Profile | Who is Park Hyung-sik, star of K-dramas Our Blooming Youth and Happiness, and K-pop singer? How he always helps his female co-stars shine
- The actor began his entertainment career as a member of K-pop boy band ZE:A before launching his screen career in high-school drama The Heirs
- Parts in K-dramas Strong Girl Bong Soon and Happiness followed, then Our Blooming Youth. In all three, his character is in the shadow of strong women
It may seem unusual to say someone has quietly worked their way up the entertainment profession when they have 10 million followers on Instagram, but it is true of the 13-year career of Park Hyung-sik, currently on screens in Our Blooming Youth.
A native of Yongin in Gyeonggi, the province surrounding Seoul, Park showed an interest in singing at a young age and, after being noticed by talent scouts, he began training to be a pop idol.
He trained throughout his high-school years and debuted at the age of 18 in the nine-member K-pop boy band ZE:A in 2010, alongside Im Si-wan.
Park had a few cameo roles on TV early on, but his first real acting challenge came in 2011, when he featured in the stage musical Temptation of Wolves alongside Ryeowook of K-pop act Super Junior.
His first screen role beyond a cameo came in 2012 in the two-part SBS show I Remember You, and he has not looked back since, appearing in new drama series every year (save for when he did his military service, compulsory in South Korea, in 2019-2020), as well as half a dozen stage productions and an award-winning film.