# Park Jeong-min (actor)

Park Jeong-min (Korean: 박정민; born March 24, 1987) is a South Korean actor, writer, and book publisher. Known as a prolific Chungmu-ro actor, he is most acclaimed for starring in the films Bleak Night (2011), Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet (2016), Keys to the Heart (2018), Deliver Us from Evil (2020), Decision to Leave (2022), Smugglers (2023) and Harbin (2024). He is also the writer of best-selling book A Useful Person.

## Early life and education

In 2005, Park enrolled in Liberal Arts at the prestigious Korea University and subsequently dropped out with the intention to become a filmmaker. He then majored in film making at Korea National University of Arts, but later switched his major to acting after his military discharge.

## Career
### 2011–2016: Breakthrough and critical acclaim

In 2011, Park made his screen debut with the critically acclaimed independent film Bleak Night, for which he was nominated for Best New Actor at the 20th Buil Film Awards.
He made his breakthrough in 2016 with his performance in Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet as Song Mong-gyu, a cousin of the poet Yun Dong-ju who was known for his resistance writings during the Japanese occupation of Korea. His portrayal garnered him Best New Actor awards at the 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards, 37th Blue Dragon Film Awards, 36th Golden Cinema Festival, the Korea Film Actors Association Awards, 16th Director's Cut Awards, and a Best Supporting Actor award at the 22nd Chunsa Film Art Awards.

### 2017–present: Rising popularity and directorial debut

In 2017, Park returned to theater as Romeo in the Korean adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet with Moon Geun-young playing Juliet.
In 2018, he starred in the comedy-drama film Keys to the Heart as a gifted pianist with savant syndrome. The same year, Park appeared in the superhero film Psychokinesis and headlined Lee Joon-ik's drama film Sunset in My Hometown in which he plays a rapper. With the help of professional rappers, Park practiced rapping for a year, and wrote lyrics for the songs that appeared in the film.
In 2019, Park starred in mystery thriller Svaha: The Sixth Finger followed by lead roles in the crime drama film Tazza: One Eyed Jack and the webtoon-based comedy film Start-Up.
In 2020, Park was part of the main cast of Netflix original film Time to Hunt which premiered at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival. Later that year, Park acted in the action film Deliver Us from Evil as Yui, a transgender woman who wishes to undergo sex reassignment surgery but cannot afford to do so. The film became the second highest-grossing South Korean film of 2020. For his portrayal, Park won Best Supporting Actor awards at the 41st Blue Dragon Film Awards, 57th Baeksang Arts Awards, 40th Korean Association of Film Critics Awards, and 26th Chunsa Film Art Awards. Park also wrote and directed a music video for "Reconnect" as part of a special project in celebration of Elle Korea's 28th anniversary.
In 2021, Park starred in the drama film Miracle: Letters to the President. He made his directorial debut with short film Unframed – Vote for Inno which premiered at the 26th Busan International Film Festival alongside Netflix original series Hellbound in which Park made his small screen comeback.
In 2023, Park starred in Ryoo Seung-wan's action crime film Smugglers for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 60th Baeksang Arts Awards, 44th Blue Dragon Film Awards, 59th Grand Bell Awards, and 32nd Buil Film Awards.
In 2024, Park starred in another Netflix original series The 8 Show based on the Naver webtoons Money Game and Pie Game by Bae Jin-soo. Later that year, he starred in the Netflix original film Uprising as well as sports drama film One Win and biographical period film Harbin.

## Other activities
### Writing

In 2014, Park became a writer of a monthly column for magazine Topclass and established a following of devoted readers. His column is called "Eonhee", which means "to make others happy through words".
Known for his humorous and self-deprecating writing style, Park published his own book of essays in 2016, titled A Useful Person. The book became a best-seller and had its 12th round of printing as of 2019.
Park also owns a bookstore and cafe called Book, Night, Day in Hapjeong-dong, Seoul which opened in 2019.
In 2022, he joined Baedal Minjok's newsletter The Taste of Living These Days as a columnist.
In 2024, he was recruited as a contributor to the We Love Poetry newsletter where his self-written poems were published.

