Im Si Wan: Squid Game 2's bad boy, idol who crossed over into acting, just crowned Best Actor

Im Si Wan has been known as a prominent face in recent years thanks to his "top-notch" acting ability. Recently, he has received much love from the audience when participating in " Squid Game 2".

Im Si-wan or Yim Si-wan (born December 1, 1988), better known by his stage name Siwan, is a South Korean singer and actor. He graduated from Busan Gudeok High School, then attended Pusan National University but dropped out.

Im Si Wan then transferred to the Oriental Television Arts University, but was forced to drop out due to his busy work schedule and eventually attended Woo-song Information College.

While attending the Chin Chin Music Festival in Busan, Im Si Wan was recruited by Star Empire as a trainee. After training for 3 years, he became a member of a group called "Children of Empire" and started to have some small performances in some places.

On January 7, 2010, Im Si Wan and his 8 other members officially debuted with a mini-album called "Nativity". He is also a member of a sub-unit called ZE:A-Five. In 2012, he began his acting career in the movie "Moon Embracing the Sun", playing the role of young Heo Yeom.

The drama quickly reached a rating of 40% and was called a "national drama", and Im Si Wan began to become famous from then on. A year later, the male singer accepted to participate in the drama "The Man From the Equator", playing the role of a cold-hearted guy with a difficult situation. Next, he participated in the sitcom "Funny Backstage" and the special drama "Waiting For Love".

In 2013, Im Si Wan "entered" the film industry with the movie "The Lawyer", playing the role of a student who was unjustly accused of treason. When the movie was released, it was highly appreciated by many critics and achieved countless successes such as selling more than 11 million tickets, ranking 8th among the highest-grossing domestic films in Korea.

Siwan also won Best Newcomer at the Max Movie Awards and the Marie Claire Film Festival for his role in the film. In 2014, he returned to television, starting with the film "Triangle," playing the youngest of three brothers who were separated at a young age and later grew up to become a chaebol.

Following the success of the original webtoon, Im Si Wan stars in the drama "Misaeng" (Misaeng: Incomplete Life), playing a former Go player who gave up his career and started the life of an office worker.

"Misaeng" became a cultural phenomenon after its release, with a rating of approximately 8.4%, which was 10 times higher than cable dramas at that time. Siwan later won the Excellence in Acting Award at the 4th APAN Star Awards, and Best New Actor at the 9th Cable TV Broadcasting Awards, and the 51st Baeksang Arts Awards.

In 2016, the handsome man born in the 80s had his first leading role on the big screen through the work "A Melody to Remember", transforming into a soldier with a love for music. In 2017, Siwan escaped the "good boy" image in previous roles when he played a con man in the movie "One Line" and an undercover cop in the movie "Undercover War". Through this movie, he received an invitation to the Cannes Film Festival and was recognized by famous film critics around the world for his acting ability.

In the same year, Im Si Wan accepted the lead role in the historical romance film "The King in Love". On July 11, 2017, the male singer began his mandatory military service and was promoted to assistant instructor for new recruits thanks to his good achievements. On March 27, 2019, he was officially discharged from the army.

The horror drama "Strangers from Hell", based on the original webtoon of the same name, is the project that marks Im Si Wan's return after his military service. In the same year, he accepted the lead role in the movie "Boston 1947".

In 2020, the 8x handsome man continued to play the main role in "Run On". The film's content is about the love between former national track and field athlete Ki Seon-Gyeom, who later becomes a professional sports representative, and interpreter Oh Mi-Joo (played by Shin Se Kyung).

In 2022, Im Si Wan played Hwang Dong Ju, the head of the National Tax Service's 5th Tax Division, who works hard to track down hidden money from the tax service in the drama "The Seeker." He then starred in "Summer Strike" with Kim Seol Hyun.

"Emergency Declaration" is Siwan's "closing" film of 2022, achieving quite high revenue. The work premiered in the non-competitive category at the 74th Cannes Film Festival and received many compliments.

In 2023, the 8x handsome man participated in the movie "Unlocked" as Jun Yeong - a perverted stalker. In the same year, he had an impressive role as Byeong Tae in "Boyhood". Because it was released on an unpopular platform in Vietnam, Coupang Play, the movie was not known to many Vietnamese audiences.

It was the role of Byeong that helped Siwan win the Best Actor award at the 3rd Blue Dragon Drama Awards, held on July 19, 2024. He was also one of the earliest actors to win the award among his peers.

Most recently, Im Si Wan has received much public attention and love thanks to his role as Lee Myung Gi - a famous figure with influence in the virtual currency field and a scammer who has caused many people to "go bankrupt", including Thanos (played by TOP). Not only that, this guy also abandoned his pregnant girlfriend, disappeared without a trace until he joined the game and met her again and saved her many times.

During the game, Myung Gi was also frequently threatened and beaten by Thanos' gang, so he appeared bruised, with a swollen face and messy hair. But despite being "drowned" by the director, Im Si Wan still made viewers "fall in love" with his unchanging handsome appearance and excellent performance.

Won Ji An: The handsome No. 380 "eats" the cast of Squid Game 2, still turned by T.O.P Bình Minh14:17:30 01/01/2025Won Ji An is an emerging actor of the Korean entertainment industry. Thanks to constantly starring in big projects as well as collaborating with many seniors and seniors who came before her, her name has come closer to the audience.