Lee Dong-hwi

Lee Dong-hwi (born July 22, 1985) is a South Korean actor and singer who first gained recognition through his roles in the television series Reply 1988 (2015–2016) and Entourage. He achieved further attention for starring in the feature film Extreme Job (2019), comedy series Pegasus Market (2019), and crime drama Chief Detective 1958 (2024). Lee is a member of the South Korean supergroup MSG Wannabe.

Early life and education Growing up, Lee loved drawing cartoons and dreamed of becoming a cartoonist. Although he was an introvert at home, he was outgoing with friends, with whom he would spend hours chatting. Feeling limited by his drawing skills, he began to wonder, "What if I tried expressing this with my body?" This thought inspired him to pursue acting. He then enrolled in the Theater Department at the Seoul Institute of the Arts in 2005.

Career 2013–2014: Beginnings Lee made his debut at the age of 28 with Yim Soon-rye's film Run to the South.

2015–2020: Breakthrough and rising popularity

Lee achieved breakthrough with the retro drama Reply 1988 (2015–2016). He went through an audition where he danced and sang a rendition of Jeong Soo-ra's "Joy". Additionally, he imitated the voices of Lee Sun-kyun, Park Hee-soon, Jang Hyuk, and Yoo Hae-jin to get the part. and crime-thriller film One Line (2017).

With his performance in the film Extreme Job (2019), he further received attention for his memorable characters. a television series based on Kim Gyu-sam's webtoon of the same name. It aired on tvN every Friday at 23:00 (KST) from September 20 to December 6, 2019.

2021–present On November 30, 2020, KeyEast announced that Lee signed an exclusive contract with the label. In December 2023, Lee signed an exclusive contract with Company On.

Personal life Lee was in a relationship with model-actress Jung Ho-yeon from 2015 until November 2024.

He is part of a celebrity group of friends known as BYH48 consisting of other actors and singers. The name was coined by fans and is a parody of Japanese idol group AKB48.

Other ventures Endorsements Following the success of the drama Reply 1988, Lee became a sought-after model in the advertising industry since 2016. He became the face of a chicken advertisement, a role typically reserved for the popular stars. Showcasing his lively and humorous charm, Lee became advertising model for companies such as LG U+ (telecommunications), K5 (automobiles), Banky (finance), and Ferricana. In addition, he received attention for his excellent fashion sense through his SNS and won the Awesome Swagger Award at the Style Icon Awards Asia in 2016. |group=upper-alpha On March 8, 2022, he donated million to support those affected by the extensive wildfires that began in Uljin, Gyeongbuk, and spread to Samcheok, Gangwon. Later, on August 18, 2022, he contributed an additional million to aid victims of the 2022 South Korean floods.

Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 2013 Run to the South Cafe member 1 Cold Eyes Parrot Queen of the Night Male employee 1 Way Back Home Gwang-sik 2014 Animal Soo-yong No Tears for the Dead Electric vehicle engineer Tazza: The Hidden Card Worth Fashion King Duo man 2 2015 The Beauty Inside Sang-baek Veteran Yoon Hong-ryeol The Sound of a Flower Chil-sung 2016 The Handmaiden Mr. Goo Luck Key Min-seok Cameo 2017 Confidential Assignment Park Myung-ho One Line Senior Manager Song New Trial Mo Chang-hwan The Bros Lee Joo-bong 2019 Extreme Job Young-ho My First Client Jung-yeob Exit Central police 1 Cameo 2020 Somewhere in Between Gi-tae The Call Baek Min-hyun 2021 New Year Blues Yong-chan Unframed – Blue happiness Short film 2022 Broker Song Cameo Another Record: Lee Je-hoon Lee Dong-hwi Documentary 2023 Maybe We've Broken Up Jun-ho Dr. Cheon and Lost Talisman Kang Do-ryung / Inbae Can We Get Married? Han Seon-woo 2024 The Roundup: Punishment Jang Dong-cheol The Plot Hauser Method Acting Lee Dong-hwi 2025 Lobby Park Yong-hoon Hi-Five Doctor Go Cameo

Television series Year Title Role Notes 2014 Gunman in Joseon Han Jung-hoon 2015 Divorce Lawyer in Love Lee Kyung 2015–2016 Reply 1988 Ryu Dong-ryong 2016 Red Teacher Kim Tae-nam Drama special Entourage Geo-book (Turtle) 2017 Radiant Office Do Ki-taek 2019 Pegasus Market Moon Seok-goo 2020 SF8 Jung Ga-ram Episode: "Manxin" 2022 Glitch Lee Si-kook 2022–2023 Big Bet Jeong-pal Season 1–2 2024 Chief Detective 1958 Kim Sang-soon 2025 Low Life Sim Hong-gi 2025–2026 Reply 1988 10th Anniversary

Web shows Year Title Role Notes 2021 Orange Tag Host 2022 Saturday Night Live Korea Season 2 – Episode 5 2023 Bromarble Cast Member with Yoo Yeon-seok, Lee Seung-gi, Jo Se-ho, Ji Seok-jin, Kyuhyun, Joshua and Hoshi

Radio shows Year Title Role Notes 2022 Bae Chul-soo's Music Camp Special DJ August 11–12

Music videos Year Title 2025 "Hyehwa-dong (or Ssangmun-dong)"

Music video appearances Year Song Title Artist 2021 "Hobby" Parc Jae-jung "Sunny Today" KCM 2022 "Do You Want to Hear" MSG Wannabe MOM

Discography Singles Title Year Album "Journey To Atlantis" 2021 MSG Wannabe Top 8 Performance Songs "Resignation" "Only You" MSG Wannabe 1st Album "I Love You" "Keep your head up"

Soundtrack appearances + List of singles, showing year released, and name of the album Title Year Album "Hyehwa-dong (or Ssangmun-dong) )" 2025 Reply 1988 10th Anniversary OST

Awards and nominations

+ Year presented, name of the award ceremony, award category, nominated work and the result of the nomination Year Award Category Nominated work Result 2016 InStyle Star Icon New Generation Actor Award Reply 1988, The Sound of a Flower 8th Style Icon Asia Awesome Swagger 11th Max Movie Awards Best Supporting Actor The Beauty Inside 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards Best New Actor (TV) Reply 1988 9th Korea Drama Awards Best New Actor 1st tvN10 Awards Scene-Stealer Award, Actor 16th Korea World Youth Film Festival Rookie Award 30th KBS Drama Awards Best Actor in a One-Act/Special/Short Drama Drama Special – Red Teacher 2nd Fashionista Awards Best Fashionista 2017 6th Korea Top Star Awards Popular Star Award The Bros 2017 MBC Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Radiant Office 2021 8th Wildflower Film Awards Best Actor Somewhere in Between 21st MBC Entertainment Awards Best Teamwork Award Hangout with Yoo 2023 2nd Blue Dragon Series Awards Best Supporting Actor Big Bet

Listicles + Name of publisher, year listed, name of listicle, and placement Publisher Year Listicle Rank The Screen 2019 2009–2019 Top Box Office Powerhouse Actors in Korean Movies 39th