### Book publishing

At the end of 2020, Park established his own book publishing company Muze Books and became the editor of the first book published by the company.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2011 | Bleak Night | Baek Hee-joon | |
| 2011 | Short! Short! Short! 2010: Fantastic Theater | I-mae | Segment: "The Famished" |
| 2012 | Dancing Queen | Ramyun in package | |
| 2013 | Fists of Legend | young Im Deok-kyu | |
| 2013 | The Flu | Chul-gyo | |
| 2014 | Hot Young Bloods | Hwang-kyu | |
| 2014 | Tinker Ticker | Lee Hyo-min | |
| 2014 | Mad Sad Bad | Bizen/Bo-hyun | Segment: "Ghost" |
| 2014 | Momo Salon | Chang-gyun | |
| 2015 | Heartbreak Hotel | Chen | |
| 2015 | Office | Lee Won-suk | |
| 2016 | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Song Mong-gyu | |
| 2016 | Pure Love | Yong-soo | |
| 2016 | Horror Stories 3 | Dong-geun | Segment: "Road Rage" |
| 2017 | The King | Heo Ki-hoon | |
| 2017 | The Artist: Reborn | Jae-bum | |
| 2017 | The King's Case Note | Crown Prince Uikyung | Special appearance |
| 2018 | Keys to the Heart | Jin-tae | |
| 2018 | Psychokinesis | Kim Jung-hyun | |
| 2018 | Sunset in My Hometown | Hak-soo | |
| 2019 | Svaha: The Sixth Finger | Na-han | |
| 2019 | Tazza: One Eyed Jack | Do Il-chul | |
| 2019 | Start-Up | Go Taek-il | |
| 2020 | Time to Hunt | Sang-soo | |
| 2020 | Deliver Us from Evil | Yui | |
| 2021 | Moving On | Narrator | Barrier-free version |
| 2021 | Miracle: Letters to the President | Jung Jun-kyung | |
| 2022 | Decision to Leave | San-oh | Special appearance |
| 2022 | Another Record: Lee Je-hoon | Himself | Documentary |
| 2023 | Smugglers | Jang Do-ri | |
| 2023 | Dr. Cheon and Lost Talisman | Fairy shaman | Cameo |
| 2024 | Uprising | Jong-ryeo | |
| 2024 | One Win | Kang Jeong-won | |
| 2024 | Harbin | Woo Deok-soon | |
| 2025 | Face | Im Young-gyu / Im Dong-hwan | |
| 2025 | Humint | Park Geon | |

#### Short film

| Year | Title | Cast | Notes |
| 2007 | The End of the World | Boy | |
| 2009 | Lovers | Ho-young | |
| 2010 | Study Group | — | |
| 2011 | The Cap of Fools | Park Jeong-min | |
| 2021 | Unframed – Vote for Inno | Kim Dam-ho Kang Ji-seok Park Hyo-eun Park Seung-joon | As director and scriptwriter |
| 2022 | Life Is But A Dream | The Swordsman | |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2011 | KBS Drama Special: Human Casino | Cha Tae-oh | One-act drama |
| 2012 | Feast of the Gods | Jang Mi-so | |
| 2012 | Golden Time | Jang Young-woo | |
| 2013 | Puberty Medley | Shin Young-bok | |
| 2014 | You're All Surrounded | Ji Gook | |
| 2014 | Righteous Love | Jang Ki-tae | |
| 2015 | Reply 1988 | Sung Bo-ra's boyfriend | Cameo (Episode 8–9) |
| 2016 | Entourage | Lee Ho-jin | |
| 2018 | Mr. Sunshine | Ahn Chang-ho | Cameo (Episode 22) |
| 2021 | Hellbound | Bae Young-jae | |
| 2022 | Shooting Stars | Park Jo-eun | Cameo (Episode 1) |
| 2024 | The 8 Show | Yoo Phillip | |
| 2024 | Light Shop | Kim Young-tak | Cameo (Episode 8) |
| 2025 | Newtopia | Lee Jae-yoon | |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Song Title | Artist |
| 2012 | "Butterfly" | Sunjungsun |
| 2018 | "With the Heart to Forget You" | IU |
| 2018 | "Byunsan Monologue" | Park Jung-min (Feat. Kim Go-eun, Yankee) |
| 2019 | "I'm Always You" | Lee Seung Hwan |
| 2020 | "Reconnect for the Gone" | Code Kunst, Simon Dominic, Choi Jung-hoon |
| 2022 | "Because We Loved" | Kang Min-kyung and Choi Jung-hoon |
| 2022 | "Jotto" | Bibi |
| 2023 | "I Want That" | (G)I-dle |
| 2024 | "Beginning and End" | Park Won |
| 2024 | "Sky, Hands, Balloons" | Cloud koh |

