# Kim Kang-hoon (김강훈)
**Kim Kang-hoon** (김강훈; born 2009) is a South Korean actor who works in television, film, and variety, best known for playing Kang Pil-gu, the son of [Gong Hyo-jin](https://www.edgepedia.org/gong-hyo-jin)'s character, in the 2019 KBS2 drama *When the Camellia Blooms* (동백꽃 필 무렵).[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) He debuted on television at age four and has since played the childhood versions of leading men including [Lee Byung-hun](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-byung-hun) in *Mr. Sunshine* and [Song Joong-ki](https://www.edgepedia.org/song-joong-ki) in *Reborn Rich*, as well as full child and teen roles in series such as *Racket Boys* and *Pachinko*.[2](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628) • [3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 2009, South Korea[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) |
| Debut | 2013, at age four, on the MBC Every 1 variety program *Today from Mom and Dad* (오늘부터 엄마아빠)[2](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628) |
| Breakthrough role | Kang Pil-gu, son of Oh Dong-baek (Gong Hyo-jin), in *When the Camellia Blooms* (KBS2, 2019)[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) |
| Signature child roles | Young Eugene Choi in *Mr. Sunshine* (2018); Lee Yong-tae in *Racket Boys* (2021); young Jin Do-jun in *Reborn Rich* (2022)[4](https://agetrail.com/people/kim-kang-hoon/) • [5](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/211941/kim-kang-hoon) • [6](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88) |
| Awards | Youth acting award at the 2019 KBS Drama Awards; male rookie award at the 2020 MBC Entertainment Awards at age 12[4](https://agetrail.com/people/kim-kang-hoon/) • [6](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88) |
| Recent work | Baek Noa in *Pachinko* Season 2 and Park Jin-seo in *Goodbye Earth* (both 2024); young Lee Chang-ho in the film *The Match* (2025)[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kim_kang_hoon) |
## Early life and debut
Kim Kang-hoon was born in 2009 in South Korea.[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) He first appeared on television in 2013 at age four, on the MBC Every 1 variety program *Today from Mom and Dad* (오늘부터 엄마아빠).[2](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628) He moved into acting in childhood, with early film credits including *[Lucid Dream](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucid-dream-2017-film)* (2017), in which he played Choi Min-woo, and *Because I Love You* (2017).[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29)
His first widely noticed television role came in 2018, when, at age nine, he played the young Eugene Choi, the child version of Lee Byung-hun's leading character, in the tvN drama *Mr. Sunshine*.[4](https://agetrail.com/people/kim-kang-hoon/) The drama is among the credits Korean media list when describing how his name became known.[2](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628)
## When the Camellia Blooms
**The breakthrough role.** In 2019 Kim played Kang Pil-gu, the eight-year-old son of single mother Oh Dong-baek (Gong Hyo-jin), in the KBS2 Wednesday-Thursday drama *When the Camellia Blooms*.[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) Pil-gu, who grows up early to protect his mother, became known to viewers by the nickname "Kkang Pil-gu" (깡필구).[8](https://www.tenasia.co.kr/article/2019112914314) The drama ended on November 21, 2019, with a peak viewership rating of 23.8 percent.[8](https://www.tenasia.co.kr/article/2019112914314)
Kim won the part at audition. Director Cha Young-hoon said he passed "overwhelmingly," explaining that Pil-gu needed to express a wide range of emotions and that Kim was the best fit for it; screenwriter Im Sang-choon, who judged the audition, also praised his reading.[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) Kim's mother, Yoo Si-jeong, said she had not expected him to pass, because the character was written as eight years old while Kim was a fourth-grader and tall for his age.[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005)
