Daniel Henney

Daniel Henney
Henney in 2018
Born	Daniel Philip Henney (1979-11-28) November 28, 1979 (age 44) Carson City, Michigan, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Actor, model
Years active	2001–present
Agents	Echo Global Group (South Korea) DNA Model Management (U.S.)
Known for	Matt Simmons in Criminal Minds
Spouse	Ru Kumagai ​ (m. 2023)​

Daniel Philip Henney (born November 28, 1979) is an American actor. He first came into international prominence with his television debut as Dr. Henry Kim on the Korean drama My Lovely Sam Soon (2005).

He has gone on to star in films such as Seducing Mr. Perfect (2006), My Father (2007), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), Shanghai Calling (2012), The Last Stand (2013), One Night Surprise (2013), and Big Hero 6 (2014). In television, he has starred in the Korean Spring Waltz and as well as US television series Hawaii Five-0 and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders . He joined the regular cast of Criminal Minds for its 13th, 14th and 15th seasons. He stars as Lan Mandragoran in the 2021 television adaptation of The Wheel of Time .

Early life

Henney was born on November 28, 1979 ^[1] in Carson City, Michigan. ^[2] His mother Christine Henney, an American adoptee from Busan, South Korea, ^[3] was a nurse. ^[2] His father Philip Henney, an American of British descent, ^[4] worked in a factory. ^[2] He was a star basketball player at Carson City-Crystal High School and led the Eagles to the MHSAA Central region (CSAA) 2nd-place finish during his senior year in 1998. ^{[2] [5]}

Henney attended various colleges—including Albion College, Alma College and Elgin Community College—but never completed his college studies due to his burgeoning modeling career. He was credited on many online portals for a time to have had graduated with an economics degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. However that was proven to be false when an academic scandal in 2007 revealed that several South Korean social figures and celebrities, including Henney, Choi Soo-jong and Jang Mi-hee, had falsified academic records. ^[6]

Career

Henney moved to South Korea after having lived on and off in Hong Kong and Taiwan for four years. ^[7] While in New York in 2004, he did some work Off-Broadway while auditioning for television shows. ^[4]

Henney started modeling in the U.S. in 2001 and worked in France, Hong Kong, and many more while attending college. After his debut in South Korea with an advertisement for the Amore Pacific's cosmetic "Odyssey Sunrise", he became a spokesperson for commercials with Jun Ji-hyun for Olympus cameras and Kim Tae-hee for Daewoo Electronics's Klasse air conditioners. ^[8] Henney is signed with DNA Models in New York under the celebrity division. ^[9]

Henney in an LG Border Wireless LED TV advertisement, September 2009

While modeling in South Korea for Olympus in 2005, he was scouted by a talent manager who got Henney a role in the Korean drama My Lovely Sam Soon , aka My Name is Kim Sam Soon. ^[10] Henney, who did not speak any Korean, was cast as an Asian American physician Henry Kim ^[4] who struggled with the language. ^{[10] [11]} He played a supporting role in a love triangle between female lead Hee-jin (Jung Ryeo-won) and restaurateur Hyun Jin-heon (Hyun Bin). ^[4] The show was widely popular, with over half of South Korean households estimated to have watched the finale. ^{[4] [12]}

Henney then starred in another romantic drama Spring Waltz as Philip, a foreign music manager, in 2006. ^[4] He resumed his modeling career when he was featured in a Bean Pole campaign with Gwyneth Paltrow. ^[4]

Henney made his feature film debut in another romantic comedy Seducing Mr. Perfect (2006), which coincided with pop star Rain's debut in I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK (2006). ^[4] His second film, My Father, won multiple awards in South Korea and Henney became the first foreigner to sweep all the major cinema awards in the Best New Actor category.

He later learned the language and appeared on a few variety shows, such as Family Outing . ^[13]

His first American role was as Agent Zero in the film X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009). ^[11]

In the fall season of 2009, he played "Dr. David Lee" in the CBS television drama Three Rivers .

In 2010, Henney returned to South Korea television for KBS2's The Fugitive: Plan B , alongside Rain and actress Lee Na-young. ^[14]

Since 2012, Henney has appeared in several American TV series.

