Ok Taecyeon is currently starring in arguably one of the biggest and funniest dramas this year, Vincenzo. In the crime and dark comedy series, Taecyeon plays the role of law firm intern Jang Jun Woo. On the outside, he's quirky, offbeat, and might seem a little lost at times. But, deep down, he's a totally different person. Dundundundun...
Taecyeon has been acting for over a decade now, but to those who don't know much about the Vincenzo actor, here are some fast facts about him:
Ok Taecyeon was born on December 27, 1988!
The 32-year-old star is a graduate of Business Administration from Dankook University and also attended Korea University's Graduate School of International Studies.
Ok Taecyeon lived in the United States for seven years.
Ok Taecyeon was born in Seoul, South Korea but grew up in Busan. When he was 10 years old, he and his family migrated to the United States. Taecyeon spent his formative years in Bedford, Massachusetts. And because we know you're curious, here's a compilation video of Taecyeon speaking in English:
Ok Taecyeon is part of the K-pop group 2PM.
While in the United States, Taecyeon got word of JYP Entertainment's auditions in New York and tried his luck as a model. JYPE then suggested for him to sing and dance, and he was eventually chosen to be one of the finalists of the talent reality show Superstar Survival. Although that didn't work out for him, he still was able to debut in the then-seven-piece boy group 2PM in 2008. Check out their very first title track "10 Out Of 10" below:
The group received success in Korea and Asia in the succeeding years, but because of the group's mandatory military enlistments, they officially went on hiatus in 2017. Their last title track is 2016's "Promise (I'll Be)" under the album Gentleman's Game.
Taecyeon left JYPE when his contract ended in 2018 and signed with the acting agency 51K. Even though he is now under a different agency, 2PM is still intact and has not disbanded. Taecyeon has been spotted hanging out with his members on various occasions after he left JYPE and even while on break during his military service. Here's a selfie of all six members of 2PM:
In January 2021, it was announced that 2PM will be making their comeback after five years because all members have completed their military service. Taecyeon talked about their much-awaited comeback in a recent interview with Singles magazine: "We are practicing, but it's uncertain if it'll happen this year. We are planning things, but because a lot of different situations are overlapping, I think it's important that we organize first.
"Since all of the members write music, each member has something different in mind. It's not easy to decide what kind of music should be our title song or which direction we should go in. Things would go smoothly once the song is decided on, but the members haven't had the chance to come to a decision. Well, the recent first round of trying failed. Making a comeback is something all the members are looking forward to, but I think we need more time."
You might have seen Ok Taecyeon on Dream High.
In 2010, Ok Taecyeon made his acting debut on the drama Cinderella's Sister, but it was his next drama, Dream High, that got him massive success. Premiering in 2011, Dream High revolves around a group of talented students at the fictional performance academy, Kirin Art School: a classically trained former rich girl (Suzy), a small-town musical genius (Kim Soo Hyun), and a bad boy with a hidden passion for dance (Ok Taecyeon).
Even though the drama aired way back when, Taecyeon remained friends with some of his cast members. For his 2017 movie House Above Time, Dream High co-stars Kim Soo Hyun, T-ara's Eunjung, and fellow 2PM member Wooyoung all attended the VIP premiere. On his guesting on SBS PowerFM's Choi Hwa Jung's Power Time, Taecyeon spoke about how touched he was that his friends took out time to come to his premiere: "I am thankful for Kim Soo Hyun and Eunjung coming to the event despite their busy schedules. They were only able to stay for the photos and did not have time to see the movie. Wooyoung was the only one who was able to stay for the entire movie. After he saw it, he told the director that my acting had gotten better. It was a humorous moment."
Ok Taecyeon is a funny man in real life!
Ok Taecyeon may have a steely gaze and intimidating persona when you first see him, but in reality, he is every bit the goofball! Since most of his acting roles have been tough and brooding characters, Taecyeon couldn't miss out on the chance of playing the dorky Jang Jun Woo on Vincenzo. "When I first received the script, I thought to myself, 'Wait, I think I need to do this,' because Jun Woo's character was so in sync with who I am in real life. He even appears on an electric scooter in his first scene, which made me feel like someone had secretly filmed me in real life," he told Singles magazine.
Vincenzo lead star Song Joong Ki even spoke about how funny Taecyeon is on set during an interview with Netflix: "Among the three of us, I would say that Taecyeon was definitely someone that made everybody laugh on set. I think he's actually trying to hold himself together because it's an interview currently, but when you really meet him on set, you will know just how fun and funny he is. I did a lot of scenes with Jeon Yeo Bin, and I didn't have as many scenes with Taecyeon, but in those few scenes that I had with him, you will see later on in the show that I am laughing for real in those scenes. It was an opportunity for me to once again be reminded of how lucky I am to be able to really enjoy my time while doing the job that I love. So I want to actually take this opportunity to thank everybody on the set who made it such a great time but especially Taecyeon sitting here because he was really the one who made that possible for me."
Ok Taecyeon's nickname is Captain Korea.
After giving up his resident's visa in the United States, Ok Taecyeon officially enlisted in the military in 2017. Because pictures of his new bulk physique circulated online, he was dubbed by netizens as Captain Korea. But apart from his good looks, Taecyeon really excelled while in the military. In fact, he was given an early promotion to sergeant, which is only given to the most outstanding soldiers. He was also promoted alongside his good friend and Dream High co-star Kim Soo Hyun.
Ok Taecyeon is a TWICE fanboy!
Ok Taecyeon is known to be super supportive of his JYPE juniors, TWICE. In 2018, Taecyeon got to see them in concert while he was on break from the military. Here's their cute snap:
Also, while he was on military leave, Taecyeon was filmed singing to TWICE's "Yes Or Yes" at a norebang. That's not all though! In an interview after getting discharged from the military, the group he said he most wanted to see was TWICE. Yup, Taecyeon is a true ONCE!
Ok Taecyeon is currently in a relationship.
In June 2020, after reports claiming that Ok Taecyeon was spotted enjoying a date with a woman, his agency 51K confirmed that he was indeed in a relationship: "It's true that Taecyeon is currently in a relationship with a non-celebrity. We are cautious to say anything as this is his personal privacy and his girlfriend is not a celebrity."
The following week, Taecyeon took to Instagram to address the news to his fans. "I am very sorry to everyone who was surprised and disappointed by the sudden news. I thought a lot about how to talk about this, and I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to write.
"I know very well that many people are worried about me. That's why I want to say that I will continue to do my best as an actor and as a member of 2PM, just as I've done until now, so please keep watching over me.
"Thank you for cheering me on despite the fact that I am lacking in many ways."
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