junki小窩

Korean actor Lee Joon-ki talks about his acting career. Although he has starred in just a handful of films, he is ranked as one of Korea’s biggest box office draws. By Jeong Chi-ho

There are certain things you might expect when meeting a star actor: crazy good looks, fabulous lifestyle and, perhaps, a bit of attitude.

Such was this reporter’s expectation before an exclusive interview with Korean actor Lee Joon-ki on a recent afternoon. Lee, once a young and struggling actor from the port city of Busan, was catapulted to stardom with his impressive portrayal of an androgynous clown in the 2005 hit film “The King and the Clown.”

Today, Lee is ranked as one of Korea’s biggest box office draws. The few films he has made have attracted almost 20 million people, according to the latest figures.

This puts the 27-year-old actor on par with some of Korea’s most successful veterans, like Song Kang-ho, Sol Kyung-gu and Ahn Sung-ki.

Yes. The looks were there, although many would agree that Lee’s androgynous features aren’t what you would call typical, bordering somewhere between male and female.

The lifestyle was there, as well, with his entourage serving him one iced Americano after another and attending to his appearance from time to time to make sure that he felt and looked his best.

But it’s pretty difficult to say whether his attitude is typical of his peers.

“I’ve had my fall from grace,” Lee said with a serious face and a low voice as he sat dressed for a photo shoot in an impeccable black suit, white shirt and black tie.

“After my performance in The King and the Clown, I found myself at the forefront of this ‘pretty boy’ trend, whether or not that was my intention. Suddenly, people were interested in me, and there was all this praise and criticism all at the same time. Everything was just so overwhelming. I felt like I was floating on air.”

The “pretty boy” look for men has become more popular in recent years and since then Korean pop culture and the industries that support it have never been the same. Men as pretty as (or prettier than) women have become popular icons, and men who take care of their looks are much in demand.

Although the trend is still going strong, it hasn’t guaranteed Lee success. His subsequent films - “Fly, Daddy, Fly” (2006), “May 18” (2007), and “Virgin Snow” (2007) - have either fallen short of expectations at the box office or cast Lee in minor roles, to say the least. He has, however, managed to stay in the spotlight with TV dramas like “My Girl” (2005) and “The Time between Dog and Wolf” (2007).

Fans greet Lee at his Shanghai concerts last month. Provided by Mentor Entertainment

Looking back, Lee described his early days as a rising celebrity as having been marked by loneliness and failure.

“I think I became a bit full of myself with The King and the Clown. Then came the slump and the big fear of ‘what will I do when I stop shining?’” he said calmly. “But I certainly didn’t want to go back, considering all the effort it had taken me to get there. So in a way I had no choice but to gather myself together and push myself to get out of the darkness.”

Many would agree that Lee did have some success in getting out of his slump. His performance in the SBS drama “Iljimae” last year brought him top honors in the 2008 SBS Drama Awards last December.

The epic drama in which Lee plays a heroic thief who steals from corrupt Joseon Dynasty government officials and gives his take to the poor, enjoyed ratings of over 30 percent, and its DVDs sales were twice those of “Jumong,” another award-winning epic drama that was hugely successful here. Iljimae went on to air in Japan, and started its run on Monday on TV Tokyo.

The Japan deal is hardly surprising. Despite his relatively short career, Lee enjoys a fair amount of recognition in China, Japan and other Asian countries. A recent survey ranked Lee fourth as the hallyu (Korean wave) actor with the biggest potential.