Cha Tae-hyun
Cha in May 2015
Born	(1976-03-25)March 25, 1976 (age 49) Seoul, South Korea
Occupations	Actor singer television personality radio DJ director
Years active	1995–present
Agent	Basecamp Company
Spouse	Choi Suk-eun ​ (m. 2006)​
Children	3
Korean name
Hangul	차태현
Hanja	車太鉉
RR	Cha Taehyeon
MR	Ch'a T'aehyŏn

Cha Tae-hyun (Korean: 차태현; born March 25, 1976) is a South Korean actor, singer, television personality, radioDJ anddirector. He is best known for his lead roles in the box-office hit comediesMy Sassy Girl (2001),Scandal Makers (2008),Hello Ghost (2010),The Grand Heist (2012), and fantasy drama action hitAlong with the Gods: The Two Worlds (2017) as well as the television seriesJeon Woo-chi (2012),The Producers (2015), andPolice University (2021). He made his directorial debut with the variety-dramaHit the Top (2017), in which he also starred.

From 2012 to 2019, he was a cast member of the variety show2 Days & 1 Night. He is a co-founder of the talent management agenciesBlossom Entertainment (with Ju Bang-ok)^[1] and Basecamp Company (withZo In-sung).^[2]

Cha Tae-hyun started his career as a silver medalist in a 1995KBS Talent Contest. Over the next several years he would star in a large number of TV dramas such asSunflower andHappy Together,^[3] while also appearing in numerous TV commercials.^[4] He was theradio DJ forKBS Cool FM'sFM Popular Music with Cha Tae-hyun from 1999 to 2000,^[5] and made a minor film debut in the comedyHallelujah.^[6]

In 2001, he rose to fame through the hugely successful romantic comedyMy Sassy Girl where he acted alongsideJun Ji-hyun.^[7] Cha's expressive acting established him as a recognized star in Korea as well as the Asian region at large,^[8] and he extended his fame by releasing his debut albumAccident. His next filmLovers' Concerto (2002), a tragic melodrama with actressesSon Ye-jin andLee Eun-ju, also proved to be a popular success.^[9]

From 2003, however, Cha's casting choices proved to be less inspired. He appeared in three comedies --Crazy First Love,^[10]Happy Ero Christmas^[11] andTwo Guys^[12] —that were widely criticized by audiences for their weak scripts and lack of creativity.^[6] He released his second albumThe Book later that year.

His 2005 films—the relationship filmSad Movie with an all-star ensemble cast,^[13] and melodramaMy Girl and I oppositeSong Hye-kyo, the remake of Japanese hit filmCrying Out Love in the Center of the World^[14] —were box office disappointments. 2007'sHighway Star, in which he played a maskedtrot singer, was a moderate success.^[15]

ChahostedKBS Cool FM'sMr. Radio from 2007 to 2008, and was awarded Best Radio DJ at the 2007KBS Entertainment Awards alongsideAhn Jae-wook.^[16] He then portrayed the town's jester who has the intelligence of a six-year-old inBABO (which means "fool" in Korean), a film adaptation ofKang Full's popular online comic.^[17][18]

Cha regained his top star status when his comedy flickScandal Makers became the number one film of 2008, attracting 8.2 million moviegoers and ranking amongKorea's biggest hits of all time. The film centers on a radio talk show host, who was ex- idol, who must face unforeseen consequences of a love affair when he was a teen, when he discovers that he already has a daughter (Park Bo-young) and a grandson (Wang Seok-hyun) at the age of 30.^[19][20] As a result of the film's success, the advertising industry named Cha as the top male celebrity endorser of 2009.^[21]

He reunited withBABO directorKim Young-tak in 2010'sHello Ghost, a film about a man who after several suicide attempts, becomes possessed by four different ghosts.^[22] It was another box office success at 3 million tickets sold, and Cha's performance led him to be dubbed as "Korea'sJim Carrey."^[23]

