---
name: "Song Kang-ho"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/song-kang-ho"
fi1m_id: "song-kang-ho"
imdb_id: "nm0814280"
tmdb_id: 20738
wikidata_id: "Q484400"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "17 January 1967"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 82
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-09-27T08:02:17.328902+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Song Kang-ho

## Identity

Song Kang-ho

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/song-kang-ho
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** song-kang-ho
- **IMDb ID:** nm0814280
- **TMDB ID:** 20738
- **Wikidata ID:** Q484400
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Kang-ho, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q484400, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0814280/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/20738

Actor. Born 17 January 1967 in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang, South Korea.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 17 January 1967, Gimhae, South Gyeongsang, South Korea
- **Active:** 2003–present
- **Also known as:** Song Kang Ho, Song Kangho, Song Gang-ho, Сун Ган-ху
- **Frequently works with:** [Bong Joon Ho](https://film.one/person/bong-joon-ho.md), [Bae Doona](https://film.one/person/bae-doona.md), [Byun Hee-bong](https://film.one/person/byun-hee-bong.md)
- **Cannes Film Festival:** 2 Cannes prizes (2 won)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 82, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2000s 82 (2), 2010s 86 (2), 2020s 76 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 82 to 79 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 2 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 5 of 5 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 4, Action 2, Comedy 2, Thriller 2, Adventure 1, Crime 1
- **Screen time:** 11 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $389m across 4 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Song_Kang-ho, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q484400, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0814280/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/20738

## Streaming the US now

- **Disney+:** [*Snowpiercer*](https://film.one/film/snowpiercer.md) (80)
- **Tubi:** [*Broker*](https://film.one/film/broker.md) (76)
- **AMC+:** [*The Good, the Bad, the Weird*](https://film.one/film/the-good-the-bad-the-weird.md) (74)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Song Kang-ho

> Song Kang-ho makes flawed men welcome company without asking us to overlook what they do. We rate his humour and warmth most when they complicate our sympathies; *Broker* shows how persuasive he can be in an uneven film.

In *Broker* (2022), Song Kang-ho’s Sang-hyun is funny company, and his business is selling babies. Song does not treat those activities as a joke, but neither does he play the man as someone from whom we must recoil. We laughed and then felt uneasy: Song had made a baby broker someone we were pleased to spend time with. That warmth matters because it makes the awkward travelling company plausible even when the plot is not. We recommend the performance with fewer reservations than the film.

The leading roles in *Joint Security Area* (2000) and *The Foul King* (2000) established him after earlier supporting parts. Repeated collaborations with Kim Jee-woon and Bong Joon-ho became central to his work; *Memories of Murder* (2003) began the partnership with Bong. *The Host* (2006) gave that partnership room for both genre filmmaking and family drama. *Parasite* (2019) brought wider international recognition. Through these changes, the familiar figure is a man whose humour does not spare him loneliness or vulnerability.

Fathers and working men recur in his films, and their ordinariness can obscure how carefully he plays them. His precise speech carries character even through subtitles. In Hirokazu Kore-eda’s *Broker*, the ensemble gives his warmth somewhere useful to go: Gang Dong-won, as Dong-soo, supplies a quieter presence against which Song’s more expansive manner makes sense. The two do not need to compete for our attention. We believe that these people might want to stay together, which is a considerable service to a plot that keeps adding complications.

The limit is clear in *Broker*: Song’s warmth cannot make every complication convincing. Kore-eda sometimes pleads for sympathy, and the crowded plotting gives us reasons to resist. Song still allows us to enjoy Sang-hyun’s company without suggesting that his activities are harmless, which is more useful than playing him as a warning. See it for the ensemble, with patience for the story’s efforts to win us over. — Fi1m

## Biography

Song Kang-ho is a South Korean actor. He was born on 17 January 1967 in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, and began his career in theatre before moving into film in the 1990s.

He has appeared in films directed by Bong Joon-ho, including *Memories of Murder* (2003), *The Host* (2006), *Snowpiercer* (2013) and *Parasite* (2019), in which he played Kim Ki-taek. He has also worked repeatedly with Kim Jee-woon. In *Broker* (2022) he played Sang-hyun.

Song won the Best Actor prize at the Cannes Film Festival for his performance in *Broker*. He has received multiple Baeksang Arts Awards, Blue Dragon Film Awards and Grand Bell Awards.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, en.yna.co.kr, koreatimes.co.kr.*

## On Fi1m (5)

- *Broker* (2022), Fi1m 76, as Sang-hyun — [page](https://film.one/film/broker.md)
- *Parasite* (2019), Fi1m 91, as Kim Ki-taek — [page](https://film.one/film/parasite.md)
- *Snowpiercer* (2013), Fi1m 80, as Namgoong Minsu — [page](https://film.one/film/snowpiercer.md)
- *The Good, the Bad, the Weird* (2008), Fi1m 74, as Yoon Tae-goo — [page](https://film.one/film/the-good-the-bad-the-weird.md)
- *Memories of Murder* (2003), Fi1m 91, as Detective Park Doo-man — [page](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder.md)

