5 passionate and artistic roles of Song Joong Ki that dubbed him as a versatile ‘Hallyu Star’

Song Joong Ki, born September 19, 1985, is a versatile actor. He rose to fame in the historical coming-of-age drama ‘Sungkyunkwan Scandal’ (2010) and the variety show ‘Running Man’ (2010–2011) as one of the original cast members. Since then, he has played a diverse spectrum of roles in the television series ‘The Innocent Man’ (2012), ‘Descendants of the Sun’ (2016), ‘Arthdal Chronicles’ (2019) and ‘Vincenzo’ (2021), as well as the hit films ‘A Werewolf Boy’ (2012), ‘The Battleship Island’ (2017) and ‘Space Sweepers’ (2021).

Captain Yoo Shi Jin- Descendants of the Sun 

The Captain and leader of Alpha Team, a fictional elite special forces team of the 707th Special Mission Battalion in South Korea. Shi Jin cares little for the politics of war and believes in protecting and defending those who need help, his country and his men's honour, even if it means having to question his superiors' orders. His light-hearted approach to life and witty sense of humour make him popular with his team and subordinates but Mo Yeon (Song Hye Kyo) quickly realizes that it is his way of deflecting her questions about his job and coping with the pain of losing comrades. He falls in love with Mo Yeon at first sight but gets rejected by her three times. His charming and sunny personality held a lot of pain and grief from memories that he locked away. Song Joong Ki does a great job of bringing the emotions to the screen, which made a lot of fans fall for him. 

Vincenzo Cassano- Vincenzo 

An Italian lawyer and Mafia consigliere of Korean descent. He is the adopted son of the late boss of the Cassano Family. He is Geumga Plaza's true owner and usually wears a nice, fancy bespoke suit. He becomes an Advisor/Foreign Legal Counsel to Jipuragi Law Firm, working with Hong Cha-young to destroy the Babel Group and reclaim the gold hidden in Geumga Plaza. Vincenzo is his first attempt at comedy and he has absolutely knocked it out of the park! 

Eun Seom and Saya- Arthdal Chronicles

Eun Seom and Saya (Song Joong-ki) are identical twins. Eun Seom is the son of Asa Hon and Neanthal, Ragaz. A member of the Wahan tribe of Iark, a foreigner to Arthdal. Ta-gon's most powerful enemy, in the days to come. The offspring of an alien relationship not accepted in Arthdal. Eun Seom and Saya are a mixed race of the Saram (human race) and the Neanthal, a pair of Igutus born during the Great War. He did a great job at portraying the contradicting characters with ease, further proving him as a versatile actor. 

Kang Ma Ru- The Innocent Man

A smart but poor medical student who has to look after his little sister without any parents. He was in love with Jae Hee but she left him for a rich CEO as she always dreamt of being rich, but she always loved Ma Ru and still harbours feelings for him. Six years after Jae Hee left he became arrogant and a playboy who works as a bartender. He approached Eun-gi as part of his revenge plan against Jae-hee but he started to care for her and eventually fell in love. Song Joong Ki truly brought the cold, hard and callous personality of Kang Ma Ru on screen, making it one of his most revered characters. 

Chul Soo- A Werewolf Boy

One day, Sun-yi (Park Bo Young) discovers a feral boy of about 19 in their yard. His blood type is unidentifiable, and he can neither read nor speak. Even though he behaves like a wild beast, Sun-yi's kindhearted mother adopts him and names him Chul Soo, assuming he's one of more than 60,000 children orphaned in the Korean War. Song Joong Ki as an innocent, harmless and curious boy hit the hearts of all the fans. His chemistry with Park Bo Young was palpable and even though he hardly had any lines, his emotions were very well displayed through his expressions. 

Kim Tae Ho- Space Sweepers

Tae Ho (Song Joong-Ki) is a pilot of Spaceship Victory, which is led by a captain (Kim Tae-Ri). Tae Ho will do anything to make money, but he is always broke. Song Joong Ki portrayed the fear and guilt of losing their child which brought the viewers to tears. His money-grubbing, selfish and arrogant behaviour was also on spot as some fans were even angry at that character!

Seeing his wide range of characters, it’s safe to say that Song Joong Ki definitely lives up to the hype. After 13 years, he has managed to display various kinds of emotions, proving his worth as an actor and we were happy to recount all his memorable characters on the joyful occasion of his birthday. 

ALSO READ: WATCH: 2PM’s Taecyeon and Kim Hye Yoon star in upcoming historical drama ‘Inspector Joy’

ALSO READ: WATCH: 2PM’s Taecyeon and Kim Hye Yoon star in upcoming historical drama ‘Inspector Joy’

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Which character is closer to your heart? Let us know in the comments below.