These Good-Looking Actors Nailed Their Bad Guy Roles In K-Dramas

Lee Dong-Wook in "Strangers from Hell"

This psychological thriller features Lee Dong-wook as a mysterious dentist who puts on a friendly façade but is actually evil to the core. He lives in a creepy dormitory with strange neighbors. Lee Dong-wook's character turns out to be a psychopath and a murderer.

Photo Credit: OCN

Lee Dong-wook played the lead roles in a number of K-Dramas, including "Touch Your Heart," "Life," "Bubble Gum," "Blade Man," and "Hotel King." His latest K-Drama is "Tale of Gumiho," where his role is a gumiho who has settled down in the city.

Photo Credit: OCN via Pinterest

Kim Jae-Wook in "Voice"

In the first season of this thriller/procedural series, Kim Jae-wook's role is a CEO who turns out to be a psychopath. In a Soompi article, he shared how challenging it was to take on the role of a murderer, saying, “When I first received the script, I barely had any lines until episode eight. Before my character revealed his face, he killed people while wearing a black hat. I went through some trouble trying to act out these scenes.”

Photo Credit: OCN

Playing villain is definitely not an easy thing to do, so after that 2017 series, Kim Jae-wook's next projects are much lighter. He appeared in romance K-Dramas "Temperature of Love" and "Her Private Life"—although he starred in supernatural, horror, thriller drama "The Guest" in between as an exorcist.

Photo Credit: OCN

Park Bo-Gum in "Hello Monster"

Park Bo-gum was such a revelation in this thriller/mystery series. He sure looks gentle and is baby-faced, but you have to see his transformation here into a cunning psychopath and serial killer who's had a traumatic childhood.

Photo Credit: KBS2

Park Bo-gum, who's currently enlisted in the military, recently starred in the youth/romance series "Record of Youth" as a model and an aspiring actor. After his memorable portrayal in "Hello Monster," he has since starred in several K-Dramas like "Reply 1988," "Love in the Moonlight," and "Encounter."

Photo Credit: KBS2

Jang Ki-Yong in "My Mister"

As a bully loan shark, Jang Ki-yong's character is the man who has constantly made the life of IU's character miserable. The two were childhood friends, but because of an accident, their relationship has turned bitter. He used to like her, but anger has taken over him.

Photo Credit: tvN

Jang Ki-yong will star in the upcoming series "Living Together" (or "My Roommate is a Gumiho") alongside Hyeri. He's also confirmed to star in another drama titled "Now, We Are Breaking Up" with Song Hye-kyo. Last year, he also starred in the series "Born Again." His other K-Dramas inlcude "Search: WWW," "Kill It," "Come and Hug Me," and "Confession Couple."

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Namgoong Min in "Remember"

His character—well-off and cruel—is the mastermind behind many crimes in this series, including framing the father of male lead Yoo Seung-ho's character for a crime he committed.

Photo Credit: SBS

He's too evil and brutal in this series it'll make you cry! Good thing, he eventually gets the punishment he deserves for causing so much pain to others.

Photo Credit: SBS

Namgoong Min in "The Girl Who Sees Smells"

Yep, it's Namgoong Min again! He's also good in this series, so we just had to include it too. The romance, suspense, and fantasy series features him as a chef who's a serial killer.

Namgoong Min is good as a villain but there's no doubt that he's also great as the protagonist; K-Dramas like "Awaken," "Hot Stove League," "Doctor Prisoner," "The Undateables," "Falsify," "Good Manager," and "Beautiful Gong Shim" prove that.

Photo Credit: SBS

Ji Jin-Hee in "Blood"

In this medical drama/thriller series, Ji Jin-hee plays the role of a hospital director who's secretly doing research on a virus that can enhance a human's physical and mental abilities. He's greedy and ambitious. The twist? He's also a vampire! Ji Jin-hee is compelling as a lead star, but he definitely has a knack for portraying the antagonist too.

Photo Credit: KBS

Ji Jin-hee has an upcoming drama, "Undercover," which is slated to be released soon. He's recognizable for his starring roles in TV series like "Designated Survivor: 60 Days," "Misty," "Second to Last Love," "I Have a Lover," "The Great Seer," "Dong Yi," and "Spotlight," among others.

Photo Credit: KBS2

Park Hae-Jin in "Doctor Stranger"

His character is a genius and skilled doctor who graduated from Harvard. He's the rival of Lee Jong-suk's character, and has a revenge plot against the hospital director. Park Hae-jin's character may not be entirely evil, but he's definitely vengeful, and he got that across successfully.

Photo Credit: SBS

Park Hae-jin has had his share of lead and second lead roles. He's known for his roles in K-Dramas "My Love from the Star," "Bad Guys" (where he actually played the role of a psychopath serial killer), "Cheese in the Trap," "Man to Man," "Forest," and most recently, "Kkondae Intern."

Photo Credit: WM Company

Kim Bum in "Mrs. Cop2"

This is the first project that cast Kim Bum as a villain, and he did a great job in it. His role is a CEO who's influential in the finance indiustry. In a Soompi article, the series' PD says of the actor, “This is Kim Bum’s first time playing a villain, but he’s portraying the character beautifully. Should I call it ‘demonic beauty?’ I get sucked into his acting. You’ll witness the birth of a charismatic villain.”

