My Take
Kwak Do-won is one of those South Korean actors who genuinely makes every scene feel heavier and more dangerous just by showing up. I first took notice of him in The Yellow Sea, where he played a crime boss with this terrifying stillness — the kind of performer who does more with a look than most actors do with a monologue. His turn in Na Hong-jin's The Wailing is masterclass stuff, deeply unsettling in the best way, and The Attorney proved he could hold his own opposite Song Kang-ho without disappearing into the background. What I love about him is that he's never tried to be a leading-man heartthrob; he's a character actor's character actor, the person directors call when they need someone to feel genuinely threatening or morally complex. Korean cinema's golden era wouldn't have the same teeth without him.
Overview
Kwak Do-won (born Kwak Byung-kyu on May 17, 1973) is a South Korean actor. He first gained recognition in supporting roles in the films The Yellow Sea (2010) and Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time (2012). Kwak is known for starring in The Attorney (2013), Tazza: The Hidden Card (2014), The Wailing (2016), Asura: The City of Madness (2016), Steel Rain (2017), and The Man Standing Next (2020).
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Kwak Do-won
- Name (Japanese)
- クァク・ドウォン
- Reading
- くぁく・どうぉん
- Born
- May 17, 1974 (age 52)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Tiger
- Origin
- South Korea, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- film actor / actor / stage actor / television actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.