Which K-drama actor topped South Korea’s brand reputation rankings? It is neither Park Bo Gum nor Lee Jong Suk

Updated: August 4, 2025 13:16 IST

July 2025 has been an exciting month for any K-pop fan. On one hand, Park Bo Gum’s Good Boy ended on a high note, and on the other hand, Lee Jong Suk’s Law and the City continues to win hearts. But neither Park Bo Gum nor Lee Jong Suk clinched the top spot on South Korea’s Brand Reputation Rankings for Actors this month. That distinction was given to an up-and-coming actor…Choo Young Woo topped the Brand Reputation Rankings for Korean Actors in July 2025, as reported by the Korean Business Research Institute.

Who topped South Korea’s brand reputation rankings in July 2025?

According to Soompi, the rookie actor scored an impressive brand reputation index of 7,694,868. Choo Young Woo currently stars in Head Over Heels opposite Cho Yi Hyun, who ranks in the brand reputation list at No. 7. Notably, Choo Young Woo deservedly took home the Baeksang Award for Best New Actor this year, thanks to his scene-stealing performance in The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call.Squid Game 3, which released at the end of June, continued its momentum in July with three cast members taking up the second, third and fifth ranks in the brand reputation list, Lee Jung Jae (7,050,788), Lee Byung Hun (6,578,206) and Jo Yuri (4,322,075). Rounding up the Top 5 at No. 4 is Park Bo Gum, who had a stellar lead outing in Good Boy (4,663,633).

Who is Choo Young Woo?

Actor Choo Young-woo was born June 5, 1999. He hails from South Korea. Choo is well-known for his parts in the TV shows The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call (2025) and The Tale of Lady Ok (2024–2025), the latter of which won him the Baeksang Arts Award for Best New Actor. His unconventional yet poignant portrayals of the two radically different characters Bae Gyeon-u and Bong-Su in the drama series have recently brought him attention. Choo Young-woo plays the roles of Bong-Su, a chaotic spirit, and Gyeon-u, a good-hearted high school student who has been cursed with only 21 days to live, in Head Over Heels.

Choo Young-woo hails from an artistic family with roots in the entertainment industry. His parents, Kang Seong-jin and Choo Seung-il, were both successful models in the 1990s. Choo Jung-woo, his younger brother, is also a part of this world. In The Tale of Lady Ok, he even performed as Choo Young-woo’s body double. It is interesting to note that when JYP Entertainment first scouted Young-woo, he had thought about becoming a K-pop idol. But in the end, he made the decision to pursue acting full-time.Choo Young-woo made his on-screen debut in 2021 with the BL web drama You Make Me Dance, prior to assuming more significant roles. He has worked on a number of projects since making his debut, such as Once Upon a Small Town, School 2021, and Police University. At the 2023 KBS Drama Awards, he won his first significant acting honour. For The Tale of Lady Ok, he went on to win Best New Actor at the 2025 Baeksang Arts Awards.