Best Lee Seo-jin K-Dramas to watch right now

By Lori Meek
Published: November 17, 2022 (Last updated: December 16, 2023)
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We discuss the best Lee Seo-jin K-Dramas to watch and do not contain any spoilers. Check out these brilliant recommendations. 

Actor Lee Seo-jin rose to prominence in the past two decades thanks to his numerous appearances in K-Dramas, movies, and TV shows. A household name in South Korea, the star is best known for hosting reality TV shows like Three Meals a Day and Grandpa Over Flowers

Here, we’ve put together a list of the best K-Dramas Lee Seo-jin starred in based on ratings from MyDramaList for your binge-ing pleasure. 

Best Lee Seo-jin K-dramas you must watch

Marriage Contract (2016)

Lee Seo-jin in this highly-rated romantic drama. The series is 16 episodes long. 

Rating: 8.0

Official synopsis:

After being diagnosed with a possibly terminal brain tumor, Kang Hye Soo, a desperate single mother, agrees to be a liver donor for her new boss’ mother. In exchange, she will receive a significant sum of money that she hopes to leave to her daughter. In order to pass the screening process, they must legally wed and convince the hospital that they’ve been in a long-term relationship. What they foolishly thought would be a quiet transaction between the two of them, quickly becomes more complicated as more people get involved, including her 7-year-old daughter. Money isn’t the only thing required for happiness, and love makes life worth living.


Her House (2001)

Lee Seo-jin features in this drama in a supportive role as Lee Joon Hee.

Rating: 8.0

Official synopsis:

This drama is about the unconventional love between Tae Ju, a construction supervisor, and Young Wook, a building renovator. Tae Ju is a traditional, elder son of a poor family. Young Wook is an independent, career-minded woman from a rich family. They love each other, but marriage appears out of the question due to their conflicting backgrounds and ambitions.

Joon Hee, a repairman, and Heung Nam, a mechanic, share a room that they rent from the Jang family. Young Chae, 

Young Wook’s spoiled cousin falls hard for Joon Hee. Heung Nam searches for his love.


Yi San (2007)

Yi San is a period K-Drama that ran for 77 episodes between 2007 and 2008, with Lee Seo-jin in the main role. 

Rating: 8.0

Official synopsis:

This drama details the life of King Jeong Jo, Joseon’s 22nd monarch, who is remembered in Korean history as one of Korea’s greatest kings, one who loved the people and reigned for the commoner


Trap (2019)

Lee Seo-jin plays the main role of Kang Woo Hyun in this 7 episode drama. 

Rating: 7.8

Official synopsis:

Kang Woo Hyun is a respected anchor at a broadcasting station. He has a lovely family and he is asked to enter the political field. His life seems perfect. One day, he goes on a trip with his family and a tragic situation occurs. Meanwhile, Go Dong Kook is a veteran detective. He takes Kang Woo Hyun’s case and investigates.


Dr. Park’s Clinic (2022)

Rating: 7.7

Official synopsis:

Dr. Park Won Jang recently opened his own internal medicine clinic. His goal is to become acknowledged as a skilled physician and make a lot of money in the process. He thought that if he opened his own clinic, the money would soon roll in. Reality is a little different for Park Won Jang. His clinic receives very few patients and it is teetering on insolvency. He struggles to save his clinic. Making things worse, he also suffers from hair loss. Meanwhile, Park Won Jang is married to Sa Mo Rim. His wife trusts the advice of medical TV programs more than her husband.


Times (2021)

Rating: 7.7

Official synopsis:

A passionate reporter with exceptional talent, Lee Jin Woo has dedicated his entire career to pursuing nothing but the truth. Committed to telling the whole story, Jin Woo will do whatever it takes to find and report the hard facts. A hard-working man with a nose for news, Jin Woo’s life takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious phone call connects him with Seo Jung In, a woman who claims to be living five years in the future.

