Byun Hee-bong

Byun Hee-bong (; born Byun In-chul; 8 June 1942 – 18 September 2023) was a South Korean film, television and voice actor. In 1963, he embarked on his voice acting career by making his debut in the first season of DBS Donga Broadcasting. He further expanded his experience by joining the second season of MBC Culture Broadcasting in 1965.

Making his acting debut in 1970, he was known as director Bong Joon-ho's personal favorite actor, and his performances in the director's films have sparked a fresh wave of recognition for his unique contributions as a supporting actor. He appeared in four of Bong Joon-ho's feature films. In Barking Dogs Never Bite, he portrayed a peculiar apartment security guard with a deep affinity for bone soup. In Memories of Murder, he took on the role of a local detective chief, while in The Host, he captivated audiences as Park Hee-bong, the grandfather of the film's protagonist's family. For this role, Byun also won several awards, including the 27th Blue Dragon Film Awards for best supporting actor. In Okja, Byun made a special appearance as Joo Hee-bong.

Early life Byun In-chul was born in Sinchang Village, Sinpyeong-ri, Buk-myeon, Jangseong County, South Jeolla Province.

He attended Salesian High School in Gwangju. He took up law at Chosun University before dropping out to pursue acting.

Career Byun entered the MBC actor's auditions in 1965, and made his acting debut in 1970. A year later in 1971, he became a regular on the landmark police procedural Chief Inspector. At the time of his debut, he used his real name, Byeon In-cheol, but in 1977, in an attempt to improve his image as a villain, he used the stage name Byun Hee-bong.

Throughout the 1970s, he became known on TV as a character actor who played eccentric men who didn't quite fit in with mainstream Korean society. He transitioned to the big screen in the 1980s, and earlier in his film career, starred in the classic Lee Doo-yong film Eunuch (1986) and A Surrogate Father (1993).

In 2000, Byun appeared in a memorable supporting role in Bong Joon-ho's directorial debut Barking Dogs Never Bite, playing a bizarre apartment maintenance man with a love for dog meat. It rejuvenated his career, and Bong would later cast him in the short film Sink & Rise (2004), and his seminal works crime drama Memories of Murder (2003) and monster movie The Host (2006). The Host became the top-grossing Korean film of all time, and Byun won much acclaim for his performance as the strong-willed patriarch of a "loser" family, including Best Supporting Actor awards at the Asia Pacific Film Festival and Blue Dragon Film Awards.

Among Byun's other notable roles were in martial arts fantasy Volcano High (2001), rural dramedy My Teacher, Mr. Kim (2003), horror comedy To Catch a Virgin Ghost (2004), body swap thriller The Devil's Game (2008), and espionage film The Spies (2012). Byun was also known for being active in television, with his portrayals of endearing, humorous fathers/grandfathers, or stern, cunning professionals.

Death Byun died from complications of pancreatic cancer in Seoul on 18 September 2023, at the age of 81.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role 1980 Dull Servant Pal Bul-chul 1983 Hotel at 00:00 Reporter Kim 1985 A Man With Color 1986 Eunuch No Woman Is Afraid of the Night Deok Sa-gong 1988 We Are Going to Geneva Now Countryside doctor Karma The World of Women Professor Park 1992 A Surrogate Father 2000 Barking Dogs Never Bite Byun Byeong-bi 2001 Volcano High Vice principal Jang Hak-sa 2003 Scent of Love Second-hand bookstore owner My Teacher, Mr. Kim Choi No-in Memories of Murder Sergent Koo Hee-bong Spring Breeze Writer Noh 2004 Au Revoir, UFO Real estate agent To Catch a Virgin Ghost Lovely Rivals Principal Byun In-chul Sink & Rise (short film) 2005 Another Public Enemy Byun Hee-bong Crying Fist Sang-hwan's coach Detective Mr. Gong Gong Pil-doo's father 2006 The Host Park Hee-bong Mission Sex Control Mr. Kang 2007 Small Town Rivals CEO Baek 2008 The Devil's Game Kang No-shik 2009 Lifting King Kong school superintendent Searching for the Elephant zoo official (cameo) 2010 Haunters Jung-shik 2011 In Love and War Village leader 2012 I Am the King Shin Ik-yeok The Spies Adviser Yoon 2013 Mr. Go Weiwei's grandfather (cameo) 2017 Okja Hee-bong 2019 By Quantum Physics: A Nightlife Venture Baek Young-Kam

Television

Theater YearTitleRoleTheaterDateRef. English Korean 2013 Snow of March3월의 눈Jang-ohNational Theatre Company Baek Sung-jang Min-ho TheatreMarch 1–23

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result 1982 MBC Drama Awards 1985 Hankook Ilbo Popularity Award The Ume Tree in the Midst of the Snow 21st Baeksang Arts Awards Most Popular Actor (TV) 1986 JoongAng Ilbo Our Star Award 2003 2nd Korean Film Awards Best Supporting Actor My Teacher, Mr. Kim 2004 KBS Drama Awards Best Actor in a One-Act Drama/Special 2006 51st Asia Pacific Film Festival Best Supporting Actor The Host 27th Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Supporting Actor 9th Director's Cut Awards Performer of the Year (ensemble cast) 2007 43rd Baeksang Arts Awards Best Actor (Film) 44th Grand Bell Awards Best Supporting Actor 4th Best Film Awards Best Supporting Actor 2008 44th Baeksang Arts Awards Best Actor (Film) The Devil's Game 2009 KMDb Choiwos Awards Best Supporting Actor 2010 KBS Drama Awards Best Supporting Actor Master of Study 2014 MBC Drama Awards Best Actor in a One-Act/Short Drama Lump in My Life

State honors