## Complete filmography (46)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *One Win* (2024), as Kim Woo-jin
- *Uncle Samsik* (2024), series, as Park Doo-chill / Uncle Samsik
- *Cobweb* (2023), as Director Kim
- *BEEF* (2023), series, as Dr. Kim
- *Emergency Declaration* (2022), as Gu In-ho
- *Broker* (2022), as Sang-hyun — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/broker.md)
- *The King's Letters* (2019), as King Sejong
- *Parasite* (2019), as Kim Ki-taek — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/parasite.md)
- *The Drug King* (2018), as Lee Doo-sam
- *A Taxi Driver* (2017), as Kim Man-seob
- *Decades Apart* (2017), as Sgt. Oh Kyeong-pil
- *The Age of Shadows* (2016), as Lee Jung-chool
- *The Throne* (2015), as King Yeongjo
- *The Interview* (2014), as Soldier Watching the Interview (uncredited)
- *The Attorney* (2013), as Song Woo-seok
- *The Face Reader* (2013), as Nae-kyung
- *Snowpiercer* (2013), as Namgoong Minsu — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/film/snowpiercer.md)
- *Day Trip* (2012), as Teacher
- *Howling* (2012), as Jo Sang-gil
- *Hindsight* (2011), as Du-heon
- *Making of Thirst* (2010), Actor
- *A Little Pond* (2010), as Police officer
- *Secret Reunion* (2010), as Lee Han-kyu
- *Thirst* (2009), as Priest Sang-hyeon
- *The Good, the Bad, the Weird* (2008), as Yoon Tae-goo — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/the-good-the-bad-the-weird.md)
- *Secret Sunshine* (2007), as Kim Jong-chan
- *The Show Must Go On* (2007), as Kang In-goo
- *The Host* (2006), as Park Gang-du
- *Lady Vengeance* (2005), as Assassin 1
- *Antarctic Journal* (2005), as Choi Do-hyung
- *The Power of Love* (2004), Actor
- *The President's Barber* (2004), as Seong Han-mo
- *Memories of Murder* (2003), as Detective Park Doo-man — Fi1m 91, [page](https://film.one/film/memories-of-murder.md)
- *YMCA Baseball Team* (2002), as Lee Ho-chang
- *Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance* (2002), as Dong-jin
- *Joint Security Area* (2000), as Sgt. Oh Kyeong-pil
- *The Foul King* (2000), as Lim Dae-ho
- *Shiri* (1999), as Lee Jang-gil
- *The Quiet Family* (1998), as Young-min
- *No. 3* (1997), as Jo-pil
- *Timeless Bottomless Bad Movie* (1997), as Big Eyes
- *Green Fish* (1997), as Pan-su
- *The Day a Pig Fell Into the Well* (1996), as Dong-suk
- *Reunion*, as Seong-jun
- *Drishyam*, Producer
- *Gardeners*, as Choi Young-il

## Gallery

- ![Cast and director of Broker at VIP Premiere on June 2, 2022](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-eb5c02bc1bbf.jpg) Cast and director of Broker at VIP Premiere on June 2, 2022 — K-POPIT 케이팝잇, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/20220602_Broker_%EB%B8%8C%EB%A1%9C%EC%BB%A4_VIP_Premiere_%281%29.jpg/1280px-20220602_Broker_%EB%B8%8C%EB%A1%9C%EC%BB%A4_VIP_Premiere_%281%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Cast and director of Broker at VIP Premiere on June 2, 2022](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-944a79a96e0d.jpg) Cast and director of Broker at VIP Premiere on June 2, 2022 — K-POPIT 케이팝잇, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/20220602_Broker_%EB%B8%8C%EB%A1%9C%EC%BB%A4_VIP_Premiere_%282%29.jpg/1280px-20220602_Broker_%EB%B8%8C%EB%A1%9C%EC%BB%A4_VIP_Premiere_%282%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![영화 밀양 (2007)](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-93be847f9587.jpg) 영화 밀양 (2007) — 박재환, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/MILIYANG.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![From left to right: Choi Woo-shik, Cho Yeo-jeong, Jang Hye-jin, Park So-dam, Lee Sun-kyun and Song Kang-ho. (2019)](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-f71a120e1b17.jpg) From left to right: Choi Woo-shik, Cho Yeo-jeong, Jang Hye-jin, Park So-dam, Lee Sun-kyun and Song Kang-ho. (2019) — Kinocine PARKJEAHWAN4wiki, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Parasite2019.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-bb6afca995f3.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-4e5086f5f055.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-7cde6f5ebdf0.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-b474bb0397e1.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-614cd4761b3f.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB
- ![Song Kang-ho](https://film.one/media/person/357/gallery-5f20819977db.jpg) Song Kang-ho — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Cannes Film Festival — 2 won

- 2024: Best Actor (won), for *Broker*
- 2023: Best Actor (won), for *Broker*

### Other awards — 1 won

- Asian Film Award for Best Actor 2007: Asian Film Award for Best Actor (won), for *The Host*

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/song-kang-ho