Hwang In-youp
Hwang In-youp (; also spelled Hwang In-yeop; born January 19, 1991) is a South Korean actor, model, and singer. He began his career in modeling industry before making his screen debut with a lead role in the web series "Why" (2018). He rose to fame through his breakthrough role in "True Beauty" (2020–21). He is also known for his roles in the television series "18 Again" (2020) and "The Sound of Magic" (2022). Early life and education. Hwang In-youp was born in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi-do in South Korea on January 19, 1991. He is the  oldest son; his brother, who is three years his junior, is a producer and singer-songwriter who goes by the name Inof. Hwang lived in Davao City, Philippines during his high school and college years, going by the English name Ryan Leon. He studied high school at Philippine Nikkei Jin Kai International School, and later graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in fashion design at Philippine Women's College of Davao. Career. 2017–2019: Modelling and acting debut. Hwang entered the entertainment industry in 2017 as a runway model. Reports state that he was once under YG KPlus, a  model management company owned by YG Entertainment. In 2018, he made his acting debut in the Naver TV web series "Why". He later signed a contract with the South Korean agency KeyEast, a subsidiary of SM Entertainment. In 2019, he played Seo Kyo-won in the web series "Freshman," and made his television debut with supporting role in the KBS2 historical television series "The Tale of Nokdu". 2020–present: Rising popularity and breakthrough. In 2020, Hwang gained recognition for his performance in the JTBC fantasy series "18 Again," a remake of the 2009 American film "17 Again". He played Goo  Ja-sung, a school bully and the counterpart character of Stan, who was portrayed by Hunter Parrish in the original film. Hwang rose to international prominence for his role in the 2020–21 TVN romantic-comedy series "True Beauty," based on the on-going Webtoon of the same name. He portrayed Han Seo-jun, a secondary lead character. He contributed to the soundtrack of the series with the song "It Starts Today" (오늘부터 시작인걸). In 2021, Hwang was cast in "The Sound of Magic", which will air on Netflix with Ji Chang-wook and Choi Sung-eun. On April 23, 2021 , Keyeast announced that Hwang had signed a contract with Japan's agency Stream Media Corporation. Later, Hwang confirmed to lead the SBS drama "Why Her" which will air in the first half of 2022. It is his first lead role on a terrestrial TV station. Personal life. Hwang had completed mandatory military service before auditioning for modelling career.