Won Bin made his acting debut in 1997 with a supporting role in the KBS2 series Propose. His career breakthrough came in 2000 when he appeared in the KBS2 dramas Tough Guy’s Love and Autumn Fairy Tale. The latter became a local and international hit, launching him and his co-stars Song Hye-gyo and Song Seung-heon into Hallyu stardom. The drama also won him Best New Actor at the 37th Baeksang Arts Awards. In 2001, he starred in director Jang Jin’s film Guns & Talks, which scored him two Best New Actor nominations. In 2004, he acted alongside Jang Dong-gun in the war drama movie Taegukgi, which gave him the Best New Actor trophies at the 12th Chunsa Film Art Awards and the 27th Golden Cinematography Awards. In 2009, he portrayed Kim Hye-ja’s intellectually disabled son in director Bong Joon-ho’s critically acclaimed thriller film Mother. In 2010, he led the blockbuster action thriller movie The Man From Nowhere, which earned him numerous Best Actor awards.

Won Bin began his mandatory military service in November 2005 as a border guard at the Korean Demilitarized Zone. He was discharged early in June 2006 due to an ACL injury, which required a surgery. In May 2015, he married actress Lee Na-young. They welcomed their first son in December 2015.