Teo Yoo (Yoo Tae-oh), whose real name is Kim Chi-hun, was born on April 11, 1981, in Cologne, Germany, and is a South Korean actor. The son of Korean parents living in Germany—his father was a miner and his mother a nurse—he grew up in a multicultural environment. After high school, he went to the United States and the United Kingdom to study theater.
He began his film career in the 2000s, notably with Brooklyn Bound (2004) and Day Night Day Night (2006). He went on to appear in several international productions, including Actresses (2009), One-on-One (2014) and Seoul Searching (2015).
His career took a decisive turn in 2018 when he portrayed Soviet rock singer Viktor Tsoi in Leto, directed by Kirill Serebrennikov and screened at the Cannes Film Festival. This performance brought him international recognition.
In 2019, he appeared in several Korean TV series, including Arthdal Chronicles, Vagabond and Chocolate. The following year, he played Eugene Han in the financial thriller Money Game and appears in The School Nurse Files. On the big screen, her role in Vertigo (2019) earned him the Best New Actor award at the 2021 Blue Dragon Film Awards.
He continued his career with New Year Blues (2021) and makes a cameo appearance in Decision to Leave (2022). He also directed the autobiographical documentary Log in in Belgium in 2021.
In 2023, he enjoyed renewed international success with Past Lives – Our Previous Lives, directed by Celine Song. In it, he plays Jung Hae-sung, a man who reconnects with his childhood sweetheart, alongside Greta Lee. That same year, he played Nam Kang-ho in the romantic comedy Love to Hate You.
In 2024, he appeared in the movie Dirty Money and appears on the show Music Adventure by Accident. Following these projects, it was announced in the romantic series Wed-Thu-Fri, scheduled for 2027, in which he must interpret Lee Won-pil. This new role marks the continuation of his television career, following several successes in film and on international platforms.
In his personal life, Teo Yoo has been married to South Korean artist Nikki S. Lee since 2007.
