Lee Jun Young

Lee Jun Young (이준영) has become one of Korean television's most dependable gear-shifters. He entered the industry through idol training and debuted with U-KISS in 2014, but his second act has been much more interesting: actor first, genre by genre, without carrying the usual ex-idol caution into his choices.

D.P. gave him an early jolt of credibility. Then came Mask Girl, When Life Gives You Tangerines, Weak Hero Class 2, and 24-Hour Health Club, a run that showed how quickly he can move from unsettling to funny to emotionally open. By the time JTBC tapped him to headline The New Employee Chairman Kang in 2026, the casting read less like a gamble and more like the obvious next step.

That climb has happened while he stayed tied to Billions, kept a strong public fanbase through his official channels, and built real streaming-era recognition through titles on Netflix and JTBC. Lee Jun Young does not feel boxed in by his idol origin anymore. He feels like a performer who used it as a launchpad and kept moving.