So Ji-sub

He is single, but was rumored to be dating girl idol group ‘After School’s Lee Joo Yeon in the past.

he was born on November 4, 1977 in Seoul, South Korea. So Ji-sub’s parents separated when he was very young. He has an older sister who currently lives in Australia.

He was quite insecure as a kid and grew into a shy and introvert teenager. He was also physically weak as a child, so he started taking swimming lessons when he was 10.

His interest in swimming grew so intense that he even won a bronze medal at ‘The National Korean Games’. However, this victory came after his commitment and dedication towards swimming for ten long years.

In 1995, he became a ‘by chance’ Jeans model. He accompanied his friend to the modeling audition for a clothing line, ‘STORM’. Interestingly, his friend was not selected, while So Ji was picked.

He claims that he didn’t have any interest in becoming a celebrity, but because he loved hip-hop so much that he didn’t want to miss the chance of posing with hip-hop artist, Kim Sung-jae.

Ji-sub made his television debut in 1996 with the TV sitcom, ‘Three Guys And Three Girls’. In 1997, he appeared in SBS drama series, ‘Model’.

He didn’t get much attention during his initial days. He appeared in a handful of TV series between 1997 and 2002. These include ‘I Hate You, But It’s Fine’ (1998), ‘Wang Rung’s Land’ (2000), ‘Because of You’ (2000), ‘Joa, Joa’ (2000), ‘Cheers for the Women’ (2000), ‘Delicious Proposal’ (2001), ‘Law Firm’ (2001), and ‘We Are Dating Now’ (2002).

His major role (as second lead) in ‘Glass Slippers’ in 2002 brought him the much needed fame, and he gradually started climbing the stairs of success to a grand career. In 2003, he appeared in SBS’ ‘Thousand Years of Love’.

In 2004, he had his breakout role in the critically acclaimed drama, ‘I’m Sorry, I Love You’, where he played a small street-artist who was abandoned by his parents, and later adopted by a couple. He rose to fame with this role.

In 2008, after a long break, he came back with ‘Rough Cut’—a movie about a thug who was also a wannabe actor. It was a low budget movie, but became a major hit at the box-office. His performance was appreciated by the critics and his fans.

In 2009, after doing a handful of movies and television series, he starred opposite Zhang Ziyi in a Chinese romantic comedy, ‘Sophie’s Revenge’. He later signed with Chinese talent agency, ‘ATN Entertainment’ to explore other markets.

He returned to Korean drama with SBS’ ‘Cain and Abel’ which was based on sibling rivalry between two doctors. His performance in the series was very well received by the critics as well as the audience, and got him several awards and accolades.

In 2010, he worked in the big-budget Korean epic ‘Road No.1’. The movie failed at the box-office, but opened opportunities for him to take his career forward.