a new side of his acting in the film “The Man Who Lives With the King,” released on Feb. 4, marking a turning point in his career.
As of the previous day, the film had drawn a cumulative 6,733,443 admissions, according to the Korean Film Council’s integrated ticketing network, raising expectations it could reach 10 million.
Though his idol profile remains strong, Park is a 21-year acting veteran. He debuted as a child actor in the 2006 MBC drama “Jumong” and has since built a steady acting résumé.
"Saved in my heart"
Park became widely known for the line “Saved in my heart.” On Mnet’s national audition show “Produce 101 Season 2” in 2017, he finished second at age 17 and went on to promote as a member of Wanna One, a group that rose to nationwide popularity.
During the program, Park paired the phrase with an aegyo-filled signature gesture that became one of the show’s defining moments and helped make him instantly recognizable to the public.
"Don’t cross the line"
Park’s acting gained broader recognition with the webtoon-based Wavve original “Weak Hero Class 1.” He played Yeon Si-eun, a student devoted to studying but capable of decisive retaliation when provoked, using a controlled performance and chilling gaze to establish his range.
The character grows after meeting Ahn Su-ho (played by Choi Hyun-wook). In Netflix’s “Weak Hero Class 2,” Yeon misses his friend and faces new conflicts after a forced transfer, coming to understand friendship more deeply.
Viewers also noted a callback between seasons: In Season 1, Ahn tries to stop Yeon by saying, “You shouldn’t cross the line,” and in Season 2 Yeon shouts, “Don’t cross the line,” a moment that underscored both his charisma and his longing for Ahn, who is in a coma.
Director Jang Hang-jun has said the “Weak Hero” series influenced Park’s casting in “The Man Who Lives With the King.” “I wanted to cast him after watching the ‘Weak Hero’ series,” Jang said. “His eyes were different from those of an ordinary man in his 20s. I liked that look — anger and emotions sunk deep down, like they could burst at any moment.”
"Is it not you?"
In “The Man Who Lives With the King,” Park plays King Danjong, portrayed as a tragic monarch who relinquishes the throne to his uncle, King Sejo, after the Gyeyu Coup, is exiled and meets a grim end.
For the role, Park lost 15 kilograms, drawing attention for saying he did it through diet control without exercise. He said he could not appear muscular while portraying Danjong as someone who stops eating and has lost the will to live.
Early in the film, Park’s eyes convey a Danjong who has lost everything, making the character’s occasional flashes of royal authority stand out more sharply.
Danjong is not written as a character with many memorable lines, but one scene leaves an impression: After making a decision, he expresses his feelings to Eom Heung-do (played by Yoo Hae-jin) and asks, “Is it not you?” The film also shows his authority when Eom’s son, Taesan (played by Kim Min), is threatened and Danjong erupts at the villain Han Myeong-hoe (played by Yoo Ji-tae), saying, “You wretch — how dare you insult the royal family?”
Park is set to return in the first half of this year as Kang Seong-jae in the TVING original “Becoming a Legend as a Cook Soldier,” based on a webtoon of the same name. Kang is a newly assigned private at Gangrim outpost who becomes a cook and accepts a “job-change quest” after following an unfamiliar voice. The role is expected to highlight a softer appeal than the intensity seen in “The Man Who Lives With the King.”
◇Park Ji-hoon filmography
△Debut: 2006 MBC drama “Jumong”
△Selected works
2017 Mnet audition program “Produce 101 Season 2”
2019 JTBC drama “Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency”
2020 KakaoTV drama “Love Revolution”
2022 Wavve original “Weak Hero Class 1”
2025 Netflix original “Weak Hero Class 2”
2026 film “The Man Who Lives With the King”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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