Warning: This article contains mentions of extreme violence and abuse.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for multiple shows.
Summary
- K-drama thrillers usually feature captivating villains who can be both engaging and horrifying.
- These villains can range from loan sharks and drug lords to bullies and actual demonic figures, showcasing a diverse range of antagonists.
- The ability of these villains to manipulate others, commit heinous crimes, and show no remorse for their actions makes them chilling and unforgettable.
From action-packed shows to detective series, K-drama thrillers often have menacing, engaging villains who only make the shows better. Naturally, K-drama thrillers tend to cross over into other genres, such as crime drama and horror. The best Korean dramas usually have compelling characters that become fan favorites right away, and the same can be said when it comes to villains and other antagonists.
Whether they are complex and sympathetic or just pure evil, villains can be some of the most captivating characters in a show. This is no different for the best K-drama villains of all time, a list that also includes antagonists from comedies and other genres. However, when it comes to Korean TV thrillers, villains can be even better.
10 Kim Myeong-gil
Bloodhounds (2023)
Park Sung-woong brilliantly portrays Kim Myeong-gil, a loan shark, in Bloodhounds. Myeong-gil is the CEO of Smile Capital, a loan business that makes its money by tricking its customers into g contracts with incredibly high-interest rates. When they can't pay back the loans in the short amount of time Smile Capital gives them, Myeong-gil will send in his enforcers to threaten and harass the customers. In some cases, such as the incident with Kim Geun-woo's mother, Myeong-gil sanctions extreme violence. He's a cold-hearted, ruthless man who only cares about money and will harm anyone who gets in his way.
9 Choi Mu-jin
My Name (2021)
Choi Mu-jin is the boss of the biggest drug ring in Korea, Dongcheon. When Yoon Ji-woo, who believes her father was murdered by a police officer, approaches Mu-jin for help with her revenge, Mu-jin agrees. The finale of My Name, however, reveals that Mu-jin was the one who killed Ji-woo's father, who was actually an undercover police officer in Dongcheon. Mu-jin spent the course of the show gaining Ji-woo's trust, despite knowing that he killed her father, just to use her for his own cause and force Ji-woo to fight him. This manipulation and betrayal highlight Mu-jin's inability to care about anyone who won't get him what he wants.
8 Park Yeon-jin
The Glory (2022)
Netflix's The Glory is a show depicting the horrific bullying of a high schooler and the revenge she takes later on. Park Yeon-jin was the main antagonist to Moon Dong-eun during their high school years. She led a group of students to bully and physically harm Dong-eun until Dong-eun eventually dropped out of school. Yeon-jin shows no remorse for this and goes on to become a successful weather presenter. Seeing the horrible abuse that Yeon-jin put Dong-eun through in their youth is hard to watch, but it makes Dong-eun's revenge that much sweeter. Yeon-jin's lack of remorse for her actions cements her as a callous and vicious bully.
7 Park Il-do
The Guest (2018)
Despite being the main antagonist of the K-drama horror thriller, The Guest, Park Il-do's true form is not revealed until the final episode. Park Il-do is a demon who uses his powers to make lesser demons possess people to commit horrific crimes. Yoon Hwa-pyung, Choi Yoon, and Kang Gil-young all have tragic pasts because of Park Il-do so they band together to try to stop him. It is revealed, however, that Park Il-do had been possessing Hwa-pyung's grandfather for the last 20 years. This reveal is devastating, as he was Hwa-pyung's only remaining family since Park Il-do was responsible for the death of his mother, grandmother, and father.
6 Jung Han-seok
Vincenzo (2021)
Jang Han-seok was first introduced as Jang Jun-woo, the paralegal for Hong Cha-young. He appears to be fairly naive and optimistic, but Han-seok is actually the mastermind behind the antagonistic Babel Group. He is responsible for the death of Cha-young's father after he discovers that Babel Group is just a shell company for a drug cartel. Han-seok is revealed to be a villain in every sense of the word, as he habitually abused his younger half-brother with a hockey stick when the latter failed his job, among other horrible crimes. The transition from the bumbling Jun-woo to the chilling Han-seok is shocking and horrifying.
5 Kang Jin-muk
Beyond Evil (2021)
Beyond Evil follows a pair of detectives who are attempting to solve a series of murders that began 20 years ago. Kang Jin-muk is the mild-mannered owner of Manyang Supermarket and the adopted brother of Lee Dong-sik, one of the detectives. When Jin-muk's daughter, Min-jeong, goes missing in the same manner as in the previous murders, he is distraught. The audience learns, however, that Jin-muk has been the killer all along. He has been systematically murdering women as he looks for his wife, who left him after Min-jeong was born. His meek manner was a facade that hid a monster beneath.
4 Baek Hee-sung
Flower of Evil (2020)
Flower of Evil follows a detective who's trying to solve a series of murders where all the clues point towards her husband. Her husband, unbeknownst to her, took the identity of a man named Baek Hee-sung to hide from his past. His real name is Do Hyun-su, and he was a suspected accomplice in his father's serial killing spree. The real Baek Hee-sung, who is in a coma for a portion of the show, was the real accomplice. Hee-sung is portrayed as having a thirst for blood due to various aspects of his past, including his father's emotional neglect and Do Min-seok's encouragement of violence. Still, it is clear that Hee-sung is a manipulative man who knows how to get what he wants.
3 Mo Tae-goo
Voice (2017-2021)
Mo Tae-goo is the primary antagonist in the first season of Voice, a thriller about a team of 112 emergency dispatchers. Tae-goo is the president of Sungwoon Express and has a penchant for murder. He is the true embodiment of a coldblooded killer, as he sees himself as an executioner. The act of murder is a game for him, and he enjoys making a show of it. Tae-goo's preferred weapon is a kettlebell. He commits a variety of horrible crimes during the course of his time on the show and sees himself as smarter than everyone else, which leads to his eventual arrest. His lack of remorse for his actions and his enjoyment of killing make him a frightening villain to watch
2 Shin Ju-hyeok
Bad and Crazy (2021)
Shin Ju-hyeok becomes Detective Ryu Soo-yeol's therapist after the latter begins to develop an alter ego called K who takes over his body to exact justice. At first, Ju-hyeok seems harmless, but it soon becomes clear that he has a past with Soo-yeol. Ju-hyeok has, since his youth, been coercing troubled kids into committing murders. His attempt at making Soo-yeol kill his father when they were younger is what first manifested K, although Soo-yeol is unaware of K's existence until later on, due to memory loss. Ju-hyeok has been using his power as a therapist to continue these killings. The abuse of power is what makes him so horrifying.
1 Oh Jae-won
Bad Guys (2014)
Similarly to Shin Ju-hyeok, Oh Jae-won utilizes his position in society to commit crimes. A prosecutor, Oh Jae-won is the mastermind behind Lee Jung-moon's alleged crimes. Jung-moon, a young man with a high IQ, is alleged to be a psychopathic serial killer, although he has no memories of having actually killed anyone. Jae-won, along with Doctor Kim, has been using Jung-moon as the scapegoat for his own killing spree. Doctor Kim would drug Jung-moon and Jae-won would bring him to the crime scenes to convince him that he had killed someone. It's a sinister plan, and it's scary that it worked so well. Jae-won is a K-drama villain who sends chills down the spine.