Ahn Sung-ki Age, Death, Wife, Children, Family, Biography

Bio/Wiki
Name Earned	The Nation's Actor
Profession	Actor
Physical Stats
Height (approx.)	5' 9" (175 cm)
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Grey
Career
Debut	Film: Twilight Train (1957)
Awards, Honours	Awards 1980 • Best New Actor award for 'A Fine, Windy Day' at the Grand Bell Awards 1982 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Mandala' at the 18th Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award for 'Man of Iron' at the Grand Bell Awards 1983 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Village in the Mist' at the 19th Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award for 'Village in the Mist' at the Grand Bell Awards • Best Actor award for 'Polluted Ones' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 1984 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'The Flower on the Equator' at the 20th Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award for 'Village in the Mist' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 1985 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Deep Blue Night' at the 21st Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award for 'Deep Blue Night' at the Grand Bell Awards 1989 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Age of Success' at the 25th Baeksang Arts Awards 1990 • Best Actor award for 'North Korean Partisans in South Korea' at the 11th Blue Dragon Film Awards 1991 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Who Saw The Dragon's Toenails' at the 27th Baeksang Arts Awards 1994 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Two Cops' and Grand Prize (Film) at the 30th Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award (shared with Park Joong-hoon) for 'Two Cops' at the Grand Bell Awards • Best Actor award for 'Two Cops' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 1995 • Best Actor award for 'The Eternal Empire' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 1996 • Best Actor award for 'Festival' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 2001 • Best Supporting Actor award for 'Musa' at the 22nd Blue Dragon Film Awards 2006 • Best Actor award (shared with Park Joong-hoon) for 'Radio Star' at the 27th Blue Dragon Film Awards • 50th Anniversary of Debut Award at the Grand Bell Awards • Best Actor award for 'Radio Star' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 2007 • Best Actor award for 'Radio Star' at the Grand Bell Awards 2012 • Best Actor (Film) award for 'Unbowed' at the 48th Baeksang Arts Awards • Best Actor award for 'Unbowed' at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 2013 • Lifetime Achievement Award (for Social Contributions) at the 49th Baeksang Arts Awards 2019 • Honorary Doctorate in Literature from Kyonggi University in November 2019 2021 • Legendary Award at The Brand Laureate Awards • Grand Prize (Daesang) at the Korea Culture and Entertainment Awards 2022 • Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grand Bell Awards • Lifetime Achievement Award (Film) at the Korean Association of Film Critics Awards 2023 • Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Cinema Film Festival • Achievement Award at the Wildflower Film Awards Honours 2005: Bogwan Order of Cultural Merit (3rd Class) at the Korean Culture and Arts Awards 2013: Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit (2nd Class) at the Korean Popular Culture and Arts Awards
Personal Life
Date of Birth	1 January 1952 (Tuesday)
Birthplace	Daegu, South Korea
Date of Death	5 January 2026 (Monday)
Place of Death	Seoul, South Korea
Age (at the time of death)	74 Years
Death Cause	Blood Cancer
Zodiac sign	Capricorn
Nationality	South Korean
Hometown	Daegu, South Korea
School	Kyungdong Middle School, South Korea
College/University	Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul
Educational Qualification	Graduate (majoring in Vietnamese)
Religion	Christianity (Catholicism)
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Married
Marriage Date	Year, 1985
Marriage Place	Myeongdong Cathedral, Seoul, South Korea
Family
Wife/Spouse	Oh So-yeong (sculptor, professor)
Children	Son(s)- 2 • Dabin Ahn (artist) • Phillip Ahn (actor) Daughter- None
Parents	Father- Ahn Hwa-Yeong (filmmaker, producer) Mother- Kim Nam-hyeon
Siblings	Brother- In-Gi Ahn (film producer) Sister- None

Some Lesser Known Facts About Ahn Sung-ki

• Ahn Sung-ki was born and raised in Seoul in a family connected to the film industry. His father was a filmmaker and producer, which naturally introduced him to cinema at an early age.

