In 1988, the year he turned 18, he joined the Cheongju theater company Cheongnyeon Theater and began acting. In 1995 he entered the theater department at Seoul Institute of the Arts, after failing to get in at first, graduating in costume studies and finishing military service.
In 1997, the year he turned 27, he made his screen debut with a bit part in Blackjack, while working with the Mokhwa theater company. Around 1998 he appeared on the Mokhwa stage. In 1999 he played the local punk boss Yonggari in Attack the Gas Station.
In 2001 he had his first role of supporting size, as Neopchi in Kick the Moon. In 2002 he became a scene-stealing supporting actor as the knife-wielding Yong-man in Public Enemy. In 2003 he performed on stage in Daehangno. In 2004 he played Kim Pyeong-san and Kim Doo-soo in SBS’s Toji, the Land, a double role in his first drama.
The breakthrough yearIn December 2005, the year he turned 35, he became known as the clown Yuk-gab in The King and the Clown, eight years after his debut and in the first of his films to pass 10 million admissions.
In 2006 he won best supporting actor at the Grand Bell Awards for The King and the Clown and played Ko Gwang-ryeol in Tazza: The High Rollers that fall. In 2007 he shared the lead with Cha Seung-won in Small Town Rivals. In 2010 he won best supporting actor at the Blue Dragon Film Awards for Moss.
In 2013 he joined KBS2’s 2 Days & 1 Night Season 2. In 2014 he won a second Grand Bell best supporting actor award, for The Pirates. In 2015 he began tvN’s Three Meals a Day: Fishing Village, and Veteran passed 10 million admissions. In 2016 he took his first solo lead in Luck-Key.
In 2017 Confidential Assignment, A Taxi Driver and 1987: When the Day Comes were successes in a row. In 2019 he appeared in Mal-Mo-E: The Secret Mission and The Battle: Roar to Victory. In 2022 he played a king for the first time, King Injo in The Night Owl.
In 2024 Exhuma became his fourth 10 million film, and that fall he was back on a Cheongju stage after 30 years. In 2026, the year he turned 56, The King’s Warden became his fifth 10 million film, and he won the grand prize in film at the Baeksang Arts Awards.
Yoo Hae-jin (born Jan 4, 1970) debuted in 1997, the year he turned 27, with a bit part in the film Blackjack, and became known as the clown Yuk-gab in The King and the Clown, which opened on Dec 29, 2005, the year he turned 35. He took his first solo lead in Luck-Key in 2016, the year he turned 46.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.