Lee Kwang-soo

Life and career

Lee was born on July 14, 1985, in Namyangju, South Korea.

Lee began his entertainment career as a model in 2007. He made his acting debut in the 2008 sitcom Here He Comes, which was followed by High Kick Through the Roof.

Lee's popularity increased after joining SBS' Good Sunday variety show Running Man, gaining the nickname "Prince of Asia" by his fans. In 2010 and 2011, Lee won back-to-back awards at the SBS Entertainment Awards for "New Star Award" and "Best Newcomer in Variety", respectively.

In 2012, Lee played supporting roles in the romantic comedies Wonderful Radio and All About My Wife, and thriller The Scent. Later in the year, he reunited onscreen with his former Running Man co-star and real-life best friend Song Joong-ki in the TV melodrama The Innocent Man.

In 2013, after another supporting role in A Wonderful Moment, Lee voiced the lead character Marco in the animated movie Maritime Police Marco, opposite fellow Running Man regular Song Ji-hyo, who voiced for Lulu.

Lee had publicly stated that he wanted to play an antagonist in TV or film. He was then cast as Prince Imhae (villainous brother to King Gwanghae) in the 2013 period drama Goddess of Fire. While filming Goddess of Fire, he participated in an energy conservation campaign alongside child actress Kim Yoo-bin.

In 2014, Lee played his first major role on the big screen in Confession. The neo-noir film is about three friends (played by Ji Sung, Ju Ji-hoon, and Lee) whose friendship gets destroyed after getting involved in a murder case. He then returned to television with the medical melodrama It's Okay, That's Love, playing a patient suffering from Tourette syndrome, a neurological disorder characterized by repetitive, stereotyped, involuntary movements and vocalizations called tics. Lee then starred in the film A Dynamite Family, about five bickering brothers living in the village of Deoksu.

In 2015, Lee played the protagonist in Collective Invention, whose condition is caused by side effects from a newly introduced drug. Collective Invention was screened in the Vanguard section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, marking Lee's first red carpet appearance at an international film festival. He also starred in the two-episode drama Puck!, where he played a loan shark who joins a college ice hockey club. The one-act play was aired on January 1, 2016. The same year, he was appointed ambassador of the "2015 Korea Brand & Entertainment Expo" and received commendation from the trade minister for boosting the Korean Wave industry.

In 2016, Lee starred in tvN's Entourage, a South Korean remake of the American series. He was then cast in the KBS sitcom The Sound of Your Heart, based on the webtoon of the same name. The web drama was a success in both South Korea and China, gaining 100 million on Sohu TV and ranked No. 1 among Korean dramas on the site.

In September 2017, it was confirmed that Lee would be a fixed cast member in Netflix's variety show Busted!.

In 2018, Lee starred in Noh Hee-kyung's slice-of-life Live playing a police officer who tries to uphold values in everyday life and maintain justice. The drama was a success and Lee received rave reviews for his performance. He then played a Mensa genius in crime comedy The Accidental Detective 2: In Action, a sequel to the 2015 film.

In 2019, Lee starred in human comedy Inseparable Bros and gambling film Tazza: One Eyed Jack. He won his first Baeksang Arts Awards award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Blue Dragon Film Awards for his outstanding portrayal of Park Dong-goo who suffers from severe intellectual disabilities in Inseparable Bros, with critics citing "it was like seeing Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man".

On February 15, 2020, Lee was involved in a car accident which put all of his activities on pause until his recovery from ankle injury. Later in June, it was confirmed that he would be starring in The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure, a sequel to the 2014 film. The film was released in January 2022.

In 2021, Lee returned to the Season 3 of Netflix variety show Busted!. Later in April 2021, Lee confirmed the film A Year-End Medley, which was released in the same year. On April 27, 2021, Lee's agency announced that he will be stepping down from Running Man to focus on treatment and recovery from the accident (2020). His last recording took place on May 24, 2021. In 2022, Lee starred in the tvN drama The Killer's Shopping List, marking his return to the small screen after four years. His work also includes films Sinkhole and A Year-End Medley. He received his second nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Blue Dragon Film Awards for his work in Sinkhole.

In November 2024, Lee Kwang-soo's agency King Kong by Starship confirmed his appearance in Disney+ series The Manipulated as Baek Do-kyung.