Based on a true story, his 2011 filmChamp depicts the relationship between a recently injured racehorse named Woo-bak and the jockey who tries to tame her.^[24] Cha spent time with the horse before and during filming, luring his four-legged partner with a combination of carrots and sugar cubes.^[25]

In 2012, he became a regular cast member of the second season of popular variety program2 Days & 1 Night, and remained as a member until 2019. The show, which focuses on introducing various places in Korea to the viewers while the cast takes on different missions, has consistently scored high viewership ratings.^[26][27]

Cha played his first historical role inThe Grand Heist, as the leader of aJoseon era group of thieves who band together to steal ice.^[28][29] The action-comedy film was produced by his brother Cha Ji-hyun. He took on another sageuk role as the titular character in TV seriesJeon Woo-chi, an impishTaoist wizard who becomes an unlikely hero.^[30][31]

In 2014, he starred as anintroverted man with dynamicvisual acuity who works at aCCTV control center in the comedy filmSlow Video, his third collaboration with director Kim Young-tak.^[32][33] This was followed byThe Producers in 2015, in which Cha played a hot-headed but soft-heartedtelevision producer.^[34][35]

In 2016, Cha reprised his role inMy New Sassy Girl, a sequel to the2001 hit film.^[36] However, the film did not live up to its predecessor and was a failure at the box office.^[37] The same year, he reunited withMy Sassy Girl co-starJun Ji-hyun in acameo appearance in SBS's fantasy dramaThe Legend of the Blue Sea.^[38]

In 2017, Cha starred in the romantic comedyBecause I Love You, playing a gifted composer who connects people in love; the film was again produced by his brother Cha Ji-hyun.^[39][40][41] He next starred in KBS2's variety-dramaHit the Top, which he also directs.^[42] The same year, Cha starred in the fantasy blockbusterAlong With the Gods: The Two Worlds, based on the webtoon of the same name by Joo Ho-min.^[43][44]

In 2018, Cha starred in the romance dramaMatrimonial Chaos, a remake of the Japanese television series of the same title.^[45]

In March 2019, Cha was reported to have engaged in gambling, which was discovered throughJung Joon-young's phone's text messages during the police's investigation of the latter for illicit sex video crimes. Cha subsequently issued a formal statement of apology and withdrew from all his shows.^[46]

In 2020, Cha was cast in the crime detective dramaTeam Bulldog: Off-Duty Investigation.^[47]

In 2021, Cha starred inKBS2 dramaPolice University, playing Yoo Dong-man, a detective-turned-professor at the National Police University.^[48]

In March 2025, Cha announced that he ended his exclusive contract with Blossom Entertainment, which he also co-founded, and established a new company withZo In-sung called Basecamp Company.^[2]

Cha's father, Cha Jae-wan, was an assistant director for special effects atKBS, and his mother Choi Su-min, now retired, was avoice-over artist.^[49] His brother is film producer Cha Ji-hyeon.

On June 1, 2006, Cha married his high school sweetheart, pop lyricist Choi Suk-eun.^[50] They dated for 13 years; she was his first and only girlfriend.^[51] They have three children, a son (Cha Soo-chan) and two daughters (Cha Tae-eun, Cha Su-jin).^[52]

In 2011, Cha revealed onSBS talk showHealing Camp, Aren't You Happy that he has apanic disorder.^[53]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCha Tae-hyun.

• Cha Tae-hyun atHanCinema
• Cha Tae-hyun at theKorean Movie Database
• Cha Tae-hyun atIMDb

• Best New Actor for Blue Dragon Film Award winners
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• 1976 births
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• 20th-century South Korean male actors
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• 21st-century South Korean male singers
• K-pop singers
• South Korean male pop singers
• South Korean male film actors
• South Korean male voice actors
• South Korean male television actors
• South Korean male web series actors
• South Korean television presenters
• South Korean radio presenters
• Male actors from Seoul
• Singers from Seoul
• South Korean television directors
• Seoul Institute of the Arts alumni
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• Best New Actor Paeksang Arts Award (television) winners

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