2017 seems to be the year of goodbyes for Korean filmdom. Many heartthrobs enlisted their military service and few are getting ready to take up the new role. On March 16, actor-singer Joo Won announced his enlistment breaking the hearts of many.
Now, his agency, Huayi Brothers has revealed that the Bridal Mask actor has received high marks after his five-week basic military training. According to Soompi, he has been promoted as an assistant instructor and will be serving at the assault battalion, part of the 23rd infantry regiment of the skeleton unit.
Won is best known for his leading roles in Bridal Mask, Good Doctor, Cantabile Tomorrow, and Yong-pal. Earlier, this year, his agency confirmed that the actor is dating singer and actress BoA since 2016. Won's big screens debut was as an antagonist in the 2010 television drama King of Baking, Kim Takgu. The drama recorded a massive rating and he became a household name overnight.
However, it was Bridal Mask that brought him mainstream popularity. He was appreciated (both by fans and critics) for his excellent portrayal of the complex Lee Kang-to with dual personalities. He appears as a pro-Japanese Korean police officer in the day and a masked vigilante who fights for Korean independence at night. The drama brought him many awards and accolades including the Excellence Award and Popularity Award at the 2012 KBS Drama Awards.
In 2013, Won enacted another challenging role—as an autistic savant who becomes a genius paediatric surgeon—in KBS' Good Doctor. He took home the 2013 KBS Drama Awards, namely Top Excellence Award, Netizens' Award, PD award, and Best Couple Award with Moon Chae-won.
His last drama was My Sassy Girl, which was a historical drama of the 2001 hit drama of the same name. Unlike its original, this was set in the Joseon era. Alongside Won, the drama also starred Oh Yeon-seo, Lee Jung-shin and Kim Yoon-hye in key roles.
