The Hottest And Cutest K-Drama Second Male Leads We Love
While we're crazy about the male leads in the following dramas, we also found ourselves rooting for the second male leads
Love triangle is a common plot. Oftentimes, while we want the male lead to end up with the female lead, our hearts also ache for the second male lead and his unrequited love.
Classic K-Dramas like Autumn in my Heart, Stairway to Heaven, Coffee Prince, Boys Over Flowers, My Girl, and You're Beautiful all have that.
Last year, we were hooked on a series wherein the love triangle is crucial to the whole narrative: Start-Up. The series stars Nam Joo-hyuk (Nam Do-san), Bae Suzy (Seo Dal-mi), and Kim Seon-ho (Han Ji-pyeong).
Warning: spoilers ahead!
Nam Do-san is a math genius who took up engineering in college. He was the pride of his family. He co-founded the start-up company Samsan Tech, but a couple of years after establishing it, he and his friends still haven't achieved anything yet.
Seo Dal-mi is an aspiring CEO, who had been juggling several part-time jobs until she decided to quit her main job to embark on her journey to becoming her own boss. Her mother and her older sister (Won In-jae, played by Kang Han-na) left her and her father who passed away, so she grew up with only her grandmother by her side.
Han Ji-pyeong is an orphan who has a flair for investments, a skill that he put to good use later on in life. He is now a successful and well-known senior investment manager at a venture capitalist company; the companies he decides to invest in always succeed.
Upon the idea of Seo Dal-mi's grandmother who wanted to cheer her up when she was going through a tough time, she and Han Ji-pyeong became pen pals back when they were teens. He, however, used the pen name Nam Do-san. Although the two didn't get to meet each other, she was deeply comforted by his letters through the years. Fifteen years later, she looked for and found Nam Do-san online and suddenly asked him to meet her. When Han Ji-pyeong got wind of the situation, he immediately searched for and approached the real Nam Do-san and made a deal with him to pretend to be Seo Dal-mi's pen pal.
As if that wasn't complicated enough, the three crossed paths at Sandbox, South Korea's version of Silicon Valley that helps start-up companies. Nam Do-san and Seo Dal-mi are groupmates who are looking to establish a start-up company, while Han Ji-pyeong serves as their mentor.
Viewers found themselves torn between Nam Do-san and Han Ji-pyeong as both are charming in their own ways. It's true, perhaps it was Han Ji-pyeong's personality that shone through his letters which Seo Dal-mi fell in love with. However, they didn't actually meet each other. And now that she's becoming close to Nam Do-san, she's starting to appreciate him for who he really is, all while Han Ji-pyeong is already noticeably smitten by Seo Dal-mi's beauty and personality.
Now, this brings us to what is known as the second lead syndrome. It's the term used for when the second male lead's character is likable and lovable viewers find themselves rooting for him as the female lead's partner.
In the love triangles in K-Dramas, both the male lead and second male lead are usually handsome, smart, charismatic, and have a nice personality. If you were in the female lead's shoes, you'd have a hard time deciding on who to hold on to and let go of.
Since we're getting this vibe in Start-Up, we've gathered the hottest and cutest Korean actors we fell (or still falling) in love with as second leads.
Check out the gallery below:
*Note: The K-Dramas that we included are only those from 2010 to 2021.
Korean Actors: Second Leads
Korean Actors: Second Leads
Seo Ji-Hoon in "Men Are Men" (2020)
The series stars Hwang Jung-eum (Seo Hyun-joo), Yoon Hyun-min (Hwang Ji-woo), and Seo Ji-hoon (Park Do-gyeom). Seo Hyun-joo is a webtoon producer. She grew up with Park Do-gyeom, the son of her mother's late friend who is now a well-known webtoon artist. As they've known each other for so many years, they've treated each other as siblings, only he started developing feelings for her. The two cross paths with Hwang Ji-woo, the CEO of a successful pharmaceutical company that branches out into producing webtoons. He taps Seo Hyun-joo to be the team leader of this new business venture, along with Park Do-gyeom as one of the artists in their roster. It turns out, however, that the reason for founding this new department is Hwang Ji-woo's long-time love for her. And as the story unfolds, it's established that it's not only these three characters' present lives that are entangled, they're also related in their past lives.
