Ma Dong-seok: Korean answer to Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson flexes his muscles at the box office
Both action stars have big muscles, big box-office appeal – and great comedic timing – but can the rising star of Asian cinema match the Hollywood hunk’s success
Ma Dong-seok, a burly actor who bears a striking resemblance to a grizzly bear, is quickly taking the Korean film industry by storm.
Ma, who also sometimes goes by his English name, Don Lee, has proved himself to be a rising star of Korean cinema since his breakout role in the 2016 action thriller Train to Busan.
He is big, muscular, and not someone you would describe as conventionally handsome.
In Korea’s perfectly composed entertainment industry (just think about the latest hotshot boasting beautiful skin, gorgeous Photoshopped looks and a slim physique to match), Ma is an outlier, an asterisk and an exception to the rule.
Since he first stepped onto the screen in Train to Busan as Sang-hwa, a dedicated father-to-be who risks his life to get his pregnant wife and the rest of the surviving pack of passengers away from a zombie apocalypse and towards safety, he has been recognised as a major hit with the crowds.
You certainly can’t deny the similarities between actors Ma Dong-seok and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson: they’re both big men with big muscles and even bigger fan appeal
He has certainly kept himself busy since then, with a series of successful projects.
They include a leading role in Champion (released in May in Korea, and now playing on screens in Hong Kong), to a surprise cameo in the hit film, Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds (released in Korea last December), which delighted audiences and hinted at his starring role in the forthcoming sequel.