He’s not only tall and handsome, but young, charismatic, competent and a hard worker: In currently airing SBS drama series “Business Proposal,” the character of Kang Tae-moo is the CEO of a food conglomerate willing to marry the next blind date that shows up so that his grandfather would stop pestering him.

What he didn’t anticipate is that he would become besotted with a woman who turns out to be one of his employees.

Actor Ahn Hyo-seop, who pulls off this physical perfection of Kang Tae-moo, had high bars to live up to. Adapted from the web novel and Webtoon published on Kakao, the description set forth by the original Webtoon depicted Tae-moo as a someone "who looked like a celebrity" and who was always at the center of the spotlight regardless of whether he intended it or not. However, he has no use for his exceptional good looks because he’s only interested in running his company — that is, until he meets Shin Ha-ri (played by Kim Se-jeong), one of his employees.

The Cinderella story that a dashing Prince Charming would fall head over heels over one particular woman was once every woman’s love fantasy, and one that became the central plot behind every rom-com series in the early 2000s. The narrative gradually transitioned over to more realistic love stories, but the theme seems to be coming back with the popularity of “Business Proposal.”

The series’ viewership has continuously been inching up as the episodes progressed, with Episode 8 garnering 10.8 percent. On Netflix, the series topped the platform’s Global Top 10 list of most-watched non-English shows from March 14 to 20 with 23.4 million hours streamed during the week.

The series highlights the romantic chemistry between Tae-moo and Ha-ri while also playing up the comedic elements of the protagonists’ relationships and their surroundings.

The 26-year-old actor debuted on the small screen through MBC drama series “Splash Splash Love” (2015), revolving around a high school student who time travels back to the Joseon era (1392-1910) and meets young Sejong the Great to assist him in reforming his country. Ahn portrayed Park Yeon, a real historical figure from the era known to have been a versatile government official, scholar, writer, astronomer and musician.

Ahn has steadily built up his career through playing a variety of small and big roles in television series “Happy Ending Once Again” (2016), and “All Goes Well” on MBC, and “Entertainer” (2016) and “Thirty But Seventeen” (2017) on SBS.

He took his first lead role in a drama series “Abyss” (2019) on tvN, starring alongside Park Bo-young. He portrays the handsome version of Cha Min, the heir to a cosmetics empire who was once ugly but is revived into an attractive body by supernatural beings using an “Abyss” following his death: The reincarnated bodies are representations of that person’s soul. Although the series ended with a poor viewership rate of 2 percent, the role became an important gateway for Ahn to show off his charms and his ability to lead the narrative.

Ahn continued to pick up lead roles across the small screen including SBS drama series “Lovers of the Red Sky” (2021) where he formed a maniac foundation of fans for his role as a blind astrologer Ha Ram. The series tells of a destined romance between Ha Ram and a female painter named Hong Cheon-gi (played by Kim Yoo-jung), set during the fictional Dan Dynasty when ghosts, demons and gods were involved in the human world.

“Business Proposal” airs on SBS every Monday and Tuesday at 10 p.m.


Ahn Hyo-seop




Date of birth: April 17, 1995
Zodiac sign: Aries
Birthplace: Seoul
Debut: December 2015 through MBC television series “Splash Splash Love”
Agency: Starhaus Entertainment

Ahn debuted as an actor through MBC drama series "Splash Splash Love" in 2015. Ahn was originally a K-pop trainee for nearly three years until he transitioned to acting after being picked up by his current agency, Starhaus Entertainment. He featured in a variety of minor roles in “Happy Ending Once Again” (2016) and “All Goes Well” on MBC, and “Entertainer” (2016) and “Thirty But Seventeen” (2017) on SBS until he starred in his first lead role in tvN's drama series "Abyss" (2019). He is currently starring in SBS office rom-com series "Business Proposal" on SBS as the handsome CEO Kang Tae-moo with his love interest Shin Ha-ri (played by Kim Se-jeong).

This information was confirmed by Starhaus Entertainment on March 28, 2022.


BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]