Happy birthday to these October babies: BTS Jimin, Aaron Kwok, Seo Kang-joon

Sean Xiao, or more commonly known as Xiao Zhan, had a meteoric rise to the top. His career beginnings started in 2015 after he had participated in an idol training show X-Fire and later debuted as an idol singer with group X-Nine. He starred in a couple of shows but it wasn’t until 2019 where his popularity reached new peaks. It first began with The Untamed and Jade Dynasty later that year that firmly cemented his place as one of China’s top stars. Earlier in April, Xiao, who is turning 29, had released the single Light Spot that went on to sell over 41 million copies.

Off-screen, not much is known about Xiao Zhan’s personal life. However, the pretty face has been riddled with controversies as his avid fans have gotten too avid that it caught the ire of other Chinese netizens.

Despite having debuted in The Suspicious Housekeeper (2013), it wasn’t until the success of Cheese In The Trap (2016), starring alongside Park Hae-jin and Kim Go-eun, that Seo Kang-joon’s popularity skyrocketed. Since then, Seo, 27, has steadily climbed the ranks with productions such as Entourage (2016), Watcher (2019) and When the Weather Is Fine (2020) where he acted opposite beloved actress Park Min-young.

Seo is also part of an actor idol group named 5urprise since 2013 along with four other aspiring actors and has even released music. Outside his professional life, not much is known about this young looker. He does command an impressive 3.6 million follower on Instagram though.

The scruffy Hugh Jackman, 52, might be most famously known for his role as a tough, no-nonsense mutant superhero Wolverine in the X-men series. So it might be easy to forget that the boyish Australian actor is a really a triple threat – besides acting, Jackman is a prolific singer and dancer too. Don’t believe it? Just have a watch at Les Misérables (2012) and The Greatest Showman (2017). Jackman also has extensive experience on the silver screen and in theatre with notable roles in The Prestige (2006), Australia (2008) and Eddie the Eagle (2016).

Outside the spotlight, Jackman is an avid philanthropist, supporting causes including microcredit and eradicating HIV and poverty. He is also married to Australian actress-producer Deborra-Lee Furness, with whom he has adopted two children, after meeting on the set of the 1995 Australian TV show Correlli. PS: Jackman is a huge proponent of using sunscreen after being afflicted with basal-cell carcinoma (a type of skin cancer) twice.

With a too-cute baby face that somehow straddles both boyishness and manliness, you might mistakenly brush off Jimin as just another pretty face. However, the South Korean singer-songwriter-dancer is a part of one of the current biggest K-pop groups at the moment, BTS. For his work with BTS, Jimin and his fellow members were awarded the fifth-class Hwagwan Order of Cultural Merit in 2018 as a testament to their cultural impact. At the end of 2018, Jimin debuted as a solo artist with the song “Promise” and most recently, “Filter” that is part of BTS’ 2020 album Map of the Soul: 7.

At the 75th United Nations General Assembly conducted at the end of September, Jimin and his fellow bandmates gave an encouraging speech to everyone impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. This was the second time BTS has spoken at a UN General Assembly.

As one of the most esteemed film stars from Hong Kong, it can be difficult to imagine Louis Koo to have his career roots in television. Turning the big 5-0 and not looking anywhere near that number, Koo has starred in a plethora of shows ranging from A Step into the Past (2001) to Paradox (2017). In addition, Koo is also a film producer and a low-profile philanthropist while being a UNICEF ambassador since 2007.

While the actor is still single, he has been romantically linked to fellow actor Jessica Hsuan. In October last year, Koo announced that he was “engaged”, prompting fans to reignite rumours of the two. It was later quashed by his manager, who clarified that he was referring to his duet with Kay titled “One Man, One Woman, and a Bathroom”. He plays Kay’s husband in the music video.

Since debuting in a Canadian teen soap opera Hillside in 1991, Ryan Reynolds, 44, has become an internationally recognisable name with iconic roles in shows such as The Proposal (2009) opposite Sandra Bullock, anti-hero superhero Deadpool (2016/18) and Detective Pikachu (2019). The handsome man, who looks younger than his age reveals, continues to enjoy success on the screen, with multiple productions slated to be released in the coming years.

In his private life, Reynolds was previously married to Scarlett Johansson (also known as Black Widow) and is currently blissfully married to Blake Lively after they had met on Green Lantern (2011). The two regularly gives us the loving feels as they share anecdotes and inside jokes to the public. Reynolds also has three daughters – James, Inez and Betty – with the Gossip Girl star.

For those who lived through the glorious heydays of Cantopop in the 1990s, Aaron Kwok is likely someone you’ve fangirled extensively over. Known as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Cantopop alongside Jacky Cheung, Andy Lau and Leon Lai, Kwok was recognised for his dancing prowess. Take, for example, the Para Para Sakura (2001) dance that went viral way before the Internet gained a foothold. Beyond his celebrated music career, Kwok is also an established actor with Divergence (2005), Love for Life (2011) and Port of Call (2016).

Off-stage, Kwok is married to Chinese model Moka Fang and they have two daughters, Chantelle and Charlotte, the latter of which was born last year. Finally, although Kwok is turning 55, he could seriously pass off as a decade or more younger. His beauty secret? Click here to find out what he uses to maintain his dashing good looks.

With an extensive oeuvre including productions such as Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd (1997-2007), Holland V (2003) and The Little Nyonya (2008), many of us grew up watching Pierre Png. The hardworking actor, who turns 47 this year, has flown relatively under the radar throughout his career. However, people really sat up and took notice of Png after he had scored the role of Michael Teo in the Hollywood production of Crazy Rich Asians (2018). Plus, who can forget the steamy shower scene where Png flaunted his taunt abs?

Off-screen, Png is happily married to former actress Andrea de Cruz since 2003. The couple had made headlines for Png’s romantic gesture where he donated half of his liver in 2002 to De Cruz after hers had failed due to the consumption of Slim 10 dieting pills. And they say the perfect man didn’t exist.

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