Photo Credit: SBS

After a four-year hiatus, Kim Bum made his small screen comeback with the K-Drama "Tale of Gumiho." He will star in the upcoming series "Law School." His most popular K-Drama is "Boys Over Flowers;" he also starred in "Dream," "The Woman Who Still Wants to Marry," "Padam Padam," "Goddess of Fire," and "Hidden Identity."

Photo Credit: Kingkong by Starship

Lee Soo-Hyuk in "The Scholar Who Walks the Night"

In this historical, fantasy, romance drama, Lee Soo-hyuk's character is an evil vampire whose goal is to rule over humans. His acting will absolutely impress you!

Photo Credit: MBC

Lee Soo-hyuk was recently seen in the K-Drama "Born Again." Prior to this, he was also in "Sweet Stranger and Me," "Local Hero," "Righteous Love," and "High School King of Savvy." He is joining the cast of the upcoming series "Living Together."

Photo Credit: Soompi Forums

Lee Ji-Hoon in "Dinner Mate"

Unlike others in this list who are psychopaths, serial killers, and vampires, Lee Ji-hoon is simply an ex-boyfriend who can't quite let go of his first love. He's a medical journalist who's obsessed with getting back together with his ex. Oh my, watch it, and you'll get really annoyed with him.

Photo Credit: MBC

Lee Ji-hoon's other K-Dramas include "Woman of 9.9 Billion," "Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung," "Your House Helper," and "Gogh, The Starry Night." He's currently seen in the period drama "River Where the Moon Rises."

Photo Credit: MBC

Lee Jun-Ho in "Good Manager"

From being a top prosecutor, Lee Jun-ho's character becomes the smart and scheming Director of Finance of a huge company. There's a lot of office politics in this workplace drama-comedy series, and what's entertaining about it is how Lee Jun-ho's and Namgoong Min's characters always try to outshine each other.

Photo Credit: KBS2 via Soompi

Lee Jun-ho (or Junho) was a member of the K-Pop boy group 2PM. In the K-Drama scene, he appeared in "Memory" and starred in "Rain or Shine," "Wok of Love," and "Confession."

Photo Credit: KBS2

Park Hae-Joon in "Doctor Stranger"

You may remember him as cheating husband Lee Tae-oh in the 2020 series "The World of the Married." But Park Hae-joon, back in 2014, played the role of a North Korean agent who's relentlessly chasing male lead Lee Jong-suk's character as he flees from NoKor to South Korea.

Photo Credit: SBS

Park Hae-joon was also in "Arthdal Chronicles" as a skilled warrior and swordsman. He's also a part of the cast of series like "Misaeng: Incomplete Life," "My Beautiful Bride," and "Wanted."

Photo Credit: Villains Wiki

Lee Joon-Hyuk in "Designated Survivor: 60 Days"

In this remake of the American series "Designated Survivor," Lee Joon-hyuk's character is a former Republic of Korea Navy Lieutenant Commander and an independent member of the National Assembly. Underneath his good public image is a devious man who sure knows how to manipulate political situations to his advantage.

Photo Credit: tvN

Lee Joon-hyuk also has bad guy tendencies with his role as a prosecutor in K-Drama "Stranger" for both seasons 1 and 2. He's also a cast member of K-Dramas like "365: Repeat the Year," "Are You Human?," "A Poem a Day," "Naked Fireman," "House of Bluebird," "My Spring Days," "Man from the Equator," and "City Hunter."

Photo Credit: tvN

Ahn Bo-Hyun in "Itaewon Class"

There's no doubt that Ahn Bo-hyun made a mark with his role as an antagonist in this series. A bully student from a rich family, he grows up to become a good-for-nothing heir to a huge food company. His and Park Seo-joon's characters have a history of being opponents, starting from an incident in school up to the time they become competitors in the restaurant business.

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Ahn Bo-hyun is not always annoying in a series. In "Her Private Life," he's a caring brother who falls in love with the woman he grew up with and has always considered to be his sibling. He's also a cast member of K-Dramas like "Wednesday 3:30PM" and "Descendants of the Sun." He recently starred in the drama "Kairos," and his Netlflix series, "Undercover," will soon be released.

Photo Credit: JTBC

Yoo Tae-o in "Vagabond"

Lee Seung-gi's tough guy character in "Vagabond" finds a strong enemy in Yoo Tae-o's character. Both good in fight scenes, it's such a thrill to watch these two in a duel. In this series, Yoo Tae-o's character is a former mercenary who's involved in a planned plane crash linked to a government conspiracy.

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Yoo Tae-o is a part of the 2020 K-Drama "The School Nurse Files." He also starred in "Money Game," "Chocolate," and was a cast member of "Arthdal Chronicles."

Photo Credit: Soompi

Kim Ji-hoon in "Flower of Evil"

The melodrama/suspense series "Flower of Evil" (starring Lee Joon-gi and Moon Chae-won) is one of those K-Dramas with a noticeably good-looking kontrabida: Kim Ji-hoon as psychopath serial killer Baek Hee-sung. After being in a coma for so many years, he miraculously wakes up and turns out to be the most wanted accomplice to a serial murder case. Viewers were not only shocked by this plot twist, they were impressed by Kim Ji-hoon's acting as well, as he transformed from a seemingly harmless guy to an extremely dangerous man.

Photo Credit: tvN

The K-dramas Kim Ji-hoon appeared and starred in in recent years include "Babel," "Rich Family's Son," and "Bad Thief, Good Thief."

Photo Credit: HanCinema