Goblin - Characters & Cast

Initially, his sole motivation is to find the Goblin's Bride to remove the sword from his chest and finally die, ending his eternal suffering. This motivation shifts entirely to protecting and loving Ji Eun-tak. He becomes willing to sacrifice his chance at peace to ensure her happiness and safety, even if it means continuing his lonely existence.

Kim Shin begins as a being cursed with immortality, deeply lonely and yearning for death after 900 years of suffering. He is powerful yet melancholic, burdened by the memories of all the loved ones he has outlived. His meeting with Ji Eun-tak marks a pivotal change. Initially seeing her as merely the tool to end his existence, he slowly falls in love and, for the first time, desires to live. His arc is a journey from seeking oblivion to embracing life, culminating in him choosing to endure his immortality to be with Eun-tak through her reincarnated lives, transforming his curse into a bittersweet choice of eternal love.

Her primary motivation is to escape her abusive home and find a place where she belongs. She is drawn to the Goblin as a source of power, protection, and eventually, love. As their relationship deepens, her motivation becomes about saving Kim Shin and breaking the tragic cycle of their fate, wanting to live a normal, happy life with him.

Eun-tak starts as a cheerful but resilient high school student who leads a difficult life with her abusive aunt while being able to see ghosts. She is marked as the Goblin's Bride, a fate that both endangers her and offers her a connection she has never had. Her arc is a classic coming-of-age story layered with immense responsibility. She evolves from a girl seeking refuge and a sense of belonging to a woman who understands the weight of her destiny and love. Ultimately, she makes a conscious, selfless choice to sacrifice her own life to save others, demonstrating a maturity and courage that transcends her fated role.

At first, his motivation is simply to perform his duties as a Grim Reaper. This changes when he meets Sunny, and his motivation becomes twofold: to understand the overwhelming, inexplicable sadness he feels and to uncover the identity of the man and woman in his visions. His ultimate goal becomes atonement for the sins he cannot initially remember.

The Grim Reaper is introduced as a dutiful but emotionally detached usher of souls, with no memory of his past life. His journey is one of rediscovery and atonement. As he falls for Sunny, fragments of his past as the tragic King Wang Yeo, who ordered the deaths of Kim Shin and his own queen, begin to surface. His arc is about confronting the immense sin of taking his own life, which led to his punishment as a Reaper. He transforms from an amnesiac functionary to a being overwhelmed by guilt and sorrow, who ultimately chooses to face his past and guides his former love to her next life before finally finding peace himself.

Her initial motivation is simple: to live her life and perhaps find love. When she meets the Grim Reaper, she is driven by a desire to understand the strange, sad man who makes her cry for no reason. Upon recovering her memories, her motivation shifts to understanding the tragedy of her past and making a conscious choice about her future, separate from the men who defined her past life.

Sunny is a fiercely independent and charismatic woman who owns a small chicken restaurant. She appears straightforward but carries a deep sense of melancholy. Her arc is about reclaiming her identity. She is the reincarnation of Kim Sun, Kim Shin's sister and Queen of Goryeo. As she navigates her confusing relationship with the Grim Reaper, she begins to remember her tragic past life. Unlike the Reaper, she chooses to retain her memories in this life, bearing the full weight of her past tragedy. Her journey is about finding agency and choosing to break the cycle of suffering by ending her relationship in this life, hoping for a clean slate in the next.