A Closer Look at Ma Dongseok, Marvel Eternals’ Strongest Member

With the Marvel movie Eternals releasing soon, it’s time to put a spotlight on the man who will play Gilgamesh, the strongest Eternal. In one trailer, you see Gilgamesh knocking out a deviant with one punch—you’d need to have someone who is strong enough to fill that role. That someone is none other than Ma Dongseok, who also acts under his English name Don Lee.

Before he was an actor, Ma Dongseok lived in the U.S. and attended college in Ohio. He also worked as a personal trainer and trained successful mixed martial artists Kevin Randleman and Mark Coleman.

Movies

Even before his famous role in Train to Busan, Ma Dongseok was a popular actor in Korea. He started acting in 2005 in the movie Heaven’s Soldiers, an action-comedy that combines war, time travel, and history. He continued to build his career in supporting roles in films like The Unjust and The Good, The Bad, and the Weird. 

In 2013, Ma Dongseok starred as Lee Jangho in the movie Norigae, one of his first lead roles. The film discusses the darker side of the entertainment industry, and should probably come with a trigger warning as there is talk of suicide and sexual abuse. Lee Jangho is a washed-up reporter that works for an online publication. When he finds out about a director who will get away with a vicious crime, he puts his career on the line to bring the victim justice. Norigae was the beginning of Ma Dongseok becoming a household name.

 When Ma Dongseok flawlessly slid into his role of Yoon Sanghwa for Train to Busan in 2016, the movie’s success catapulted him into international fame. Sanghwa was a force to be reckoned with. A loving husband, he sacrificed himself to ensure that his family would survive. He played his role so well that many fans hoped to see him in the sequel.

 A fun fact about his upcoming role as Gilgamesh is that he didn’t have to audition for it. Ma Dongseok mentioned during an online conference that he received a lot of interest from Hollywood after Train to Busan, but never followed up on them due to his busy filming schedule in Korea. When Marvel called, however, he decided to spend more time thinking about it. After discussing it with Eternals director Chloe Zhao and producer Nate Moore, he decided to commit to the role.

He also stated that the role of Gilgamesh was tailored to his image, the characters he played in other movies, and his boxing type of action style. Not having to audition and having a role written with him in mind is a true testament to how many people adore his film work.

Dramas

Ma Dongseok is also a star on the small screen. His first role on television was a 2007 MBC drama called H.I.T., where he played a member of the H.I.T. team, Nam Seongshik. The show followed the team as they chased down a serial killer that was attacking their city. As he continued to work on his craft, Ma Dongseok began to play more prominent roles in dramas like OCN’s 2014 crime drama Bad Guys and their 2016 drama Squad 38.

In 2020, Ma Dongseok’s company Team Gorilla co-created the OCN drama Team Bulldog: Off Duty Investigation. Team Gorilla is a content planning and creation company that also worked on his 2015 movie Deep Trap.

You may notice that in most of his films and television roles, Ma Dongseok plays a detective, a gangster, or a reformed gangster. Even though the type of role is similar, Ma Dongseok uses his superior acting skills to make each part seem fresh and new. In fact, his skills have garnered several awards. He won "Best Supporting Actor" in 2013 for his role in The Neighbor. In 2017, he took home the award for "Best Supporting Actor" for Train to Busan. Ma Dongseok even won a Best Actor award for his role in The Outlaws in 2018.

Whether you’re a fan of his movies or his television roles, one thing is for sure: Ma Dongseok plays the hell out of every role he’s cast in, and he’s just getting started.