Kang Dong Won plays Song Hye Kyo's husband and the father of a child with progeria in the film "My Palpitating Life," also called "My Brilliant Life." He's a talented actor with a decade-long career but there may be some things you don't know about him. Here are five facts:
1. He was academically gifted, scoring an IQ of 137. He has a degree in mechanical engineering from Hanyang University. On a recent episode of the radio show Park Kyung Lim's "Two O' Clock Date," a caller said he went to school with Kang Dong Won and described him as good-looking and "good at studying."
2. His good looks led to a modeling career when he was still attending university. He modeled in Paris for such brands as DKNY and Gucci.
3. He took a break from acting while fulfilling his two-year mandatory military service as a public service worker. In an interview with "High Cut," he said that it was at first strange not to feel competitive.
"The entertainment circle is similar to the sports industry in that competition is fierce," he said. "If you lose your footing for a bit, you will drop off the cliff. The thought that all of a sudden I'll be living two years without that competition was a little strange. It felt peaceful and yet at the same time I felt anxious. As I was working as public service worker, it was my work. But at the same time, it wasn't my original job. I felt a keen yearning for work."
4. He has no desire to do dramas or variety shows. He wants to focus on films. In fact he has not filmed a drama since 2004 and the very idea gives him nightmares. He does not like waiting for a scene to be written so that it can be shot and then having to memorize it on the spot. Too stressful.
"When people talked about nightmares, they talked about dreaming that they had to do the college entrance exams again or having to go to the army again," he told "High Cut." "To me, doing a drama again has the same kind of feeling. The stress was enormous. I don't think I can endure that."
5. He does one day want to have a family.
"My friends are all married and have kids," the 33-year-old actor said on "Two O' Clock Date." "But I want to get married late, in my late 30′s or early 40′s."
While he plays a young father in the film, he does not worry too much about his own ability to parent. His own dad was a family man and a supportive father. But he's not sure his children should aspire to be actors.
"If they really want to do it I won't be able to stop them, but I would advise them to not become actors," he said. "I saw somewhere that statistically, entertainment and sports have the most competition. Actors are 'out' when they have two or three failed projects. I want my kids to live freely, without too much competition."
