From abusive leaders to serial killers and cunning immortals, here are the top villains in Korean dramas:
12. Shin Sung-rok as Lee Jae-kyung in “My Love From The Star” (2013)
Lee Jae-kyung is a selfish sociopath in the fantasy-romance series, My Love From The Star. He is the heir of S&C Group who is relentless in harming his brother’s high school friend, Cheon Song-yi, a famous actress. He is very passionate and determined to do what he wants to do, no matter how evil it is.
11. Oh Man-seok as Cho Cheol-gang in “Crash Landing On You” (2019-2020)
Cho Cheol-gang is the heartless Lieutenant Commander in the North Korean Armed Forces’ Security Bureau. He hides corruption, criminal operation, and does everything in his power and evilness to search the truth about Seri and destroy Captain Ri.
10. Kim Seo-hyeong as Kim Joo-young in “Sky Castle” (2018)
Kim Joo-young is an intelligent yet manipulative tutor in Sky Castle whose service is only accessible to the elite families. She hides a traumatic past that manifests in the way she handles her students. She manipulates their minds to the point of putting their lives at risk.
9. Um Ki-joon as Joo Dan-tae in “The Penthouse” (2020-2021)
Joo Dan Tae is a manipulative control freak in the crime-thriller series, The Penthouse. He is a narcissistic-psychopath man who lusts after power, money, abuses his family, has no remorse, lacks sympathy, and murders anyone who gets into his way.
8. Jung Woong-in as Min Joon-kook in “I Can Hear Your Voice” (2013)
Min Joon-kook is an eerie murderer in the legal-fantasy series, I Can Hear Your Voice. He plays tricks with his victims through his phone that has a creepy ringtone and leaves it in their houses. He was imprisoned for 10 years for killing someone he had a grudge with. When he was released, he gets bent on revenge against the testifiers.
7. Kim Byung-chul as Sigma in “Sisyphus: The Myth” (2020)
Sigma is a deranged villain character in the sci-fi-thriller series, Sisyphus: The Myth. Due to his rough childhood, extreme feelings of abandonment and loneliness, he manipulates times and events in his favor to destroy the world.
6. Kim Hye-jun as Queen Consort Cho in “Kingdom” (2019-2020)
Queen Consort Cho is the wicked stepmother of the Crown Prince in the zombie-thriller series, Kingdom. She connives with her father, does evil tactics like pretending to be pregnant and murdering people to secure her power and dethrone Lee Chang as the rightful heir. She is so power-driven to the point of spreading the disease, becoming a zombie herself, and ending the kingdom.
5. Yoo Jaemyung as Chairman Jang Dae-hee in “Itaewon Class” (2020)
Chairman Jang is the loathsome CEO of Jangga Food who hides illegal activities under his company. Although he is a self-made man who succeeded in turning his small bar into a large franchise company, greed and power have dominated his beliefs. He looks down upon weak people, enjoys seeing people suffer, and demands anyone to kneel down before him to beg for his favor.
4. Ok Taecyeon as Jang Joon-woo in “Vincenzo” (2021)
Jang Jong-woo is a sociopathic head of Babel who pretends to be an innocent, geeky, and naive intern in Wusang Law Firm. He abuses and manipulates his brother mentally and physically. He also enjoys seeing his subordinates suffer from his evil deeds.
3. Kim Ji-hoon as Baek Hee-sung in “Flower Of Evil” (2020)
Baek Hee-sung is a serial murderer in the suspense-thriller series, Flower Of Evil. He manipulates his family to hide his mental health condition and help him cover up for his crimes. He is the type of mysterious psychopath who is an expert at hiding and murdering people in secret.
2. Kim Byung-chul as Park Joong-heon in “Goblin” (2016)
Park Joong-heon is a cunning and manipulative eunuch from the Goryeo Dynasty in the fantasy series, Goblin. He killed his family and brainwashed a king to acquire more power. Everything he does is for his selfish ambition and greed.
1. Lee Joon as Ok Eul-tae in “Bulgasal: Immortal Souls” (2021-2022)
Ok Eul-tae is a cunning immortal being in the fantasy-thriller series, Bulgasal: Immortal Souls. He lives in secrecy and enjoys watching the bloody cycle of revenge for a thousand years. He also manipulates people to get what he wants and drinks blood from human beings to survive. Although he enjoys his immense wealth, power, and immortality, he suffers from his cursed dark hole and does everything in his deceitful tactics to heal it.
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