Henney starred as Special Agent Matt Simmons in the American television series Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders , a spin-off of Criminal Minds, for two seasons from 2016 to 2017. After the Beyond Borders's cancellation, it was announced in June 2017 that Henney's Matt Simmons would continue on Criminal Minds as a series regular for season 13. ^[15] He remained a part of the cast until the original series concluded in season 15. ^[16]

In September 2019, Henney was cast in the supporting role of Lan Mandragoran in Amazon Video's adaptation of Robert Jordan's fantasy epic The Wheel of Time . ^[17]

Personal life

On October 20, 2023, Henney married Ru Kumagai, a Japanese-American actress. The wedding ceremony was held in United States where only family members attended. ^{[18] [19]}

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2006	Seducing Mr. Perfect	Robin Heiden
2007	My Father	James Parker
2009	X-Men Origins: Wolverine	Agent Zero [20]
2012	Papa	Music producer	Cameo
	Shanghai Calling	Sam Chao
2013	The Last Stand	Agent Phil Hayes
	One Night Surprise	Bill
	The Spy: Undercover Operation	Ryan
2014	Big Hero 6	Tadashi Hamada	Voice role
2017	Mowgli	Gool	Voice role
2019	Money	Roy Lee	Cameo
2022	Confidential Assignment 2: International	Jack	[21] [22]
2023	Missing	Elijah Park	[23]
2024	Dog Days	Daniel	[24] [25]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2005	My Lovely Sam Soon	Dr. Henry Kim	Main role
	Hello Franceska	Elizabeth's first love	Guest star; 2 episodes
2006	Spring Waltz	Philip	Main role
2009	Three Rivers	Dr. David Lee	Main role; 13 episodes
2010	The Fugitive: Plan B	Kai	Main role
2012–2013	Hawaii Five-0	Michael Noshimuri	Guest star; 3 episodes [26]
2014	Revolution	Peter Garner	Guest star; 3 episodes
	NCIS: Los Angeles	NCIS Agent Paul Angelo	Episode: "Three Hearts"
2015–2020	Criminal Minds	Matthew "Matt" Simmons	Special guest (seasons 10 and 12) Main role (seasons 13–15) 49 episodes
2016–2017	Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders		Main role; 26 episodes
2016	The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show	Akashi Shiganosuke	Voice role; episode: "Sherman from A to Zzzz/Akashi Shiganosuke"
	Dear My Friends	Mark Smith	Cameo
2017–2019	Big Hero 6: The Series	Tadashi Hamada	Voice role; 6 episodes
2021–present	The Wheel of Time	Lan Mandragoran	Main role

Awards and nominations

Award	Year	Category	Works/Recipient	Ref.
MBC Entertainment Awards	2005	Best Dressed	Daniel Henney
MBC Drama Awards		Best New Actor	My Lovely Sam Soon	[27]
Dong Ah TV's Fashion Award	2006	Best Dressed	Daniel Henney	[28]
27th Korean Association of Film Critics Awards	2007	Best New Actor	My Father	[28]
28th Blue Dragon Film Awards
6th Korean Film Awards
3rd Premiere Rising Star Awards
45th Grand Bell Awards	2008			[29]
31st Golden Cinematography Awards
16th Chunsa Film Art Awards				[28]
People's Choice Award	2010	Nomination for Favorite On-Screen Team	X-Men Origins: Wolverine	[30]
Newport Beach Film Festival	2012	Outstanding Achievement in Acting	Shanghai Calling	[28]
Shanghai International Film Festival		Best New Actor
Blue Dragon Film Awards	2022	Popular Star Award	Confidential Assignment 2: International	[31]

See also

• Hines Ward — NFL player of African and Korean descent who brought interest in the sport to South Korea
• Sean Richard Dulake — American actor of Korean and British descent who acted in Korean dramas

