Kim Won-hae

Kim Won-hae is a South Korean actor who can steal any scene he walks into. After twenty years on the theatre stage, he became one of the most loved supporting actors in Korean television. Global fans know him from Signal (2016), Strong Girl Bong-soon (2017) and The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call (2025).

Kim Won-hae is 172 cm (5 ft 8 in) tall and weighs about 63 kg, according to his published profile.

Early life

Kim Won-hae was born on April 6, 1969, in Busan, South Korea. He studied theatre at the Seoul Institute of the Arts and made his debut in a musical in 1991. He was an original member of Nanta, the famous Korean stage show, and spent about twenty years acting in plays and musicals.

Career and breakthrough

His face became familiar through the comedy show SNL Korea, where his quick, funny acting won many fans. He then moved into dramas with roles in Misaeng: Incomplete Life (2014) and Signal (2016), where he played detective Kim Gye-chul. In 2017 he won the Best Supporting Actor prize at the SBS Drama Awards for While You Were Sleeping, where he played the warm court officer Choi Dam-dong.

Popular roles

In Strong Girl Bong-soon (2017), Kim Won-hae played two roles, the gangster Kim Kwang-bok and Oh Dol-pyo, and made viewers laugh in every episode. In The Fiery Priest (2019), he played Ko Dok-seong, and in Lovely Runner (2024) he played Ryu Geun-deok, the hero's kind father. Few actors can be funny, sly and touching in the same week, but he does it with ease.

Recent work and why fans love him

In The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call (2025), he played Hong Jae-hun, joining one of the year's biggest medical drama hits. He also returned for The Fiery Priest 2. Fans love Kim Won-hae because he feels like a real neighbour, not a made-up character. Whatever the size of the role, he gives it a full life, a clear voice and perfect comic timing.