Sapaka ako, Your Majesty (Ju Ji-hoon)

Graziella Sigaya
Sep 1, 2021
3 min read

Amo dya si Ju Ji-hoon (born May 16, 1982). He is better known for his princely roles gani angay lang nga tawgon tana nga "jeonha" (your majesty/royal highness). Malawig-lawig pa gawa hurulaton ta para makita tana liwat sa Season 3 ka Kingdom kag sa sidequel nga Kingdom: Crown Prince, gani mapautwas kita anay giya.

ree — Prince Lee Chang in Kingdom series

In 2003, Ju debuted as a model, in advertisements for clothing brands such as Calvin Klein, Levi's and Reebok. He won many awards for modeling. Before entering the entertainment industry, he studied at Tongwon College, majoring in e-Business.

Ju has made various appearances in television dramas, but his first breakthrough leading role was in the 2006 Kdrama hit series Goong, more popularly known in the Philippines as Princess Hours. That role won him the best new actor award, and his co-star Yoon Eun-hye earned the best new actress award, at the MBC Drama Awards.

And while it was a hit both in Korea and abroad, the lead actor opened up about how “a lot of people didn’t like [him]” back then.

The actor reportedly revealed, in an article by SBS Star, that one of the primary reasons for the hate was his skin color. He said, “The comments were like, 'Leave Princess Hours. We don't want to see you on it anymore,' 'How are you a prince? You don't have the right skin color for it. You are too dark,' 'Are you from the countryside or something?' and things like that.” Napiritan kuno tana mag delete ka ana social media account that time tungod sa mga hate comments.

Baw daw isa dun ako sa mga gintumod na nga waay nanami-an ka na as prince... but not for the same reason. Nami gani ana skin color, garing ka ikig pa man to bi ka itsura na. Maniswik for my taste. Pay indi gid manigar nga may princely aura tana bisan kato pa anay and his role as prince Lee Shin on Princess Hours has been known as one of his most iconic portrayals.

Tulad gapamayagpag duman tana as the zombie-slaying Prince Lee Chang ka Netflix's Kingdom series. I must admit that he gets better-looking with age. Lain gid man ang nahimo ka edad kag experience. Nagbukod ang niswik. Bisan gadamulit ka dugo kag other zombie remains, may umph factor man angud tana. Amo ra bala ang hambal nga the more dugyot, more kyot. Excited dun nga daan ang kalabanan sa next adventure nanda sa Season 3 kag kun may kadtanay gid man nga matabo between Prince Lee Chang and Ashin of the North.

Ang ana career path is not without controversies. In 2009, Ju was arrested by Seoul Metropolitan Police on drug charges. He was banned from appearing on the three major broadcasters MBC, KBS, and EBS after being found guilty of drug use of ecstasy and ketamine. He was sentenced to six months of jail time, suspended for one year, 120 hours of community service, and a fine of ₩360,000. The ban at MBC was lifted in 2013 while the other two lifted the ban in 2019. He has reflected deeply on the crime and has not taken any drugs since then.

Mayad lang nga nakabalik tana or else makulangan ang mga oppa naton nga ralantawon. Kanugon man ka ana acting chops kun indi magamit for our entertainment and the greater good of the fangirling community. Luwas sa acting kag modeling, musically talented pa gid si Ju. He is a great singer and can play the guitar and piano. Ju took classical piano lessons to play a professional pianist in the drama, Five Fingers.