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On May 21, 2025, MBC reported that the 23rd Director's Cut Awards announced this year's winner. The award ceremony, organized by the Director's Guild of Korea (DGK), was held on May 20, 2025, at 7 pm local time. This year, the event was hosted by directors Kim Cho-hee and Bong Man-dae.
The Director Cut Awards are known for being the only event where the nominees and winners are chosen through the votes from Korean directors.
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This year, the Director's Cut Awards drew attention ever since the nominations for each category were announced. Some of the nominees were Robert Pattinson for Mickey 17 in the Best Actor category, Yooh Ah-in and Lee Byung-hun for The Match, Yoon Joo-sang for The Seagulls of the Morning Sea, and Choi Min-sik for Exhuma.
Few netizens reacted strongly to the inclusion of Yoo Ah-in, who was in prison for alleged drug use, as well as the English actor Robert Pattinson, as reported by the same publication. The organizing committee explained its choices in a statement, as reported by MBC on May 21, 2025.
"It is only the result of a vote on all the films that all Korean directors have seen, and it does not include social evaluation," they stated, as translated from Korean.
Despite the backlash, the event proceeded without any further issues.
The 23rd Director's Cut Awards were attended by 150 directors, including DGK representative Min Kyu-dong and Yoon Je-kyun, as well as executive committee members Lee Kyu-man and Choi Dong-hoon. Directors Kang Yoon-sung, Kim Sung-soo, Park Chan-wook, Lee Joon-ik, and Jung Joo-ri were also in attendance.
More about the winners of the 23rd Director's Cut Awards
The Director's Cut Awards commenced with greetings from members of the executive committee, Choi Dong-hoon and Lee Kyu-man. This was followed by opening remarks from Kim Cho-hee and Bong Man-dae as reported by OSEN on May 21, 2025.
Kim Yo-han won the Best New Actor award for his role as Roh Bin in A Killer Paradox. He accepted the award and recalled the time he received the call for the role after a two-month wait. He also expressed his gratitude and respect for director Lee Chang-hee.
The New Female Actor Award was presented to Moon Guen-young for her performance as a teacher in Hellbound 2. The actress could not attend the 23rd Director's Cut Awards, but her acceptance speech was read by last year's winners and this year's presenter, Lee Han-byeol.
Lee Hee-jun won Best Male Actor for his role as Song Chon in A Killer Paradox. He thanked his director for having faith in him. The Best Female Actor award was presented to Bae Doo-na for her performance in Family Matters. Bae Doo-na shared her acceptance speech via video, where she thanked her directors for casting her in the drama series.
The Best Actor in film was awarded to Lee Byung-hun for his portrayal of Cho Hun-hyun in The Match. The actor expressed his happiness and stated that the honour came from the collaborative efforts of all the actors who brought their unique charm to their roles.
The Best Actress in film was awarded to Kim Go-eun for her portrayal of Lee Hwa-rim in the Exhuma. Although the actress was unable to attend the event, she expressed her gratitude via video.
Full list of the winners of the 23rd Director's Cut Awards
- Best Director (Film): Jang Jae-hyun for Exhuma
- Best Director (Series): Lee Chang-hee for A Killer Paradox
- Best New Director (Film): Nam Dong-hyeop for Handsome Guys
- Best Vision (Film): Oh Jung-min for House of the Seasons
- Best Screenplay (Film): Jang Jae-hyun for Exhuma
- Best Actor (Film): Lee Byung-hun for The Match
- Best Actress (Film): Kim Go-eun for Exhuma
- Best Actor (Series): Lee Hee-joon for A Killer Paradox
- Best Actress (Series): Bae Doo-na for Family Matters
- Best New Actor (Film): Lee Do-hyun for Exhuma
- Best New Actress (Film): Kim Geum-soon for Star Of Ulsan
- Best New Actor (Series): Kim Yo-han for A Killer Paradox
- Best New Actress (Series): Moon Geun-young for Hellbound 2
In other news, Exhuma, which won four awards at the event, can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.