Photo Credit: KBS2
Photo Credit: KBS2
Jung Jinyoung in “My First First Love” (2019)
He plays the role of Seo Do-hyeon, a friend of male lead Yun Tae-o (Ji Soo) who falls in love with Taeo-o's best friend and love interest, Han Song-i (Jung Chae-yeon). This causes a conflict in the friendship between Tae-o and Do-hyeon.
Photo Credit: Netflix
Photo Credit: dramapanda.com
Lee Do-hyun in “Hotel del Luna” (2019)
As Go Chung-myung, he's a royal guard captain back in the Goguryeo era who develops a relationship with rebel Jang Man-wol (Lee Ji-eun). However, because of a misunderstanding that leads to Man-wol thinking he betrayed her, he ends up dying in her hands. But he loves her so much that even death couldn't separate him from her even after 1300 years later, when Man-wol meets and falls in love with a new man, Gu Chan-sung (Yeo Jin-goo, the male lead); Chung-myung's spirit has always stayed with her.
Photo Credit: Soompi
Photo Credit: @fullmoon.long
Ahn Bo-hyun in “Her Private Life” (2019)
He plays the role of Nam Eun-gi, who grew up with and was raised by the parents of Sung Deok-mi (Park Min-young). Since they've known each other back when they were kids, they've become like siblings. However, he no longer wants to be her older brother, as he has started seeing her as a woman. The male lead in this series is Kim Jae-wook.
Photo Credit: @bohyunahn
Photo Credit: tvN
Kwak Dong-yeon in “Gangnam Beauty” (2018)
Here, he's Yeon Woo-young, a teaching assistant in a school's chemistry department. He meets college student Kang Mi-rae, who underwent cosmetic surgery to improve her looks (but still has a low self-esteem). At first, it's her physical looks that catch Woo-young's attention, but as he gets to know her better, he starts to fall in love with her personality. One thing they have in common is their love for perfumery. The male lead in this series is Cha Eun-woo.
Photo Credit: JTBC
Photo Credit: JTBC
Yoo Yeon-seok in “Mr. Sunshine” (2018)
Goo Dong-mae (Yeo Yeon-seok) is a ruthless samurai and a member of a Yakuza group. When he was a teenager, he was saved by Joseon noblewoman Go Ae-shin (Kim Tae-ri), and ever since that time, she's always been special to him. There is, however, no reciprocation of affection on her part, especially when romance starts to brew with her and the captain of the United States Marine Corps, Eugene Choi (Lee Byung-hun).
Photo Credit: Kingkong by Starship
Photo Credit: tvN
Jung Hae-in in “While You Were Sleeping” (2017)
Jung Hae-in is Han Woo-tak, a police officer who is supposed to die in a car accident but whose fate is changed. Thanks to rookie prosecutor Jung Jae-chan (Lee Jong-suk), the accident is prevented as he has the ability to foresee the future. Woo-tak, Jae-chan, and field reporter Nam Hong-joo (Bae Suzy) work together to uncover the wrongdoings of a villainous lawyer. This brings Woo-tak closer to Hong-joo, and he develops feelings for her but decides to hide them because he notices the romantic relationship flourishing between the other two.
Photo Credit: SBS
Photo Credit: SBS
Woo Do-hwan in “Save Me” (2017)
In this mystery thriller, Woo Do-hwan is Suk Dong-chul, one of the boys who try to save Im Sang-mi (Seo Ye-ji) from falling apart due to the tragedies in her life. Her brother commits a suicide, her mother becomes mentally unstable, and her father becomes a member of a dubious cult. She asks for help from her previous classmates in exposing the wrongdoings of the cult. The other guys in the series are Ok Taec-yeon (as Han Sang-hwan) and Jo Sung-ha (Baek Jung-ki).
