Netflix’s The Whirlwind is an intense political K-drama that dives deep into the world of power and corruption. The political drama revolves around the fierce battle between Prime Minister Park Dong-ho and Deputy Prime Minister Jeong Su-jin, where each one tries to become president after the assassination of the corrupt former president, Jang Il-joon. Through this cast and character guide, you’ll get to know the characters, their motives, and their journeys in The Whirlwind.
Spoilers Ahead
Park Dong-ho
Sol Kyung-gu’s portrayal of Park Dong-ho in the series showed me a character who was fiercely determined to clean up corruption and injustice in South Korea. Park Dong-ho’s journey wasn’t just about personal gain—it was about a mission to make the country’s political system fair and transparent. He wanted South Korea to be a place where leaders served honestly and without selfish motives. His methods were bold and sometimes controversial, but he believed they were necessary. How did he do it all? Well, he wasn’t afraid to uncover scandals involving powerful figures. He dug into embezzlement schemes, misuse of public funds, and ties between politicians and corporate interests. He directly confronted those in positions of authority, including President Jang Il-joon and Deputy Prime Minister Jeong Su-jin. Park Dong-ho used his legal background and strategic thinking to get through legal loopholes and expose the truth, often risking his own safety and reputation in the process. So much so that he attempted to assassinate President Jang Il-Joon in a controversial move to save the country from further corruption when he found out how the former president helped his son embezzle PE funds for personal purposes. Ultimately, Sadly, his quest for justice ended tragically. His choice to confront Jeong Su-jin and give up his life to stop her from becoming the next president of South Korea showed how far he was willing to go for the greater good. Even if it meant taking his own life and blaming her for it, he did it to prevent her from gaining power. So I admire his courage and determination. Even after he passed away, Park Dong-ho’s influence on South Korea was deep. It made us think about how much real change costs and the complexities of political morality.
Jeong Su-jin
Through Kim Hee-ae’s portrayal of Jeong Su-jin in The Whirlwind, we saw a character who was the perfect arch-nemesis to Park Dong-ho. While Park’s mission was to rid Korea of corruption, Jeong Su-jin was all about gaining and using power to keep Park in check. She couldn’t let him expose all the shady dealings she had been involved in for years. But here’s the twist—Jeong Su-jin wasn’t just a villain. She was driven by a desperate need to protect her husband, Han Min-ho, who was deeply involved in embezzlement and illegal campaign funding backed by the Daejin Group. Jeong Su-jin knew about all the corruption, including the president’s misuse of PE funds for his son, but she stayed silent. She wanted to protect those close to her, even if it meant risking everything. She even allowed prosecutor Seo Gi-tae to die by suicide to keep their secrets safe. Later, she took the drastic step of killing President Jang Il-Joon because she realized his time was up and she needed to secure her power before Park exposed her. She even planted a recording device while working as Park’s campaign manager to keep an eye on him. But she soon realized she could never truly win because Park was always one step ahead of her. His relentless investigation into financial corruption drove her husband to suicide, as Han Min-ho couldn’t bear the thought of their secrets being exposed. Jeong Su-jin was ambitious, cunning, and willing to do whatever it took to reach the top. Her methods were ruthless. She was manipulative, made false promises, and used people to her advantage. However, she was never the right leader for South Korea because she was too corrupt, and Park Dong-ho couldn’t allow her to take power. That’s why he committed suicide and made it look like Jeong Su-jin was to blame, to ensure she would never become president. We don’t know what will happen to her next. Maybe she’ll end up in jail, the very place she feared all her life. After all, a mere thirty years ago, when she was young and fighting for the Korean Liberal Party, she was thrown in jail and tortured by right-wing extremists. But one thing is certain: she won’t become the president of South Korea, despite all her efforts. All her ruthless fighting for power went to waste, I feel.
Choi Yeon-sook
Choi Yeon-sook, played by Kim Mi-sook, was the chief of staff and secretary to President Jang Il-joon in The Whirlwind. She was the first person to find the president after he collapsed and quickly realized that it was Park Dong-ho who was behind it. However, she didn’t expose Park. Instead, she gave him a chance to become president himself. It wasn’t because she had some cunning plan to betray the president. She knew Jang Il-joon was corrupt, and she wanted Korea to have a just political leader who could change the future. Choi Yeon-sook understood that Park Dong-ho’s methods were drastic, but she believed in his vision and his mission to fight corruption. That’s why she trusted him and helped him on his path to becoming president. However, she always warned Park that she would reveal his secret if he ever corrupted himself. Having worked with political leaders all her life, she knew how power could change people. Park Dong-ho understood her concerns and gave her an audio recording of his confession, hidden in a pen, admitting that he tried to kill the president. This was for her to use against him if he ever strayed from his mission of justice. This gesture gave Choi Yeon-sook the assurance she needed, and she supported Park until her last breath. She was a character who valued integrity and was willing to take risks to ensure Korea had a leader who would fight for justice.
Kang Sang-woon
Kang Sang-woon, played by Kim Young-min, was the vice chairman of the powerful Daejin Group, a company that had been financially backing South Korea’s political elite for years. His father, Chairman Kang, ended up in jail because of these shady dealings, and it became Kang Sang-woon’s mission to manipulate political leaders to expose them, all in the hope of getting his father pardoned and out of jail. But don’t mistake this for unconditional father-son love—it was all about power. Kang knew that if he didn’t get his father out, his father would make his younger brother the successor of Daejin Group instead of him, and he couldn’t let that happen. Kang Sang-woon even tried to manipulate Park Dong-ho into helping him, but things went horribly wrong when he was falsely accused of trying to kill Park and even the former president because he had visited the president the night of the attempted murder. After being thrown in jail, his father, Chairman Kang, saw an opportunity to declare that he would make the younger son the successor because he believed Kang Sang-woon couldn’t handle the responsibility. This revelation shattered Kang Sang-woon. Feeling completely betrayed, he spilled all the secret bank codes and information about the Daejin Group’s money embezzlement schemes to the prosecutors and Park, allowing them to expose the corruption. After all these years of working tirelessly, Kang Sang-woon realized that his father had used him and that all his efforts meant nothing. His father’s betrayal was the final blow, making him understand that his mission for power was ultimately in vain.
Cho Sang-cheon
Cho Sang-cheon, played by Jang Gwang, was a right-wing extremist who ran against Park Dong-ho in the presidential campaign. Despite her animosity towards Park, Jeong Su-jin couldn’t let someone as cruel as Cho Sang-cheon become the president of South Korea. That’s why she even helped Park expose him. Cho Sang-cheon had ties with North Korea because his father had been captured there. Through his half-brother, he’d sent money to his father. These transactions and the fact that his half-brother was still in North Korea made it clear that Cho Sang-cheon wasn’t fit to lead South Korea. The situation worsened when the public learned that Cho Sang-cheon’s half-brother was involved in making missiles in North Korea under Kim Jong-un’s supervision. This revelation made it clear that Cho Sang-cheon was a dangerous choice for president. Fearing for the country’s safety, the public supported Park Dong-ho instead, as they realized that Cho Sang-cheon’s presidency would not be good for South Korea.
