[Actor Spotlight] Jang Ki-yong

by missvictrix

This week’s spotlight is on Jang Ki-yong, star of Kill It, which just premiered on OCN. Jang Ki-yong stars as a veterinarian by day; assassin by night, and a whole lot of entanglements await him.

Jang Ki-yong was born in Ulsan, South Korea in 1992. He debuted as a model in 2012, and two years later, made his acting debut with a small role in It’s Okay, It’s Love. Over the next few years Jang Ki-yong had a steady flow of supporting roles, many of them in web dramas (this is not uncommon for the current wave of actors-turned-models that have been gaining experience — and a fan following — by appearing in smaller productions). In 2018, Jang Ki-yong landed his first leading role in the the melo-thriller Come Here and Hug Me, for which he won several MBC awards. And with that, his career was made.

It’s interesting to watch models transition into acting. As with Nam Joo-hyuk and others, on one hand they bring the benefit of being comfortable and easy in front of the camera and are often intuitive about how to move and interact in the scene. But on the other hand, building emotional depth is something that comes with time and practice — and often a strong director at the helm. Either way, I enjoy watching this new crop of young actors build up their resumes and often enjoy their performances all the more for the fact that they are still honing their craft. After all, today’s newbie actor is tomorrow’s Gong Yoo or Hyun Bin.

Here are some dramaland moments from Jang Ki-yong, followed by his full filmography.

 
Go Back Spouses (2017)

This drama definitely belonged to the lead couple played by Jang Nara and Sohn Ho-joon — and to the the heroine’s mother (played by Ajumma from Healer Kim Mi-kyung). At the beginning of the drama we met our leads as they have hit rock bottom in their lives and marriage. When they woke up one morning back in their college days, both were determined to correct the things they grew to regret in this second chance at life. One of these things was marrying each other; another was the “first love” situations they left behind. Sohn Ho-joon pursued the dancer he had had a major crush on, and Jang Nara got involved with the man who said she was his first love — the wealthy student played by Jang Ki-yong. I could have dealt with a lot more of him in the story, but the second leads in Go Back Spouses only served to pull our leads back to each other. That being said, Jang Ki-yong had a really nice presence in this drama, and it was fun to watch Jang Nara turn this uptight, rather unhappy character into a puddle of smitten goo (see above photo). While I might complain that there wasn’t enough second-leading, this drama was beautiful in that it was about returning home, in all shapes and meanings of the word.

 
Come Here and Hug Me (2018)

I have to give it to Jang Ki-yong. At first I thought he was on a career fast-track and just rocketed to leading male status out nowhere — I didn’t realize quite how many years he worked as an actor, taking small roles, side roles, and gaining experience, until he was cast in his first lead role in Come Here and Hug Me. Granted, he’s still a newbie, but the rookie factor for both him and co-star Jin Ki-joo really worked to this drama’s advantage. Their freshness gave authenticity to a story that relied on their shared childhood trauma, and their road to healing. It’s no secret that I really loved this drama. Come Here and Hug Me was dripping with drama and serial killer horror, but it balanced it with such soft and sweet moments and characters, that it really worked for me. While I found Jang Ki-yong a little stiff in this role, a part of me wonders if he was genuinely stiff, or if it was his portrayal of a character who was paralyzed by the guilt of his father’s actions. In retrospect, I think it was a little bit of both. Either way, it really worked here, and I would watch him stare at life-size cutouts of his childhood sweetheart all day.

 
Kill It (2019)

Kill It just aired its premiere episodes, and because I can’t really say no to a handsome, morally conflicted hero with a sniper rifle, I tuned in. OCN shows are not usually my cup of tea — I find them a little on the cold side, and honestly, Kill It was just as expected in that department. The first two episodes covered a lot of ground, giving us three different timelines to set up our hero’s story and give us a firm sense of who he is. He’s haunted by his unknown past, and he’s been raised to be a heartless assassin by David McInnis, but our hero also has a deep respect for life. This is illustrated to us by the many animals he saves. He even performed kitty compressions in his clinic one night when Nana brought in an injured cat. (I shouldn’t have been laughing as hard as I was, but really, it was so hard to take that scene seriously.) But my giggles aside, Kill It is no comedy — it’s actually quite dark, and has hinted nicely at some of its deeper themes on abandonment and grief. The drama will obviously feature a whole lot of interconnection between the characters we have met, and some have already been hinted at. Let the games begin! But please, no more stuffed cats.

