Kim Kang-woo (born July 11, 1978) is a South Korean actor. He is best
known from his roles in The Taste of Money and The Missing.Kim
Kang-woo majored in Theater and Film at Chung-Ang University, and made
his acting debut in Kim Ki-duk's 2002 film The Coast Guard while still
a senior, later commenting that the role of a soldier was the only one
he could get without any prior experience. Subsequent roles in the
drama series Breathless and Three Leafed Clover earned Kim the
nickname "Mr. Right" as he became known for his portrayal of honest
and diligent characters. His first leading film role was in Jeong
Jae-eun's 2005 sophomore feature The Aggressives, for which he and
co-star Chun Jung-myung were the co-recipients of the "Best New Actor"
award at the 6th Busan Film Critics Awards.In 2007, Kim starred in
Park Heung-sik's The Railroad, which told the story of two strangers
who reveal their inner pain to each other when they are stranded at
the last railway station before the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Kim was
upset when the film was only released in ten theaters, and went to
screenings by himself in an effort to promote the film, where he
greeted and conversed with members of the audience. In spite of its
poor box office performance, The Railroad found favour with critics,
and Kim won the "Best Actor" award at the 25th Torino Film Festival.
Although happy to win the award, Kim found it more gratifying to
observe Italian audiences responding to the film in the same way as
Korean audiences, recognizing the power of film to transcend national
borders. He also admitted to being anxious because of the increased
expectations people would have over his future performances.Kim found
commercial success with his next film, Le Grand Chef, which despite
opening during a slow season sold more than three million tickets to
become the fourth biggest selling South Korean film of 2007. Based on
a popular manhwa, the film focused on the conflict between two rival
chefs, played by Kim and Im Won-hee. To prepare for his role, Kim
attended cooking classes for one and a half months, and for one
crucial scene in particular he visited a slaughterhouse, receiving a
big shock as he knew nothing about the slaughtering process. In
addition, he was required to film a number of scenes with a cow, and
spent some ten days acquainting himself with itâ€"grooming it, feeding
it and taking it for walksâ€"remarking that it was "like working with
a very sensitive actress". He next starred in the crime thriller
Rainbow Eyes the same year, portraying a tough detective who is also a
homosexual.
known from his roles in The Taste of Money and The Missing.Kim
Kang-woo majored in Theater and Film at Chung-Ang University, and made
his acting debut in Kim Ki-duk's 2002 film The Coast Guard while still
a senior, later commenting that the role of a soldier was the only one
he could get without any prior experience. Subsequent roles in the
drama series Breathless and Three Leafed Clover earned Kim the
nickname "Mr. Right" as he became known for his portrayal of honest
and diligent characters. His first leading film role was in Jeong
Jae-eun's 2005 sophomore feature The Aggressives, for which he and
co-star Chun Jung-myung were the co-recipients of the "Best New Actor"
award at the 6th Busan Film Critics Awards.In 2007, Kim starred in
Park Heung-sik's The Railroad, which told the story of two strangers
who reveal their inner pain to each other when they are stranded at
the last railway station before the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Kim was
upset when the film was only released in ten theaters, and went to
screenings by himself in an effort to promote the film, where he
greeted and conversed with members of the audience. In spite of its
poor box office performance, The Railroad found favour with critics,
and Kim won the "Best Actor" award at the 25th Torino Film Festival.
Although happy to win the award, Kim found it more gratifying to
observe Italian audiences responding to the film in the same way as
Korean audiences, recognizing the power of film to transcend national
borders. He also admitted to being anxious because of the increased
expectations people would have over his future performances.Kim found
commercial success with his next film, Le Grand Chef, which despite
opening during a slow season sold more than three million tickets to
become the fourth biggest selling South Korean film of 2007. Based on
a popular manhwa, the film focused on the conflict between two rival
chefs, played by Kim and Im Won-hee. To prepare for his role, Kim
attended cooking classes for one and a half months, and for one
crucial scene in particular he visited a slaughterhouse, receiving a
big shock as he knew nothing about the slaughtering process. In
addition, he was required to film a number of scenes with a cow, and
spent some ten days acquainting himself with itâ€"grooming it, feeding
it and taking it for walksâ€"remarking that it was "like working with
a very sensitive actress". He next starred in the crime thriller
Rainbow Eyes the same year, portraying a tough detective who is also a
homosexual.
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