Personal life

Relationship

On December 31, 2018, it was reported that Lee had been dating actress Lee Sun-bin, with King Kong by Starship stating that the couple had been dating "for 5 months" prior to the announcement of their relationship.

Filmography

Film

Television series

Web series

Television shows

Web shows

Music video appearances

Discography

Ambassadorship

• Korea-Mekong Ambassador (2021)

Accolades

Awards and nominations

State honors

Listicles

Notes

References

References

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2. (August 30, 2020). "Lee Kwang-soo on humor, being humble and his height".
3. (September 27, 2013). "Lee Kwang Soo Tattles on Kim Jong Kook to His Father on 'Running Man'".
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8. (December 25, 2016). "Actor Lee Kwang-soo faces new challenge in career". [[The Korea Herald]].
9. Lee, Nancy. (December 31, 2011). "Yoo Jae Suk Wins Big, Winners from ''2011 SBS Entertainment Awards''". enewsWorld.
10. (June 20, 2011). "Lee Kwang-soo is DJ Lee Min-jung's manager in "Wonderful Radio"". [[Daum (web portal).
11. (April 4, 2012). "Lee Kwang Soo Gets Serious". enewsWorld.
12. (May 15, 2012). "Lee Kwang-soo, four movies this year alone". Star Money.
13. (June 14, 2012). "Lee Kwang Soo to Act Alongside Song Joong Ki in 'Nice Guy'". enewsWorld.
14. (December 10, 2012). "Kim Rae Won, Lee Kwang Soo's 'My Little Hero' Posters Unveiled". enewsWorld.
15. Ho, Stewart. (November 22, 2012). "Lee Kwang Soo Records for His First Animation Movie Dubbing". enewsWorld.
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18. Son, Bo-kyung. (June 27, 2013). "Lee Kwang Soo Says He'll be More Vicious Than ''Running Man'' for ''Goddess of Fire Jeongi''". enewsWorld.
19. (July 3, 2013). "TV Personality Lee Kwang-soo to Promote Energy Conservation". 10Asia.
20. (June 20, 2014). "Masculinity, brutality themes of ''Confession''".
21. Lee, Cory. (December 11, 2013). "Lee Kwang-soo to Display Deep Bromance with Ji Sung, Ju Ji-hoon". TenAsia.
22. (June 30, 2014). "Herald Interview: Funnyman gets serious".
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29. (February 12, 2016). "'Entourage Korea' names its cast". [[The Korea Times]].
30. (March 24, 2016). "'Running Man' star Lee Kwang-soo cast for Web-based drama". [[The Korea Herald]].
31. "'Sound of Your Heart' hits 100 mln views in China". [[Kpop Herald]].
32. (April 5, 2018). "Netflix announces star-studded reality show".
33. (August 21, 2017). "Jung Yu-mi, Lee Kwang-soo cast for tvN's new series 'Live'". [[The Korea Herald]].
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35. (September 26, 2017). "Production Ends on THE ACCIDENTAL DETECTIVE 2". Korean Film Biz Zone.
36. (May 29, 2018). "SHIN Ha-kyun and LEE Kwang-soo Buddy Up for MY EXCEPTIONAL BROTHER".
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38. (June 5, 2020). "[2020 백상예술대상] 이광수, 영화 부문 남자 조연상..."많이 놀라셨죠?" 겸손 소감".
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51. Sunwoo, Carla. (November 29, 2013). "Dinosaurs walk Earth again in 3-D". [[Korea JoongAng Daily]].
52. (August 23, 2019). "CHA Seung-won, KIM Sung-kyun and LEE Kwang-soo Fall into SINKHOLE".
53. link. [[Seoul Broadcasting System]]. Kim Ji-hye. (October 29, 2021)
54. (2025-11-21). "“‘1광수’를 아시나요?” 이광수 ‘나혼자 프린스’ 뜨개상영회 연다".
55. Lee, Ga-on. (May 7, 2010). "Han Hyo-joo says she "hold fast" to her role in ''Dong Yi''". TenAsia.
56. (March 9, 2011). "Lee Kwang-soo cast for computer engineer in "City Hunter"". [[Nate (web portal).
