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Profile | Who is Lee Je-hoon, versatile star of K-dramas Taxi Driver and Chief Detective 1958?

  • Actor Lee Je-hoon has made his name by challenging himself with whatever role has been on offer – and he found time to get behind the camera

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Korean actor Lee Je-hoon, best known for his role in K-drama Taxi Driver, made his name by challenging himself with whatever role was on offer. Photo: Instagram/@leejehoon_official

Whether playing a police officer, con artist or vigilante, Lee Je-hoon charms viewers with his mischievous smile and cocksure gait, no matter how grim the subject of the stories he tackles.

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Anyone who has seen an episode of Taxi Driver, one of his signature roles, can attest to this.

While many popular young stars today have made their names as music idols or by working their way up the standard acting ladder, Lee is one of the few actors who made his name by challenging himself with whatever was on offer.

He started out studying biotechnology at university but, when he developed a passion for acting, he switched to the school of drama at the Korea National University of Arts. He appeared in many student and indie works at this time, several of which helped to put him on the map.

Lee Je-hoon in a still from Chief Detective 1958.
Lee Je-hoon in a still from Chief Detective 1958.
Today he is one of the most popular actors around. Recently he took on one of Korea’s most beloved screen characters, portraying the much-loved Chief Inspector – a mainstay of the 1970s and 1980s in a television show of the same name – in a prequel procedural series, Chief Detective 1958.

Why we love him

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