6 Popular Korean Actors Who Also Started Their Own Talent Agencies

The trend of South Korean stars starting their own agencies is not new. Some of the most popular entertainment agencies today were started by early celebrities. Park Jin Young was a singer before becoming the founder of JYP Entertainment. YG Entertainment’s founder Yang Hyun Suk was also an idol, a part of the iconic first-generation boy group Seo Taiji and Boys. K-Pop singers continue to carry on this legacy even today, with artists like Hyolyn, B.I., and PSY being only a few of the examples.

Korean actors, too, are not behind in this venture. Over the last few years, quite a few actors have set up their own companies, which has allowed them more creative freedom and a way to channel their entrepreneurial intelligence.

Here are 6 Korean actors who are leading the charge with their successful talent agencies:

1. Lee Byung Hun

Lee Byung Jun

In 2006, Lee Byung Hun founded BH Entertainment with the goal of nurturing young talents and managing older and more established actors as well. Today, it has become one of the most significant entertainment agencies in the country, with names like Kim Go Eun¸ Park Hae Soo, Park Bo Young, Go Soo, Lee Jin Wook, and Han Hyo Joo under its management. The company has also expanded overseas markets, joining hands with Sony Pictures and Hakuhodo.

2. Lee Je Hoon

Lee Je Hoon | Hancinema

In 2021, Lee Je Hoon left his old agency SARAM Entertainment, after his initial contract with them expired. He set up his own agency called COMPANY ON. The name is a play on the word “companion,” which implies that the agency’s goal is to welcome talents who share the same passions as Lee. Apart from Lee Je Hoon, the agency also manages Kim Eun Bi, who starred in Taxi Driver 2, the drama led by Lee Je Hoon.

3. Shin Min Ah

Shin Min Ah | @illusomina/Instagram

In 2012, Shin Min Ah joined hands with Hyun Bin, who was in the same agency as her, to set up their own venture together called O& Entertainment. She eventually re-signed with her old agency AM Entertainment, which now manages her long-time boyfriend and actor, Kim Woo Bin.

4. Hyun Bin

Hyun Bin | @vast.ent/Instagram

In his two-decade-long career, Hyun Bin has moved agencies thrice. After leaving his first company, AM Entertainment merged with SM Entertainment, he left for his mandatory military enlistment. After his return, he and Shin Min Ah set up O& Entertainment. His contract with the agency expired in 2015, and the following year he started another agency on his own called VAST Entertainment. VAST trains new artists under the joint guidance of Hyun Bin and his acting mentor Kang Kun Taek.

5. Ha Ji Won

Ha Ji Won

Ha Ji Won left Wellmade STARM, an agency she was under for a decade, in 2013. Shortly after, the actress set up her one-person agency, Haewadal Entertainment. Apart from Ha, the agency today also manages actors Moon Jin Seung and Choi Dong Goo.

6. So Ji Sub

So Ji Sub

In 2011, So Ji Sub set up a one-man agency called 51K. At that time, the actor made it clear that the agency was solely to manage his own activities, and he had no thoughts of taking in younger actors. But over the years, the agency grew larger. Currently, it manages talents like VIXX’s N, Kim Doh Yon, Lee Seung Woo, Shin Ju Seop¸and Ok Taecyon.