The role earned him the nickname "the tear button of *Camellia*" (동백꽃의 눈물버튼) in Korean press, after scenes in which Pil-gu cries, such as when his mother changes the front-door password or reacts to her remarriage, became among the drama's most discussed moments.[1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) In interviews during the run, Kim said that being told he acts well meant more to him than being called handsome or cute, because becoming a good actor is his goal.[9](https://v.daum.net/v/20191129060316476) • [8](https://www.tenasia.co.kr/article/2019112914314) He credited Gong Hyo-jin, who texted him as "son" and coached him on how to cry in scenes, for making the set comfortable.[8](https://www.tenasia.co.kr/article/2019112914314) Director Cha noted that his acting visibly improved across the series, singling out episode 18, in which Pil-gu returns to his mother after visiting his father, as an episode Kim "carried."[9](https://v.daum.net/v/20191129060316476)
For the role he received a youth acting award at the 2019 KBS Drama Awards.[4](https://agetrail.com/people/kim-kang-hoon/)
## Career from 2020
**Television.** In 2020 Kim appeared as the young King Cheoljong in *Mr. Queen*, the young Nam Do-san in *Start-Up*, the child Seo Ji-ho in *18 Again*, and the young king in Netflix's *Kingdom Season 2*, for which he recorded post-production dubbing after *Camellia* ended.[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) • [1](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005) In 2021 he played Jae-hoon, a young psychopath, in the tvN thriller *[Mouse](https://www.edgepedia.org/mouse-tv-series)*, and took his first full juvenile lead as Lee Yong-tae, the youngest member of the badminton club, in the SBS series *Racket Boys*.[6](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88) • [5](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/211941/kim-kang-hoon) Korean press grouped the *Racket Boys* cast, which also included Tang Jun-sang and [Choi Hyun-wook](https://www.edgepedia.org/choi-hyun-wook), among teenage actors taking leading roles in mainstream dramas.[10](https://web.donga.com/pdf/pdf_viewer.php?vcid=2021052610W1101)
In 2022 he played Park Dong-gu, the son of [Lee Seo-jin](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-seo-jin)'s title character, in TVING's *Dr. Park's Clinic*, and then the child Jin Do-jun in the JTBC series *Reborn Rich* (재벌집 막내아들), the childhood version of Song Joong-ki's protagonist.[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) • [6](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88) Although his appearance was limited to a single episode, Korean commentary credited him with a strong presence, and a JTBC program highlighted how convincingly he delivered a middle-aged man's speech patterns as a child actor.[6](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88) • [11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COnHix-PCGw) In the drama's second episode, the scene in which Lee Sung-min's patriarch [Jin Yang](https://www.edgepedia.org/jin-yang)-chul presses the young Do-jun was singled out by reviewers for raising the episode's tension.[12](https://m.wowtv.co.kr/NewsCenter/AMP/Read?articleId=A202212130218)
His work then moved to global streaming productions: Kwon Hyeok-su in TVING's *Death's Game* (2023–2024), Baek Noa in Apple TV+'s *Pachinko* Season 2, Park Jin-seo in Netflix's *[Goodbye Earth](https://www.edgepedia.org/goodbye-earth)*, and teen Yang Je-il in episode 16 of Netflix's *When Life Gives You Tangerines* (2025).[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29)
