Shin Sung-rok

Shin Sung-rok (; born November 23, 1982) is a South Korean actor. He frequently appears in films and television series, but is better known as active in musical theatre.

Early life Shin had initially aspired to become a basketball player together with his brother Je-rok, who is two years younger. Both brothers attended Whimoon High School, known as one of Seoul's top high school basketball programs. An injury prompted Shin to reconsider another career and he transferred to Anyang Arts High School.

Career Shin made his acting debut in 2003, but found it difficult to find acting jobs since directors were reluctant to cast the 189 centimeter-tall aspiring actor in supporting or minor roles. Thinking he would have a better chance if he gained more acting experience and honed his craft on the stage, Shin switched gears and joined the theater company Hakchon.

When Shin performed in his first musical Moskito, there were only 20-25 audience members in the 500-seat hall. Despite feeling depressed and frustrated, he said the experience made him strong and helped him become an actor with plenty of guts.

As Shin starred in one hit musical after another, he continued to impress critics with his acting performances, his strong and powerful baritone vocals and his delicate and clear alto notes. He is now considered a top musical star, even drawing fans from outside Korea to his shows.

Definitely Neighbors (2010) further boosted his TV profile; for his role as a difficult chef who falls in love with an older divorcee, Shin won Best Supporting Actor in a Weekend/Daily Drama at the 2010 SBS Drama Awards. His most popular drama yet was the romantic comedy My Love from the Star (2013), in which he appeared as a villainous businessman. This was followed by supporting roles in the 2014 series Lovers of Music (as a talent agency CEO), Liar Game (as the host of a reality show), and The King's Face (as a face reader).

Despite branching out to film and television, Shin has maintained that his heart will always belong to the stage, and has stated, "I feel more affection toward the stage [rather than TV]. I think it is the stage where actors learn life and understand the meaning of acting. It is where I learned how to act and where I gained confidence. I think the core of my life will remain on the stage" (The Korea Herald, 2007). Later on September 27, 2021, Shin signed a contract with Screening ENT. After his contract with Sangyeong ENT ended in December 2023, Shin signed a contract with Y1 Entertainment on January 9, 2025.

Personal life Shin has a younger brother. Shin Jae-rok is a former professional basketball player who had short stints with Anyang KT&G Kites and Changwon LG Sakers before retiring. He became a chef and has since opened his own restaurant. Both of them appeared on KBS talk show Happy Together on July 30, 2015.

Relationships Shin began dating ballerina Kim Joo-won in 2011; Kim was a principal dancer with the Korea National Ballet for 15 years from 1988 to 2003, and currently teaches at Sungshin Women's University. The pair broke up after four years of dating in August 2015.

In June 2016, Shin married a non-celebrity office worker in Hawaii. In November the same year, Shin became a father to a daughter.

Filmography

Television series Year Title Role Ref. 2002 Shoot for the Stars 2003 2006 Hyena Lee Seok-jin 2007 Thank You Choi Seok-hyun Drama City: "I'm a Very Special Lover" Lee Jin-ho 2008 The Art of Seduction Hyun-soo One Mom and Three Dads Na Hwang Kyung-tae My Life's Golden Age Go Kyung-woo 2010 Definitely Neighbors Jang Gun-hee 2013 My Love from the Star Lee Jae-kyung 2014 Lovers of Music Jo Geun-woo Liar Game Kang Do-young The King's Face Kim Do-chi 2016 On the Way to the Airport Park Jin-suk 2017 Man Who Dies to Live Kang Ho-rim 2018 Return Oh Tae-seok 2018–2019 The Last Empress Lee Hyuk 2019 Vagabond Gi Tae-woong Perfume Seo Yi-do 2020KairosKim Seo-jin 2022 Doctor Lawyer Jayden Lee 2024 The Judge from Hell Bael (Special appearances)

Film Year Title Role Ref. 2005 All for Love Basketball player 2007 The Worst Guy Ever Kwon Jae-hoon 2008 Lovers of Six Years Lee Jin-sung 2010 Bloody Innocent Dong-shik Finding Mr. Destiny Captain Choi (cameo) 2011 The Story of My Life Sung-rok Pitch High Kang Dae-hyun (cameo) 2016The Age of Shadows Jo Hwe-ryung 2017The Prison Chang-gil

Television shows Year Title Role Notes Ref. 2009 We Got Married Season 1 Cast With Kim Shin-young (Ep. 42, 45-54)2020Double CastingHost 2020–2021 Master in the House Cast Member Ep. 102–177 2022 OCine Host

Stage Musical

Theater +Theater play performances Year Title Role Theater Date English Korean 2007 Hamlet 햄릿 Prince Hamlet Universal Art Center October 12, 2007 – November 11, 2007 2013 Closer 클로저 Dan Art One Theatre 1 August 31, 2013 – December 1, 2013

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref. 2007 13th Korea Musical Awards Best New Actor Dancing Shadows 3rd APAN Star Awards Best Supporting Actor 22nd Korea Culture and Entertainment Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Drama SBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Drama Special KBS Drama Awards Best Supporting Actor Lovers of Music and The King's Face 2017 MBC Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Man Who Dies to Live 2018SBS Drama Awards Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Wednesday-Thursday Drama The Last Empress Best Character Return 2019 12th Korea Drama Awards Excellence Award, ActorPerfume KBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Netizen Award, Actor Best Couple Award with Ko Won-hee SBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Vagabond 2020 SBS Entertainment Awards Best Entertainer Award Master in the House MBC Drama Awards Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Monday-Tuesday MiniseriesKairos Best Couple Award with Lee Se-young 2022 MBC Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Doctor Lawyer