## Theater

Theater play performances :
| Year | Title | Title | Role | Venue | Date | Ref. |
| Year | English | Korean | Role | Venue | Date | Ref. |
| 2011 | Kisaragi Miki-chan | 키사라기 미키짱 | Snake | Culturespace N.U | June 9 – August 7 | |
| 2011 | Kisaragi Miki-chan | 키사라기 미키짱 | Snake | Ansan Culture and Arts Center Dalmaji Theater | September 24–25 | |
| 2012–2013 | Kisaragi Miki-chan | 키사라기 미키짱 | Snake | Culturespace N.U | November 29 – February 24 | |
| 2013 | Kisaragi Miki-chan | 키사라기 미키짱 | Snake | Garden Five Art Hall | April 5–14 | |
| 2014 | The Escape of G-Code | G코드의 탈출 | Man | Theater Lab Hyehwa-dong 1 | February 18–23 | |
| 2016–2017 | Romeo and Juliet | 로미오와 줄리엣 | Romeo | National Theater Daloreum Theater | December 9–January 13 | |
| 2017 | Romeo and Juliet | 로미오와 줄리엣 | Romeo | Gunpo Culture and Arts Center Suri Hall (Grand Performance Hall) | January 21–22 | |
| 2017 | Romeo and Juliet | 로미오와 줄리엣 | Romeo | Woosong Arts Center Daejeon | February 4–5 | |
| 2017 | Romeo and Juliet | 로미오와 줄리엣 | Romeo | Suseong Artpia Paper Hall Daegu | February 23–24 | |
| 2017 | Romeo and Juliet | 로미오와 줄리엣 | Romeo | Andong Culture and Arts Center Woongbu Hall | February 25–26 | |

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result |
| APAN Star Awards | 2022 | Excellence Award, Actor in an OTT Drama | Hellbound | Nominated |
| Asia Model Awards | 2018 | Popular Star Award | Park Jeong-min | Won |
| Asian Film Awards | 2021 | Best Supporting Actor | Deliver Us from Evil | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2016 | Best New Actor – Film | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2021 | Best Supporting Actor – Film | Deliver Us from Evil | Won |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Supporting Actor – Film | Smugglers | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Most Popular Actor | Park Jeong-min | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2016 | Best New Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2021 | Best Supporting Actor | Deliver Us from Evil | Won |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2023 | Best Supporting Actor | Smugglers | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2011 | Best New Actor | Bleak Night | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2016 | Best New Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2016 | Best Supporting Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2020 | Best Supporting Actor | Deliver Us from Evil | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2023 | Best Supporting Actor | Smugglers | Nominated |
| Busan Film Critics Awards | 2018 | Best Actor | Sunset in My Hometown | Won |
| Chunsa Film Art Awards | 2017 | Best Supporting Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Chunsa Film Art Awards | 2021 | Best Supporting Actor | Deliver Us from Evil | Won |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2016 | Best New Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2022 | Best Actor (TV Series) | Hellbound | Nominated |
| Golden Cinema Festival | 2016 | Best New Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Grand Bell Awards | 2013 | Best New Actor | Fists of Legend | Nominated |
| Grand Bell Awards | 2023 | Best Supporting Actor | Smugglers | Nominated |
| Korea Film Actors Association Awards | 2016 | Best New Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Won |
| Korean Association of Film Critics Awards | 2020 | Best Supporting Actor | Deliver Us from Evil | Won |
| Wildflower Film Awards | 2017 | Best Actor | Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet | Nominated |