**Film.** His film credits include *Cheese in the Trap* (2018) as young Yoo Jung, *Exit* (2019) as Ji-ho, *Metamorphosis* (2019) as Woo-jong, *Miracle: Letters to the President* (2021) as young Joon-kyeong, and *Recalled* (2021).[3](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kim_kang_hoon) Director Seo Yu-min of *Recalled* said she had cast Kim and co-star [Yeom Hye-ran](https://www.edgepedia.org/yeom-hye-ran) before *When the Camellia Blooms* aired.[13](https://www.mk.co.kr/economy/view.php?no=377215&sc=50000001&year=2021) In *The Match* (승부, 2025), a film about the Go rivalry between Cho Hoon-hyun and [Lee Chang-ho](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-chang-ho), Kim plays the young Lee Chang-ho, the childhood version of [Yoo Ah-in](https://www.edgepedia.org/yoo-ah-in)'s character.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kim_kang_hoon) • [14](https://www.newsis.com/view/NISX20250311_0003094936)
## Public profile
Korean media have grouped Kim with contemporaries such as Tang Jun-sang and Kim Hwan-hee as teenage actors carrying lead-sized roles in mainstream dramas.[10](https://web.donga.com/pdf/pdf_viewer.php?vcid=2021052610W1101) His growth has itself become a news item: in January 2025 he posted a photo captioned "180," read as his height in centimeters, shortly after graduating middle school, and fan reactions noted how much he had matured since *When the Camellia Blooms*.[15](https://v.daum.net/v/20250116165422322) • [2](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628) A March 2025 report likewise described him, by then a high school student, as standing 180 cm tall.[14](https://www.newsis.com/view/NISX20250311_0003094936) Lee Byung-hun, his *Mr. Sunshine* counterpart, publicly introduced him as the friend who had played his younger self when they reunited at a screening for *The Match*.[16](https://www.sportsworldi.com/newsView/20250527505636)
## References
1. ["'동백꽃' 눈물버튼 필구 역 김강훈 '연기는 일상이죠'", Yonhap News, November 30, 2019](https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20191129143400005)
2. ["'공효진 아들' 김강훈, 벌써 이렇게 컸다", iMBC 연예, January 16, 2025](https://enews.imbc.com/News/RetrieveNewsInfo/444628)
3. [Kim Kang-Hoon (2009), AsianWiki filmography](https://asianwiki.com/Kim_Kang-Hoon_%282009%29)
4. [김강훈 연혁, AgeTrail](https://agetrail.com/people/kim-kang-hoon/)
5. [Kim Kang Hoon, TVmaze credits](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/211941/kim-kang-hoon)
6. [김강훈, Namu wiki](https://www.namu.moe/w/%EA%B9%80%EA%B0%95%ED%9B%88)
7. [Kim Kang-hoon, Rotten Tomatoes celebrity page](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/kim_kang_hoon)
8. ["'동백꽃 필 무렵' 김강훈 '강하늘 형처럼 착한 연기자 될래요'", Ten Asia, November 29, 2019](https://www.tenasia.co.kr/article/2019112914314)
9. ["'동백꽃' 김강훈 '필구 인생 캐릭터, 연기는 내 일상'", Star Today via Daum, November 29, 2019](https://v.daum.net/v/20191129060316476)
10. [스포츠동아, May 26, 2021 (탕준상·김강훈·김환희 '목표가 생겼다'), Dong-a Ilbo PDF](https://web.donga.com/pdf/pdf_viewer.php?vcid=2021052610W1101)
11. ["송중기 아역 김강훈 연기 모음, 재벌집 막내아들", JTBC Drama Voyage YouTube, November 2022](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COnHix-PCGw)
12. ["재벌집 막내아들 맹수 같은 연기 이성민", 한국경제TV, December 2022](https://m.wowtv.co.kr/NewsCenter/AMP/Read?articleId=A202212130218)
13. ["'내일의 기억' 서유민 감독 인터뷰", 매경ECONOMY, 2021](https://www.mk.co.kr/economy/view.php?no=377215&sc=50000001&year=2021)
14. ["'공효진 아들' 김강훈, 180㎝ 폭풍성장 근황", Newsis, March 11, 2025](https://www.newsis.com/view/NISX20250311_0003094936)
15. ["필구가 180cm라니…김강훈, 중학교 졸업하더니 '훤칠' 근황", Daum news, January 16, 2025](https://v.daum.net/v/20250116165422322)
16. ["'이병헌 아역' 김강훈 무대인사 못한 이유는?", Sports World, May 27, 2025](https://www.sportsworldi.com/newsView/20250527505636)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Child and youth screen performers › Child performers born 2001 to 2010 › Performers born 2006 to 2010*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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