References

1. "TODAY IN HISTORY: November 28, 2019". Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
2. Schreur, Brandon (February 23, 2020). "Hollywood to hometown". thedailynews.cc. Archived from the original on February 24, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
3. "Daniel Henney's Mother Travels Back to Her Roots". Chosun Ilbo . August 22, 2005. Archived from the original on June 18, 2011. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
4. Wallace, Bruce (June 17, 2007). "A most unlikely Seoul sensation". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
5. "Prep Basketball: Carson City". Lansing State Journal . January 10, 1998. p. 18.
6. Lee, Hyo-won (September 2, 2007). "Actor Daniel Henney Caught in Academic Record Scandal '". Newszone. The Korea Times. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
7. Chan, Yuan-Kwan (July 29, 2012). "An interview with Daniel Henney: Comedy, career and Korea". Meniscus Magazine. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
8. 다니엘 헤니 Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine . 10asia.co.kr. Retrieved on April 27, 2014.
9. DNA Models Archived April 22, 2012, at the Wayback Machine . DNA Models. Retrieved on April 27, 2014.
10. Ito, Robert (February 11, 2007). "Stuck in Asia, Dreaming of Hollywood". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved May 7, 2021.
11. Woo, Michelle (October 19, 2009). "Daniel Henney -- Seoul Man". CNN International . Archived from the original on January 10, 2015.
12. "Who the Hell is Daniel Henney?". UCLA International Institute. March 7, 2008. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
13. (in Korean) 다니엘 헤니 "모델은 순간예술, 배우는 인생을 연기". News.naver.com (July 4, 2005). Retrieved on April 27, 2014.
14. Daniel Henney hops aboard "Domangja" cast Archived August 21, 2010, at the Wayback Machine .Asiae June 21, 2010 Retrieved June 24, 2010.
15. Andreeva, Nellie (June 20, 2017). "'Criminal Minds': Daniel Henney Of 'Beyond Borders' Joins Mothership Series". Deadline. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
16. Ramos, Dino-Ray (February 20, 2020). "'Criminal Minds' Series Finale: The BAU Gang Hunts Down Its Final Psychopath Before Giving A Tearful Goodbye". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on February 20, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
17. White, Peter (September 4, 2019). "'The Wheel Of Time': 'Criminal Minds' Star Daniel Henney Joins Amazon's Epic Fantasy Drama". Deadline Hollywood . Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
18. Hyeon, Ye-seul (October 20, 2023). "다니엘 헤니, 14살 연하 연인과 결혼 발표…5년전 열애설 상대" [Daniel Henney announces marriage to girlfriend 14 years his junior...passionate love interest from 5 years ago]. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved October 21, 2023– via Naver.
19. "My Lovely Sam Soon star Daniel Henney announces marriage to long-time love Ru Kumagai". The Times of India. October 20, 2023. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
20. Siegel, Tatiana (February 21, 2008). "Dominic Monaghan joins 'Wolverine'". Variety.
21. Kwak Hyun-soo (January 22, 2021). "공조2' 현빈·유해진→다니엘 헤니 캐스팅 [공식]". sports.donga (in Korean). Retrieved January 22, 2021.
22. Kim Ji-hye (August 1, 2022). "공조2', 현빈X유해진에 다니엘 헤니도 가세…9월 개봉 확정" [Cooperation 2', Hyun Bin X Yoo Hae-jin joins Daniel Henney... September release confirmed] (in Korean). SBS Entertainment News. Retrieved August 1, 2022– via Naver.
23. Namkyung Lee (April 8, 2021). "다니엘헤니 '서치2' 합류…올 봄 촬영 예정". MBN Star (in Korean). Retrieved April 9, 2021.
24. Kim Na-ra (April 28, 2022). "도그데이즈', 크랭크업…윤여정 "웃음+공감 있는 영화" [공식]" [Dog Days', crank up... Yoon Yeo-jeong "Laughter + Sympathetic Movie" [Official]] (in Korean). My Daily. Retrieved April 28, 2022– via Naver.
25. Jo Ji-young (January 2, 2024). "[공식] 윤여정X유해진 '도그데이즈' 2월 7일 개봉 확정..설날 극장 정조준". Sports Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved January 2, 2024.
26. Keck, William (October 2, 2012). "Hawaii Five-0 Brings on Alex O'Loughlin's Old CBS Co-Star". TV Guide.
27. 헤니 다니엘 헤니는 역시 최고 인기남! 여성들의 시샘과 질투 쏟아졌다.Newsen December 30, 2005 Retrieved June 24, 2010.
28. Biography. Hermosa USA (January 31, 2014). Retrieved on April 27, 2014.
29. 헤니 (포토엔)신인남우상 다니엘 헤니, 오 마이 갓! .Newsen June 27, 2010 Retrieved June 24, 2010.
30. 헤니 (포토엔)휴잭맨-다니엘 헤니, 배우로 처음 청계광장에 핸드프린팅 남겨요.Newsen April 10, 2010 Retrieved June 24, 2010.
31. Kim Mi-hwa (November 25, 2022). "고경표·이지은·임윤아·다니엘 헤니, 인기스타상 수상 [청룡영화상]" [Go Kyung-pyo, Lee Ji-eun, Lim Yoon-a, and Daniel Henney won the Popular Star Award [Blue Dragon Film Awards]] (in Korean). MT Star News. Retrieved November 25, 2022– via Naver.

External links

• Daniel Henney on DNA Model Management's website
• Daniel Henney at IMDb