Moon Se-yoon wins his 1st grand prize at KBS Entertainment Awards

Comedian Moon Se-yoon wrapped up 2021 in triumph, winning the grand prize at the KBS Entertainment Awards on Saturday.

Recognized for his achievements on three TV shows -- “Godfather,” “Trot Magic” and “2 Days & 1 Night,” the 39-year-old entertainer was awarded the top prize at KBS headquarters in Yeouido, western Seoul.

There were four other nominees for the grand prize this year, including 2020 grand prize winner Kim Sook, singer and entertainer Kim Jong-min, former announcer Jeon Hyun-moo and soccer star Park Joo-ho.

“I never expected a Santa Claus to pay me a visit. I wonder if I can continue my performance while bearing the weight of the grand prize, but I will do my best to work hard,” Moon said.

While paying respect to the other nominees, Moon thanked the people who have played a huge role in his life.

“Many people, who are close to me, often said that I do not have much luck in winning awards. But I realize that I was lucky enough to work with amazing individuals. I would like to thank the members and staff of ‘2 Days & 1 Night,’ including director Bang Geul-yi, actor Yeon Jung-hoon, singer Kim Jong-min, actor Kim Seon-ho, rappers DinDin and Ravi, who are like brothers and sisters to me.” Moon said.

The comedian offered his sincere gratitude to comedians Kim Sook and Shin Dong-yeob for keeping him strong and providing him confidence during hard times.

Moon, who debuted 20 years ago as an SBS comedian, won his first award -- for top excellence in variety -- in 2020.

For the past few years, Moon has enjoyed growing popularity, starring in multiple TV shows across different network.

His appearance in tvN’s long-running skit show “Comedy Big League” aside, Moon caught the public’s attention via Comedy TV’s “Tasty Guys,” a program where four comedians who love to eat visit and show various dishes at local restaurants.

Meanwhile, members of “2 Days & 1 Night” took home other honors as well, including entertainer of the year for Kim, the rookie award in variety for Ravi, excellence in variety for Yeon and the screenwriter award for Rho Jin-young. The Sunday night variety show was named as the best program for two years in a row as well.

KBS’ “2 Days & 1 Night” is a Sunday night program that has been running for 15 years, in which six TV celebrities travel to various locales in South Korea.

The show airs Sundays at 6:30 p.m. on KBS2.

By Lee Si-jin (sj_lee@heraldcorp.com)