Heo Nam-jun (; born June 9, 1993) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his starring roles in My Royal Nemesis (2026) and A Hundred Memories (2025). He also starred as co-lead in When the Phone Rings (2024–2025) and had important supporting roles in When the Stars Gossip (2025), Your Honor (2024) and The Matchmakers (2023).
Career Prior to his debut, Heo studied in Sungkyunkwan University and completed a degree in acting.
Heo debuted in 2019 through the movie Like the First (2019). His first drama appearance was in OCN drama Missing: The Other Side (2020). Heo would go on to play supporting roles in dramas such as Snowdrop (2021); The Matchmakers (2023); Sweet Home Season 2 and 3 (2023–2024); and The Impossible Heir (2024), as well as movies like Night in Paradise (2020); Double Patty (2021); and I, the Executioner (2024). He was nominated for the Best New Actor Award by the 2024 APAN Star Awards for his performance in Sweet Home.
In 2024, Heo portrayed a cold-blooded gangster and murderer named Kim Sang-hyuk – the eldest son of Kim Myung-min's character Kim Kang-heon – in Your Honor, a role which garnered Heo increased public attention. During that same year, Heo portrayed Ji Sang-woo, a warm-hearted psychiatrist and YouTuber who specialized in unsolved cases in When the Phone Rings. The drama itself was a commercial success and received positive reviews. Heo was also awarded the Best New Actor Award from the 2024 MBC Drama Awards for his outstanding performance in the drama.
Heo was cast in tvN drama When the Stars Gossip (2025), which was first broadcast on January 4, 2025. Also in 2025, he plays the main role and the romantic interest in A Hundred Memories (2025) as Han Jae-pil, a university student and the handsome son of the president, nicknamed as "The Prince on a White Horse", due to his attractive looks and privileged background. This role marked a major milestone for Heo, allowing him to portray a romantic, multifaceted, and deeply melancholic character in a coming-of-age melodrama.
In the SBS TV romantic comedy, My Royal Nemesis (2026) , Heo played his very first leading role as Cha Se-gye, a ruthless and powerful conglomerate CEO often dubbed a "monster of capitalism", whose orderly life gets completely upended when he crosses paths with Shin Seo-ri (played by Lim Ji-yeon), a struggling modern actress whose body has been possessed by the soul of a notorious, fierce Joseon-era royal villainess. The show was a massive breakout hit on Netflix, and his performance has been widely praised for reviving the nostalgic, high-stakes charm of classic 2010s K-drama male leads. In 2026, Heo also made a special appearance in the television series Perfect Crown.
Heo has been officially confirmed as part of the main cast for the tvN production Whale Star: The Gyeongseong Mermaid, a historical period romance set in 1926 Seoul, based on Na Yoonhee's webtoon Whale Star: The Gyeongseong Mermaid. The series is currently filming and is scheduled to release in 2027.
Filmography
Film + Year Title Role Notes 2019 Like the First Manager Joo 2020 Night in Paradise President Yang's subordinate 2 2021 Double Patty Han Sang-wook 2024I, the Executioner Special Detective
Television series + Year Title Role Note 2020 Missing: The Other Side Go Bong-hwan Special appearance 2021 Snowdrop Oh Gwang-tae 2023 The Matchmakers Jeong Sun-gu 2023–2024 Sweet Home Kang Seok-chan Season 2–3 2024 The Impossible Heir Ha Myeong-jin Your Honor Kim Sang-hyeok 2024–2025 When the Phone Rings Ji Sang-woo 2025 When the Stars Gossip Lee Seung-joon A Hundred Memories Han Jae-pil 2026 Perfect Crown Kim Yeon-jun Special appearance My Royal Nemesis Cha Se-gye / Grand Prince Cheongheon (Yi Hyeon) 2027 Song Hae-su
Music video appearances Year Song Title Artist 2025 "Never Ending Story" IU
Awards and nominations + Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination Year Award ceremony Category Nominee / Work Result 2025 Baeksang Arts Awards Best New Actor – Broadcasting Your Honor 2026 Brand of the Year Awards Male Actor (Drama) categoryMy Royal Nemesis 2026 Korea Broadcasting AwardsBest Actor Award 2025 Korea Drama AwardsBest New ActorWhen the Phone Rings/When the Stars Gossip 2025 Blue Dragon Series Awards Best New Actor Your Honor 2024 MBC Drama Awards Best New Actor When the Phone Rings 2024 APAN Star Awards Best New Actor Sweet Home and Your Honor
References
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