• From an early age, Ahn formed a close bond with singer-songwriter Cho Yong-pil, as the two grew up together and studied at Kyungdong Middle School before later attending separate high schools while maintaining their friendship.

• He began acting as a child and made an early appearance in Kim Ki-young’s landmark film ‘The Housemaid’ (1960), which later became one of the most celebrated works in Korean film history.

• Ahn later stepped away from film acting to focus on his education. During this time, he stayed connected to acting by performing in the theatre while attending Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul.

• In 1976, he completed South Korea’s mandatory military service as an artillery officer. He received his commission through the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.

• After being discharged from the military, he returned to acting and gained major attention with his performance in ‘A Fine, Windy Day’ (1980).

• His performance as ‘Beop-un’ in the film ‘Mandala’ (1981) was appreciated by the viewers. For the role, he shaved his head.
  

  A poster of the film ‘Mandala’ (1981)

• He appeared in many other films, including ‘The Blue in You’ (1992), ‘Two Cops’ (1993), ‘Nowhere to Hide’ (1999), and ‘Musa’ (2000).
  

  Ahn Sung-ki (as Jo Hyeong-sa) and Park Joong-hoon (as Kang) in a still from the film ‘Two Cops’ (1993)

• Ahn portrayed the President of South Korea twice, first in ‘The Romantic President’ (2002) and later in ‘Hanbando’ (2006).
  

  Ahn Sung-ki as ‘President Han Min-wook’ in a still from the film ‘The Romantic President’ (2002)

• In 2003, he appeared in the semi-biographical war film ‘Silmido,’ which made history as the first Korean film to surpass 10 million ticket sales.

• A line spoken by his character in ‘Silmido,’ “Shoot me and go,” became widely quoted and inspired numerous parodies and pop culture references.
  

  Ahn Sung-ki (extreme left) as ‘Commandant Choi Jae-hyeon’ in a still from the film ‘Silmido’ (2003)

• In 2006, Ahn played the role of ‘Park Min-su’ in the film ‘Radio Star.’ His performance led to multiple award nominations and wins.
  

  Ahn Sung-ki as ‘Park Min-su’ in the film ‘Radio Star’ (2006)

• That same year, he appeared as ‘Xiang Yan-zhong’ in the film ‘A Battle of Wits’ and acted alongside international stars Andy Lau and Fan Bingbing.
  

  A poster of the film ‘A Battle of Wits’ (2006)

• During this period, he openly opposed the reduction of South Korea’s screen quota system, which limited the number of days domestic films could be shown in theatres.

• Ahn served as chairman of the Korean Film Actors Association from 2006 to 2008.

• While serving as a leadership committee member of the Korean Film Actors Association, he participated in two public demonstrations to protest the policy, standing alongside prominent filmmakers and actors.

• In 2011, Ahn surprised the industry by choosing to star in ‘Unbowed,’ a low-budget semi-biographical film that major distributors had avoided due to its controversial subject matter.
  

  A poster of the film ‘Unbowed’ (2011)

• Although ‘Unbowed’ was released with little promotion, the film gradually built momentum through word of mouth. Audiences connected strongly with its underdog “David versus Goliath” storyline, which became a hit.

• Ahn, a devout Catholic, participated in the 2014 music video ‘Koinonia’ with 29 other Catholic celebrities to mark Pope Francis’s visit to South Korea, his first visit to Asia in 19 years.

• Due to his ability to communicate in multiple foreign languages, UNICEF selected Ahn as one of its representatives, and his image has frequently appeared in in-flight advertisements on aeroplanes travelling to Korea.

• In 2019, Ahn revealed that he had been diagnosed with blood cancer.

• On 6 August 2021, Ahn Sung-ki officially signed with Artist Company.

• In December 2025, he was rushed to the hospital in critical condition after a choking incident occurred at his home.

• On 5 January 2026, Ahn Sung-ki passed away in Seoul.