Rick Yune
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
With his chiseled physique and handsome features, Rick Yune seemed a natural for working in front of the camera, but his original intention was to pursue a career on Wall Street. Born in Korea and raised in the Washington, DC, area, he was enrolled at Wharton when a modeling agent "discovered" him in the elevator of the financial firm at which he had a summer position. Impressed with Yune's charisma and natural good looks, the agent managed to land the novice model some impressive gigs. Yune became the first Asian-American to appear in campaigns for Versace and Ralph Lauren's Polo. One might have thought that acting would be the inevitable step, but instead the model accepted a position as a stock trader when he graduated in 1994.
Work on the Street, however, became somewhat stifling for Yune, who began to take acting classes as a creative outlet. Leaving his job in finance in 1997, he soon landed his first paying job: a guest role as a district attorney on the NBC daytime drama "Another World." Two years later, he landed the coveted role of Kazuo Miyamoto, a Japanese-American war hero who is accused of murder in the 1950s Pacific Northwest in "Snow Falling on Cedars" (1999). Although the film was gorgeously shot, it was languidly paced and rather dramatically inert, so Yune's fine performance wasn't fully appreciated. He fared slightly better as the leader of a Vietnamese gang in "The Fast and the Furious" (2001) before tackling another villainous character in "Die Another Day" (2002), the 20th James Bond feature. As Zao, a North Korean military man trying to transform his appearance into a white Westerner, Yune was a freakish sight with bleached-out skin, blue eyes and a face scarred and studded with real diamonds.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Producer (Feature Film)
Cast (Special)
Life Events
1972
Family emigrated from Korea to Washington D.C.
1992
Discovered by a modeling agent while interning at a Wall Street firm
1994
Worked in Wall Street as stock trader; took acting classes in spare time
1997
Appeared as a district attorney on "Another World" (NBC)
1999
Made feature film debut in "Snow Falling on Cedars" as a Japanese-American war hero accused of murder in post-WWII Pacific Northwest
2000
Made guest appearance on Lifetime series "Any Day Now"
2001
Co-starred as the leader of a Vietnamese gang in "The Fast and the Furious"
2002
Cast as villain Zao in "Die Another Day" opposite Pierce Brosnan's James Bond
2005
Guest starred on ABC spy drama "Alias"
2009
Appeared in action-thriller "Ninja Assassin"
2012
Cast opposite Russell Crowe and Lucy Liu in martial arts film "The Man with the Iron Fists," directed by RZA
2013
Played a North Korean terrorist in action thriller "Olympus Has Fallen"
Family
Companions