Photo Credit: OCN
Photo Credit: VLIve
Kim Jae-wook in “Temperature of Love” (2017)
As Park Jung-woo, his character is an entertainment agency CEO and business partner of male lead character, On Jung-seon (Yang Se-jong). Park Jung-woo gets into a love triangle with chef/restaurateur Oh Jung-seon and aspiring screenwriter Lee Hyun-soo (Seo Hyun-jin).
Photo Credit: SBS
Photo Credit: SBS
Jang Ki-yong in “Go Back Couple” (2017)
This rom-com stars Jang Na-ra (Ma Jin-joo) and Son Ho-jun (Choi Ban-do), a couple whose marriage is on the rocks and who mysteriously goes back to their days as 20-year-old university students. Ma Jin-joo catches the attention of her schoolmate Jung Nam-gil (Jang Ki-yong), and he develops a one-sided crush on her.
Photo Credit: YG
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Photo Credit: KBS2
Ji Soo in Strong Woman Do Bong-Soon (2017)
In this rom-com fantasy-thriller, Do Bong-soon (Park Bo-young), who has a superhuman strength, has a long-time crush on police officer In Guk-doo (Ji Soo). But even before In Guk-doo realizes Do Bong-soon's feelings for him, she meets Ahn Min-hyuk (Park Hyung-sik), a CEO of a gaming company and begins a special relationship with him.
Photo Credit: JTBC
Photo Credit: JTBC
Kang Ha-neul in “Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo” (2016)
He's 8th Prince Wang Wook in this historical romance melodrama. 21st century woman Go Ha-jin (Lee Ji-eun) time travels to the Goryeo era, where she wakes up as Hae Soo. She falls in love with Wang Wook first because of his kindness but her attention shifts to 4th Prince Wang So (Lee Joon-gi).
Photo Credit: SBS
Photo Credit: SBS
Seo Kang-Joon in “Cheese in the Trap” (2016)
He plays the role of Baek In-ho, a talented pianist who falls in love with college student Hong Seol (Kim Go-eun). However, he finds a rival with her in his childhood friend, Yoo Jung (Park Hae-jin), who's attracted to Seol.
Photo Credit: Fantagio
Photo Credit: IMDb
Choi Siwon in “She Was Pretty” (2015)
Choi Siwon is Kim Shin-hyuk in this series. He's a senior feature editor who's also a famous writer under the pen name Ten. He falls in love with intern-turned-junior editor Kim Hye-jin (Hwang Jung-eum), who happens to be the first love of "The Most" magazine's deputy chief editor Ji Sung-joon (Park Seo-joon).
Photo Credit: MBC
Photo Credit: MBC
Park Seo-joon in “Kill Me, Heal Me” (2015)
His character is Oh Ri-on, a famous mystery novelist under the pen name Omega. He grew up with a "twin" sister, first year psychiatry resident Oh Ri-jin (Hwang Jung-eum), who he later sees as a woman (there's a twist to their relationship as siblings). However, he knows he shouldn't cross the line and ends up supporting her and her relationship with Cha Do-hyun (Ji Sung), a wealthy businessman who suffers from dissociative identity disorder.
Photo Credit: MBC
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Photo Credit: Koreaboo
Yook Sung-jae in “Who Are You: School 2015” (2015)
He is Gong Tae-kwang, a problematic child and known troublemaker in school. He later develops a one-sided crush on his schoolmate Lee Eun-bi (Kim So-hyun), who also happens to be the love interest of Sekang High School star swimmer Han Yi-an (Nam Joo-hyuk).
Photo Credit: KBS2
Photo Credit: KBS2
Park Hae-jin in “My Love from the Star” (2013)
In this romance-fantasy drama, Park Hae-jin is Lee Hee-kyung, the childhood friend of female lead character Cheon Song-yi (Jun Ji-hyun) and is the son of a chaebol. He's always loved her and is ever-supportive of her. But he's just a friend to her, as her heart belongs to Do Min-joon (Kim Soo-hyun), an alien who lands on earth 400 years ago.