A hard-nosed reporter with a burning passion for her work, Seo Jung In has a knack for finding the best stories. But sometimes digging deep uncovers some nasty truths. Following a string of leads, Jung In uncovers a dark plot that could shake the very foundations of the country. With the life of her father, South Korea’s President, Seo Ki Tae on the line, Jung In finds herself in a deadly race against time. But she’s not in this race alone. Mysteriously connected by phone to Lee Jin Woo, the two agree to join forces to save the president.

Living and working in two completely different times, Jin Woo and Jung In set out on a dangerous quest for the truth. But will they be able to stop the villainous masterminds plotting this heinous crime before it’s too late?


Gye Baek (2011)

Lee Seo-jin stars as the titular character in this 36-episode period drama. 

Rating: 7.6

Official synopsis:

Gye Baek was born as the son of Mu Jin, a student and guard of Baekje’s King Mu, but because of his father being falsely accused, he grew up as a commoner in the market streets.There, he meets a merchant named Eun Go and he falls in love with her. One day, after getting caught up fighting in the mountains, Gye Baek is lowered to become a war slave and becomes a prisoner of war for Silla. At Silla, he reunites with Uija who came as an envoy and learns there is a great secret about his father’s death. Though King Uija and Gye Baek have a strong friendship, they both have feelings for Eun Go at the same time. Gye Baek’s loyalty to Baekje and King Uija completes a history page. What will the situation be in the relationship of Uija and Gye Baek with Eun Go in between? 


Damo (2003)

Damo is a 2003 K-Drama that ran for 14 episodes with Lee Seo-jin in the main role. 

Rating: 7.7

Official synopsis:

This series and our heroine took place in the Joseon Dynasty. Chae Ok was separated from her brother when her father, a nobleman, was accused of treason. She manages to make her way and becomes a Damo, a low ranked woman detective. Skilled in swordplay, she must not only fight crime but face inequality for her status in society. 

Her brother grew up to be a rebel leader fighting against social injustice, and both brother and sister faced off against each other on the opposite side of the law.


Soul (2009)

This supernatural K-Drama from 2009 is 10 episodes long and stars Lee Seo-jin as the main character, Shin Ryu.

Rating: 7.6

Official synopsis:

Ha Na and Doo Na were twin sisters who were very close to each other until Doo Na died terribly. One day, the usually bright and energetic Ha Na finds herself changing. She has superhuman strength and can do things that nobody can. Ha Na realizes that Doo Na’s spirit has inhabited her body. Shin Ryu, a criminal psychoanalyst, uses Ha Na’s powers to kill people that cannot be punished by the law.


Wonderful Days (2014)

Wonderful Days ran for 50 episodes back in 2014 with Lee Seo-jin in the starring role of Kang Dong Suk.

Rating: 7.5

Official synopsis:

Dong Suk grew up as a smart young boy, but came from a poor family background. He is now a successful prosecutor and comes back to his hometown for the first time in 14 years. There, he happens to meet his first love Hae Won and falls in love with her all over again.  


Lovers (2006)

Lovers aired for 20 episodes in 2006 with See Seo-jin cast in the main role of Ha Kang Jae. 

Rating: 7.5

Official synopsis:

Kang Jae is a wealthy businessman and gangster and Mi Joo is a plastic surgeon. These two meet after Mi Joo mistakes Kang Jae as being her sleazy brother-in-law. Kang Jae just happens to be the boyfriend of Mi Joo’s pregnant neighbour, Yoo Jin. Sae Yeon meets Mi Joo and falls in love with her feisty attitude. Kang Jae works for the father of Sae Yeon who is a gangster. Mi Joo and Kang Jae fall in love.


Since We Met (2002)

In this romantic K-Drama, Lee Seo-jin was cast in the main role of Kang Min Suk. The series ran for 48 episodes between April and October 2002. 

