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2008-2011: Bloosoming Acting Career

His first step in the world of entertainment was when he had to supplant a contestant in the KBS Korea Quiz, replacing a senior who was sick at the time, in that contest Song managed to be in second place and managed to attract a lot of attention for his appearance. He also appeared during that time front and center on the covers for the university magazine College He had his first relevant big screen appearance in the 2008 Frozen Flower for the next few years he would keep making appearances in short roles in a few more films. For a couple of years, during 2008-2010 he was the regular host for KBS music program Music Bank.

He started to gain traction as an actor in 2010's KBS2 historical coming of age drama Sungkyunkwan Scandal, the drama was a cult hit and a nationwide phenomenon, Song's acting received a lot of praise as well as his chemistry with fellow co-stars Park Yoo Chun, Yoo Ah In and especially Park Min Young. He also was part of the hit variety show Running Man during 2010 until 2011, after his scheduling conflicts from his acting career prevented him from continuing to appearing as part of the cast of Running Man.

In 2011, he took the lead role alongside co-star Han Ye Seul in the romantic comedy film Penny Pinchers, he was considered charismatic and very funny in his performance of a jobless deadbeat by film critics and audiences alike, the movie was a huge success and it was a well-needed boost for his acting career. In that same year he also played the younger version of the leading role in SBS' historical mystery romance drama Tree With Deep Roots, Soong Joong Ki's acting was lauded by critics and won many acting accolades the following year for his performance of the younger version of King Sejong.

He ended up touring in several Asian countries, because of his newfound popularity, he was present in fan meetings in Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, and South Korea.

2012-2015: Success as a leading Man and Military Enlistment

2012, was also a year that would bring to Song Joong Ki an even bigger notoriety among his peers in the entertainment industry. He took the challenging leading role in the fantasy romance film Werewolf Boy, he portrayed the role of feral boy Chul Soo, his role attracted a lot of praise by film critics and audiences, alongside his chemistry with co-star Park Bo Young. He then starred in his first ever leading role on a television series in KBS2 melodrama No Such Thing As Nice Guys, his leading role as an antihero was a breath of fresh air for him, and it was the perfect opportunity for Song to showcase his acting chops in a more complex character. His role was considered by critics as one of his best and the drama enjoyed over the course of its run a high viewership number.

A year later in 2013, he enlisted for his mandatory military service on August 27, he was discharged of his mandatory military service on May 26, 2015.

2016-: Worldwide Notoriety and Successful Fan Meetings

He made his drama comeback in 2016's Descendants of the Sun, the drama was a worldwide phenomenon, it cemented Song Joong Ki as a leading man, his acting and his chemistry alongside co-star Song Hye Kyo was lauded by critics and audiences alike, he topped all the popularity polls all across Asia. He later went on that same year on fan meeting tour that took him all across the Asian continent. He visited 10 cities in total and met around 60,000 fans.

In 2017, he was cast to appeared alongside veteran co-stars Hwang Jung Min and So Ji Sub in the historical action film The Battleship Island, the film received mixed reviews although Song Joong Ki's was praised, and his chemistry with his veteran co-stars was considered one of the noteworthy aspects of the film.

He is set to make his small screen comeback in 2019 for tvN's historical fantasy drama Arthdal Chronicles.