Photo Credit: SBS
Photo Credit: Seoulbeats
Kim Woo-bin in “The Heirs” (2013)
Kim Woo-bin is Choi Young-do, one of the heirs who study in a top school for rich kids. He's the heir of a hotel group, and is known as a bully. He used to be best friends with Kim Tan (Lee Min-ho) but their friendship ends because of a misunderstanding. To annoy his former friend, Choi Young-do turns to Kim Tan's love interest, Cha Eun-sang (Park Shin-hye), who comes from a poor family and is given a scholarship to enter their school. But as he goes on to pick on Cha Eun-sang, Choi Young-do starts to have feelings for her.
Photo Credit: SBS
Photo Credit: AminoApps
Yoo Ah-in in “Sungkyunkwan Scandal” (2010)
In this period drama, Yoo Ah-in plays the role of Mun Jae-sin, an upperclassman who falls in love with Kim Yun-hee (Park Min-young), who disguises herself as her brother in order to enter the men's only national exam. When Mun Jae-sin discovers her secret, he finds himself wanting to protect her and be with her.
Photo Credit: KBS2
Photo Credit: KBS2
Hwang In-youp in “True Beauty” (2020)
Hwang In-youp’s Han Seo-jun is Saebom High School’s resident “bad boy,” but the truth is he just has a tough façade and is actually a kind person. He falls in love with Moon Ga-young’s Lim Ju-kyung despite knowing that she’s been trying to conceal her real appearance with the help of makeup. They’ve become friends, and they would’ve made a beautiful couple, but she’s in love with Han Seo-jun’s friend, Cha Eun-woo’s Lee Sun-ho.
Photo Credit: tvN
Photo Credit: tvN
Wi Ha-Joon in “18 Again” (2020)
Wi Ha-joon’s Ye Ji-hoon is a famous baseball athlete who falls for Kim Ha-neul’s Jung Da-jung, an intern announcer who’s been assigned to report on a baseball game. Their love story could’ve been off to a great start, except that Jung Da-jung is a mother of two teens who’s dealing with a divorce issue with her husband, Yoon Sang-hyun’s Hong Dae-young. Though Jung Da-jung gets along well with Ye Ji-hoon一whose sense of responsibility is showcased when it’s revealed that he’s taking care of his late brother’s daughter一she realizes she still loves her husband.
Photo Credit: JTBC
Photo Credit: JTBC
Chae Jong-hyeop in “Nevertheless” (2021)
As the caring Yang Do-hyeok, Chae Jong-hyeop is a restaurant employee who runs a popular cooking show on YouTube. He reunites with his childhood friend and first love, Yoo Na-bi (Han So-hee), and falls in love with her all over again. But another man has been giving Na-bi butterflies in her stomach: Park Jae-on (Song Kang).
Photo Credit: JTBC
Photo Credit: JTBC
Lee Sang-yi in “Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha” (2021)
Lee Sang-yi’s Ji Seong-hyun has had feelings for Shin Min-ah’s Yoon Hye-jin for the longest time, but he’s missed the opportunity to confess to her. Years later, these schoolmates reunite in the fictional seaside village of Gongjin, where she’s running a dental clinic and he’s shooting a variety show as its PD. When he finally musters the courage to confess his feelings, he realizes that her heart already belongs to Kim Seon-ho’s Chief Hong.
Photo Credit: tvN
Photo Credit: tvN
Nam Yoon-su in “The King’s Affection” (2021)
Nam Yoon-su plays the role of Prince Jaeun, Crown Prince Lee Hwi’s (Park Eun-bin) cousin. Back when they were kids, Jaeun discovered Lee Hwi’s secret, that he’s not really the Crown Prince but his twin sister Dam-yi. The real Lee Hwi was murdered, and Dam-yi has to pretend to be him and take his place as the Crown Prince. As he knows the truth from the beginning, Jaeun can’t help but fall in love with Dam-yi and has been keeping these romantic feelings for her all along.
Photo Credit: KBS2
Photo Credit: KBS2
Who's your favorite second male lead and why? Let us know by commenting on our Facebook post on this article!
Lead photos from SBS, tvN via Netflix, and MBC
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