Rating: 7.4

Official synopsis:

Lee Ok Hwa, a good-spirited “yun-byun” (Korean person living in China) is from China. Ryu Shi Won is an entertainment reporter that happens to find himself in trouble when he’s in China. He is played around with by kkang ppaes, but Lee Ok Hwa saves him when she finds out one of the kkang ppaes is her own brother. When Ok Hwa comes to Korea to work under Ryu Shi Won’s uncle, Ryu Shi Won tries to pretend like he never knew Ok Hwa, which doesn’t work out. They always get in fusses and fights, but those are what bring them closer together. On the other hand, Ok Hwa lives with her boss’s sister and her two children. The twins, Su Jin and Mi Jin are bright kids that grew up very well despite the difficult financial problems. Mi Jin is still in college, and secretly loves Lee Suh Jin. She coincidentally works for Lee Suh Jin’s outrageous grandmother, and while working there becomes closer to Lee Suh Jin. The only problem is that Mi Jin’s cousin (a), Hae Won likes Lee Suh Jin too. The struggles and love that bond a family together is beautifully portrayed in this drama.


Phoenix (2004)

This highly-rated K-Drama aired for 26 episodes in 2004 and stars Lee Seo-jin. 

Rating: 7.3

Official synopsis:

Love is timing. Love needs just the “right time”. It’s not because you loved him or her less that you parted. Heaven brings you your soul mate when the time is just “right”. Phoenix shows you this heaven’s work.

There is a young couple who desperately fell in love but who couldn’t be together because the time wasn’t just right for them. Years pass by and these two meet again. And the trick of fortune switches their situation and environments. A daughter of a millionaire (Lee Eun Joo) has now become a helper suffering from the grim realities of life. On the other hand, an orphan self-supporting student (Lee Seo Jin) is now an accomplished wealthy businessman. 

Now these two people are looking at the world with different eyes. The childlike girl has finally learned the harshness of the world and the guy with a once twisted mind has learned to enjoy the latitude of mind. In the end, these two start to understand each other, thus arriving at the “right time”.


Shoot For The Stars (2002)

In this K-Drama from the early 2000s, Lee Seo-jin stars in the main role of Do Hyun.

Rating: 7.3

Official synopsis:

Sung Tae is an orphan. He made up his mind to become a movie star and find his foster parents and brother who made him feel like he was a part of a family. It is a long, hard road to become an actor. Adding to these problems, he has a hard time reading scripts because he has dyslexia. Although frustrated at times, he has a warm-hearted manager Han So Ra. She helps him become a great star. Her ceaseless efforts pave the way for his success as a promising actor.


The Best Future (2014)

This K-Drama is five-episodes long and Lee Seo-jin features in a supportive role. 

Rating: 6.8

Official synopsis:

Choi Go is a young aspiring idol working a part-time job, who can be a bit of a coward. Mi Rae, recently hired by a company in the talent development field. The two struggle attempting to start different careers, meet by chance and start to share the same house, but because of their different schedules (one works during day, the other during night), they communicate leaving messages on a board.


Freeze (2006)

Lee Seo-jin stars in this supernatural drama from 2006. 

Rating: 6.6

Official synopsis: 

This is a story involving vampires. It goes back to 350+ years when Baek Jung Won saved the vampire I Wha from being burned at the stake in his village. He fell off the cliff while they escaped and I Wha had to give him her blood in order to save him from dying and thus Baek Jung Won was transformed into a vampire also.

In modern-day Seoul, they opened a bar. One day, Baek Jung Won received a letter from his former lover who was dying and entrusted him to look after her daughter, Jang Ji Yun. Baek Jung Won fell in love with this woman some 20 years ago but broke up without telling her the truth about himself. After her mother’s funeral, Jang Ji Yun found a picture that her mother treasured a lot with someone looking like Baek Jung Won in it and she set out to look for him. When she finally found him, she thought he was the son of her mother’s long lost lover as Baek Jung Won’s appearance didn’t change as a vampire. They start to fall in love and I have difficulty dealing with that. At the same time, a serial killer who sucks blood from the victims is on the loose.


And that’s our list of the best Lee Seo-jin K-Dramas to watch right now. Do you have any other recommendations for Korean Drama series starring Lee Seo-jin? Let us know!

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