57. Choi, Eun-hwa. (March 9, 2012). "Lee Kwang Soo on the End of ''Bachelor's Vegetable Store''". enewsWorld.
58. Son, Bo-kyung. (June 5, 2013). "Lee Kwang Soo and Goo Eun Ae to Cameo in ''Dating Agency; Cyrano''". enewsWorld.
59. Hong, Grace Danbi. (November 4, 2013). "Lee Kwang Soo Appear in ''Potato Star'' as Cameo". enewsWorld.
60. link. (June 13, 2014)
61. (July 16, 2015). "Song Joong-ki recruits Lee Kwang-soo for new drama". [[Kpop Herald]].
62. (October 12, 2015). "Zo and Lee reunite with Noh". [[Korea JoongAng Daily]].
63. (February 24, 2016). "Lee Kwang-soo gets key role in historical drama". [[The Korea Times]].
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71. Ahn. Byeong-gil. (2024-11-21). link
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76. 이승길. (2025-09-04). "【공식】넷플릭스 '유재석 캠프', 직원은 이광수·변우석". My Daily.
77. (August 29, 2017). "Lee Kwang Soo, Park Min Young and Yoo Jae Suk Appear In Netflix NEW Variety Show". Insight.
78. link
79. Suacillo, Angela Patricia. (August 3, 2022). "Girls' Generation's Yuri, Yoo Jae-suk and Lee Kwang-soo face chaos in new trailer for 'The Zone: Survival Mission'".
80. link. [[JTBC]]. Hwang. So-young. (November 30, 2022)
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82. (December 18, 2015). "Kim Jong Kook Reveals Yoo Jae Suk Offered to Help with the Turbo Album First".
83. (February 18, 2016). "Cosmic Girls drops teaser of 'MOMOMO' featuring Lee Kwang-soo". [[Kpop Herald]].
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98. Kim. Hyun-hee. (2025-07-18). "". link
99. link. [[Sports Chosun]]. Bae Seon-yeong (배선영). (December 15, 2015)
100. (June 28, 2015). "Lee's Fruitips ad receives an award". [[Korea JoongAng Daily]].
101. link. Star News]]. (February 29, 2016)
102. (December 24, 2016). "[KBS 연예대상]'마음의 소리' 이광수·정소민, 베스트 커플상".
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104. (October 2, 2014). "KDA is not a rom-com festival".
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107. (December 31, 2014). "SBS 연기대상, 이광수 미니시리즈 부문 남자 특별연기상 수상".
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111. link. Star News]]. (December 31, 2014)
112. (December 26, 2016). "Shin Dong-yup, Lee Kwang-soo nab top entertainment prizes". [[The Korea Herald]].
113. (January 2, 2018). "Lee Kwang Soo & Jeon So Min Win 'Best Couple Award'". [[Seoul Broadcasting System]].
114. link. (December 29, 2018)
115. link. OSEN. (December 29, 2018)
116. (December 28, 2019). "[2019 SBS 연예대상]강남·이상화·박나래·육성재·이광수 SNS스타상".
117. Shin So-won. (December 19, 2020). "SBS 연예대상' 10년 장수 '런닝맨', 골든 콘텐츠상 수상".
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119. (January 8, 2018). "Top Star Awards for NA Moon-hee, LEE Jung-hyun, CHOI Min-shik and Hyun-bin". Korean Film Biz Zone.
120. (January 9, 2016). "Lee Kwang-soo honored in China". [[Korea JoongAng Daily]].
121. Hicap, Jonathan. (October 18, 2018). "BTS, Red Velvet win at Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards". [[Manila Bulletin]].
122. Yeo, Yer-im. (October 25, 2018). "BTS gets award upon their return home". [[Yonhap News Agency]].
123. Lee, Sang-won. (October 25, 2016). "Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards announces winners". [[The Korea Herald]].
124. (October 26, 2016). "Namgung Won, Kim Ji-mi among cultural medal recipients".
125. (February 28, 2013). "Forbes Korea's Top 'Power Celebrity 40' List 2013". [[Manila Bulletin]].
126. (February 23, 2016). "SPECIAL EDITION 13th (1) 2016 KOREA POWER CELEBRITY 40 LIST". [[JoongAng Ilbo]].
127. 조선일보. (2021-01-18). "[공식] 영화진흥위원회, 韓배우 200인 선정..'Korean Actors 200' 해외 홍보 나선다".
128. "KOREAN ACTORS 200".