 
Jang Ki-yong’s full filmography:

• It’s Okay, It’s Love (2014) [Drama]
  Jang Ki-yong made his acting debut in a small role here playing Lee Sung-kyung’s boyfriend.

• The Greatest Marriage (2014) [Drama]
  Jang Ki-yong had a small role in this Park Shi-yeon drama about a successful anchorwoman who becomes a single mom.

• Seonam Girls’ High Investigation Unit (2014) [Drama]
  High school girls investigated, and Jang Ki-yong supported as one of the girl’s oppa.

• My Beloved Eun-dong (2015) [Drama]
  Joo Jin-mo and Kim Sa-rang led this melo tale of lovers reunited. Is it bad if I say I enjoyed the younger cast and storyline that opened the drama more than the rest of it? (As for Jang Ki-yong, he had a small side role here.)

• We Broke Up (2015) [Web drama]
  Naver web drama that starred Kang Seung-yoon (of Winner!) and Dara (of 2NE1!) and a bunch of others from the YG clan, including Jang Ki-yong, and Yoo Inna, and Choi Ji-woo in special appearances.

• Beautiful Mind (2016) [Drama]
  I distinctly remember watching this Jang Hyuk and Park So-dam medical drama, and I distinctly remember doing it for Yoon Hyun-min. I didn’t even realize Jang Ki-yong was in a side role as a part of the hospital crew!

• Love for a Thousand More (2016) [Web drama]
  Another day, another YG web drama (they really were doing a lot of these for a while!). Kang Seung-yoon starred again with Hwang Seung-eon, and Jang Ki-yong supported.

• The Liar and His Lover (2017) [Drama]
  I missed this Lee Hyun-woo and Joy drama, but Jang Ki-yong plays the drummer and rapper in Lee Hyun-woo’s former band. I could stand watching that, I think.

• Some Guy (2017) [Web drama]
  Also known as The Boy Next Door, this web drama starred Choi Woo-shik and Jang Ki-yong, and they’re probably hilarious together on screen.

• Go Back Spouses(2017) [Drama]
  Smitten, sweet, and buttoned-up Jang Ki-yong is adorable, and my favorite scene with him was when Jang Nara is running down a hill, unable to stop herself in her high heels, and he steps out to grab her. She slams into him and he “brakes” her fall. And it’s perfect.

• My Ajusshi (2018) [Drama]
  Jang Ki-yong is not nice to IU in this drama, but don’t worry, he starred in not one but two of IU’s music videos to make it up to her.

• Come and Hug Me (2018) [Drama]
  Phew, this one was intense. I think I’ll be afraid of Heo Jun-ho forever.

• Reach of Sincerity (2019) [Drama/Cameo]
  Jang Ki-yong appears as the hero in several of the hyperbolic (and hilarious) drama scenes Yoo Inna re-enacts in her head, the best for me probably being the Descendants of the Sun scarf scene.

• Kill It (2019) [Drama]
  Jang Ki-yong’s hero is a good combo of ruthless, merciless, and loyal to the people he considers family. He also rescues wounded animals.

• Bad Guys (2019) [Film]
  After five years of working in TV, Jang Ki-yong seems to be making his film debut in Bad Guys (after the OCN drama). It fits his image and he’s definitely been doing a lot of action of late!

• Search: WWW (2019) [Drama]
  Jang Ki-yong will play a composer who falls in love with successful career woman Im Soo-jung in this new tvN drama (It’s set to air later this year).

RELATED POSTS

• Kill It: Episode 1
• Jang Ki-yong, Nana face off at gunpoint in new teaser for OCN’s Kill It
• The sanctity of life according to Jang Ki-yong’s hitman in OCN thriller
• Jang Ki-yong and Nana confirmed for new OCN melo-thriller
• Jang Ki-yong up for tvN fantasy noona romance opposite Im Soo-jung
• Come Here and Hug Me: Episodes 1-16
• My Ajusshi: Episode 1
• Go Back Spouses: Episode 1