Cho Jung-seok

Biography

Jo Jung-suk (Korean: 조정석; born December 26, 1980) is a South Korean actor. He began his career in theatre, starring in Spring Awakening, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Grease and stage adaptation of The Harmonium in My Memory, among many other musicals and plays. After nearly a decade on the stage, Jo made his film debut as a comedic supporting actor in the box office hit Architecture 101 (2012), which became his breakout role. He continued to star in the television series The King 2 Hearts (2012), Oh My Ghost (2015), Don't Dare to Dream (2016), Hospital Playlist (2020–2021), as well as films The Face Reader (2013), My Annoying Brother (2016), Exit (2019), and My Daughter Is a Zombie (2025). For his role in the film Pilot (2024), he won the Baeksang Arts Award for Best Actor.

== Career ==

=== 2004–2010: Early career, becoming a musical star === Jo Jung-suk had always wanted to be on stage. He was admitted into the Theater department of Seoul Institute of the Arts on student loan, but after his father died in 2000, Jo's widowed mother became fully dependent on him. He was granted an exemption from military service due to family circumstances, and he quit school before graduating so he could start earning money by doing musicals. He made his professional acting debut in The Nutcracker in 2004. Jo then became active and well-known in musical theatre, performing in a total of 25 musicals during the first nine years of his career, including, musical adaptation of The Harmonium in My Memory, Organ in My Heart, musical adaptation of Jewel in the Palace, Janggeum the Great, as well as Korean productions of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Grease, The Island, and Spring Awakening. Jo Jung-suk expressed in an interview with the media:

"To be honest, I don't really like the term 'musical actor.' I just want to be an actor. A really good actor."— Financial News, May 3, 2007.

=== 2011–2018: Rising to prominence with breakout roles, taking on leading roles, and critical acclaim on screen === In 2011, he landed his first television role on cable series What's Up, playing an awkward but talented music student. However, 2012 proved to be his breakout year with two high-profile projects. In his big-screen debut, he played a supporting role as Nab-ddeuk, the young hero's best friend, in the box-office hit Architecture 101. Jo's performance, which brimmed with personality and comic timing, earned him the Best New Actor award at the Blue Dragon Film Awards, along with nominations from the Grand Bell Awards and Buil Film Awards. He was once again a scene stealer in his third onscreen role as earnest soldier Eun Shi-kyung in the drama series The King 2 Hearts. Jo's display of versatility and screen presence in these projects caused a surge in his mainstream prominence, resulting in close to twenty offers for films and TV series, in addition to commercial endorsements. He next starred in big-screen comedy Almost Che, which was loosely based on a real-life 1985 incident where student activists forcibly occupied the US Cultural Center in Seoul and had a standoff with the police.

In 2013, Jo starred in his first historical film, The Face Reader, directed by Han Jae-rim. He portrayed Paeng-heon, the brother-in-law and assistant of the protagonist Nae-gyeong (portrayed by Song Kang-ho). This character wanders the eight provinces and holds the key to a significant plot reversal in the film. He received favorable reviews from critics for his performance and further established himself as an actor by winning the Best Supporting Actor award at both the Grand Bell Awards and the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards. At the same year, Jo returned to television in his first onscreen leading role in the 2013 family drama You Are the Best!, co-starring IU. The series aired on KBS2 from March 9 to August 25, 2013, on weekends. Jo also lent his voice to the drama's original soundtrack, titled "I Completely Love You." Ratings peaked at 29.3% for the final episode. At the 2013 KBS Drama Awards, Jo won the Best Couple Award alongside IU for their on-screen chemistry, in addition to the Excellence Award for Actor in a Serial Drama. In 2014, Jo was featured in two films of different genres. The first, released on April 30, 2014, is the period thriller The Fatal Encounter, where he played an assassin targeting King Jeongjo (portrayed by Hyun Bin). The second film, released on October 8, 2014, is the romantic comedy My Love, My Bride, a remake of the same-titled 1990 hit directed by Im Chan-sang, in which Jo and Shin Min-ah played a newly married couple. In 2015, Jo starred in tvN drama Oh My Ghost, directed by Yoo Je-won. He acted as Kang Sun-woo, the owner and head chef of Sun Restaurant, an arrogant star chef specializing in pasta, who falls for his kitchen assistant Na Bong-sun (Park Bo-young) who's been possessed by a lustful virgin ghost named Shin Soon-ae (Kim Seul-gi). The drama was a commercial and critical hit. He also headlined The Exclusive: Beat the Devil's Tattoo, in which he played a TV news reporter who gets a scoop, followed by the time-hopping thriller Time Renegades. In 2016, Jo played an announcer in SBS's romantic comedy Don't Dare to Dream who falls for a weather announcer (played by Gong Hyo-jin). The series was a hit and led to increased prominence for Jo, who then became one of the most in-demand actors in the industry. He then headlined the comedy-drama film My Annoying Brother alongside Park Shin-hye and Doh Kyung-soo of Exo. The film topped box office charts and earned positive reviews for Jo, who was praised for his comedic timing and chemistry with co-star Do. In 2017, Jo was cast in the gangster thriller The Drug King, directed by Woo Min-ho. The same year, he made his small-screen comeback in MBC's fantasy comedy drama Two Cops. In 2018, Jo was cast in the action thriller film Hit-and-Run Squad in which he took a role as an antagonist.

=== 2019–2023: New agency, box office film Exit and Hospital Playlist ===

After the contract with Cultural Depot was terminated in February 2018, Jo Jung-suk worked as a free agent for a while. In March 2019, he signed an exclusive contract with Jam Entertainment, a new agency. Later, he took on the role of Baek Yi-gang, the eldest son of the notorious stranger Baekga in the historical drama Nokdu Flower. In 2019, Jo starred alongside Im Yoon-ah in disaster action comedy film written and directed by Lee Sang-geun, Exit. The film follows the story of Yongnam, a young unemployed man, who attempts to reconnect with an old crush, but following a chain of events, they end up trying to escape from a mysterious white gas that threatens to engulf the entire Seoul district. Exit first premiered in South Korea on July 31, 2019. It was considered a box office success earning over US$69.5 million worldwide, becoming South Korea's third highest-grossing domestic film for 2019. Jo established himself as a box office actor with his acting skills and ticket power combined. He was nominated for the Best Actor Award at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. In 2020, Jo starred as an assistant professor of general surgery, Lee Ik-jun, in the medical drama Hospital Playlist. The television series was created by director Shin Won-ho and writer Lee Woo-jung of the Reply series. It recorded an audience rating of 14.1% in the final episode, and received positive reviews throughout its run. In 2021, Jo reprised the role in the second season. Jo hosted the Jo Jung-suk Show at Mastercard Hall in Blue Square, Seoul, for two days on September 3 to 4, 2022.