Actor Choi Dae-hoon's unstoppable momentum draws attention. He has emerged as the undisputed "K-drama box office cheat code," scoring hits with every project he appears in.
Last year Choi Dae-hoon, who captivated viewers around the world and sparked the global catchphrase "hak-ssi," is delivering successive hits with his unrivaled ability to inhabit characters. Swapping entirely different faces for each work and freely crossing genres and character types, his seasoned craft has earned the trust of domestic and international viewers.
Choi Dae-hoon earlier played the role of Busang-gil in the Netflix drama "When Life Gives You Tangerines," which stayed in Netflix's global non-English TV shows top 10 for nine consecutive weeks, perfectly portraying the look of a father from that time. The work caused a sensation, landing on Time magazine's "2025 best K-drama," and Choi Dae-hoon won the male supporting actor award at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards for this powerful performance.
Then, in the Netflix leading role series "The Wonder Fools," Choi Dae-hoon's brand of comedy truly landed. In the work, which rose to No. 2 on the global rankings in its second week after release, he created an iconic scene with "hypnosis acting," calmly performing a zombified act to conceal his identity. This effortless comedic performance dominated short-form platforms at home and abroad and drew attention.
He is also showing a new face through SBS's Friday-Saturday drama "Manager Kim," which has broken this year's Korean drama ratings just two weeks into its broadcast. Choi Dae-hoon plays Seong Han-su, a fully formed "hexagonal perfect character" with action, intelligence and physicality, transforming an ordinary ajusshi into the "coolest ajusshi." While he lightens potentially heavy scenes with his trademark deadpan charm, he also perfectly executes flashy action moves, including the specialty "1440-degree kick," prompting admiration.
In particular, the perfect chemistry of the "ajusshi trio" formed with So Jisub and Yoon Kyung-ho is cited as the main factor driving ratings, and the fourth episode recorded a staggering 21.6% (Nielsen Korea nationwide), setting a new record for the highest rating for a domestic drama broadcast this year.
According to Netflix's official chart aggregation site Tudum on the 8th, "Manager Kim" recorded 10.5 million views and took first place in Netflix's top 10 non-English TV shows. It reached No. 1 in 11 countries including Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Taiwan, and appeared in the top 10 in a total of 79 countries, proving its global popularity.
Choi Dae-hoon is captivating the world with a limitless spectrum, from moving human dramas to comedies that became global laugh bells and charisma-filled action. <
[Photo] Provided by Ace Factory
[OSEN]