K-drama actresses who can really act

Jeon Do-yeon spent five years starring in television dramas before achieving instant star status with her film debut opposite Han Seok-gyu in The Contact. She has since gone on to take a wide variety of roles, from her performance as a schoolgirl in Harmonium in My Memory to that of a wife having an adulterous affair in Happy End. Her popularity has steadily increased, as audiences fall for her warm and direct personality. In late 1999 she received a Best Actress award from the domestic Chungryong Awards ceremony for her role in Harmonium in My Memory.

After starring as the tough-talking "Sunglasses" in Ryu Seung-wan's No Blood No Tears, Jeon spent time acting in a TV drama titled "Shoot for the Stars." She also found box-office success in E J-yong's Untold Scandal, based on the famous French novel Dangerous Liaisons. Her next project sees her taking dual roles in a time-bending melodrama set on Jeju Island called My Mother, Mermaid (working title).

Beloved by audiences around the world, Youn Yuh-Jung's a legendary actress who has starred in many of Korea's most revered films & TV shows in a career that spans 5 decades. After winning Korea's Blue Dragon Award for best actress in her film debut as the country girl turned femme fatale in 1971's Woman of Fire (part of director Kim Ki-Young's iconic Housemaid trilogy), she quit acting in her prime to immigrate to the U.S. A decade later, she returned to Korea & mounted a comeback, continuing to shatter conventions as well earn acclaim in such films such as A Good Lawyer's Wife, The Taste of Money & as a senior prostitute in The Bacchus Lady. Since her humble beginnings, she has taken on memorable roles in over 80 TV shows & close to 30 feature films, winning countless awards. Fluent in Korean & English, she's not only a force to be reckoned w/ on screen, but also in fashion as she's considered a style icon in Korea.

Critically acclaimed for her role as the feisty & unconventional grandmother Soonja in "Minari", her other recent American credits include the Wachowski's Sense8 as the maternal convict serving life, Min-Jung & the upcoming series Pachinko for Apple.

Kim Hye-Soo is a South Korean actress and one of the most popular teen stars of the 1980s and 1990s. She is known for her headstrong independence and regularly playing strong-willed, sophisticated women. During the height of her fame, Kim was referred to as the "Pencil Board Star" of the 1980s due to the popularity of pencil boards printed with her image. She has also been named a part of the "Troika of the 1990s" in Korea along with her contemporaries Kim Hee-Sun and Shim Eun-Ha for their nationwide fame. In 1993, Kim led the main role in the film First Love and gained critical acclaim for her portrayal of the archetypal innocent girl, winning a Blue Dragon Film Award for Best Leading Actress and earning her the title "Nation's First Love" although the film was a box-office failure.

n 1985, Kim was featured in a commercial for Nestlé Milo and as well as the first K-pop music video, Cho Yong-Pil's title song Empty In The Air. In 1986, Kim made her film debut on Kambo when she was a first-year high school student. She also won Best New Actress for Kambo at the 23rd Baeksang Arts Awards. Kim went on to play the leading roles in the television series Samogok (1987), Sun Shim-Yi (1988), and Senoya (1989). She co-starred with Roh Joo-Hyun in When The Flowers Bloom And The Birds Cry (1990). In 1991, she landed the main role in Lost Love.

Over two decades, she amassed a massive filmography of leading and supporting roles, notably in the television series Did We Really Love? with Bae Yong-Joon and Revenge and Passion with Ahn Jae-Wook, as well as the film Tie a Yellow Ribbon (1998). In the 2000s, Kim focused more on her career in film rather than television, featuring in Kick the Moon, YMCA Baseball Team, and Three. At this time, she reinvented her image as a glamorous and confident Femme Fatale in Hypnotized (2004).

As of her debut in South Korean films, Ye-jin Son became one of the stars of Chungmoore, the Korean Hollywood, notably appearing in the beautiful "Drunk on Women and Poetry" by the master Kwan-taek Im. In "April Snow", directed by Jin-ho Hur (2005), she questioned her pure innocent girl image, playing to perfection an ordinary housewife confronted to tragedy and to an unexpected love story.

Kim Hye Ja is a South Korean actress. Best known for playing the archetypal Korean mother, Kim Hye Ja has established herself as an iconic actor in the Korean entertainment industry. Kim made her acting debut at age 29 while studying at Ewha Woman's University. In the 1981 movie 'Late Autumn', she won the best actress award at the Manila International Film Festival. She then starred in dramas like 'What is Love?' and 'Princess Hours'. Kim starred in the 2009 film 'Mother', which is about a woman searching for the real killer after her son is accused of murder, wherein she was granted the best actress award in various film awards worldwide.

Moon So-ri was born on 2 July 1974 in Busan, Korea. She is an actress and director, known for The Handmaiden (2016), The Running Actress (2017) and Oasis (2002). She has been married to Jang Joon-hwan since 24 December 2006. They have one child.

Yeom Hye-ran was born on 30 October 1976 in Yeosu, South Korea. She is an actress, known for Memories of Murder (2003), Mask Girl (2023) and The Uncanny Counter (2020).

Park Eun-bin is a South Korean actress. She debuted as a child actress before receiving her first leading role with a time-traveling romance drama Operation Proposal in 2012. She has starred in television series Hello, My Twenties! (2016, 2017), Hot Stove League (2019-2020), Do You Like Brahms? (2020), The King's Affection (2021), and Extraordinary Attorney Woo (2022).

Kim Hae-sook was born on 30 December 1955 in Busan, South Korea. She is an actress, known for Thirst (2009), The Handmaiden (2016) and The Thieves (2012). She is married to Kim Kap-su. They have two children.

South Korean fresh face Ha Ji-won is a very talented actress. She first came to theater in 2000 and won an award for best new actress. Her big break was "Sex is zero" and "True or Dare". In 2003, she was cast as Chae-oak in the famous Korean TV drama "Damo" and was stated as South Korean's most promising actress. Ha Ji-won has just finished filming "Duelist" and "Daddy Long Legs". She is now planning to further her English studies in New Zealand.

Han Ye-ri was born on 23 December 1984 in South Korea. She is an actress, known for Minari (2020), Worst Woman (2016) and Sea Fog (2014).

Jang Young-nam was born on 25 November 1973 in South Korea. She is an actress, known for A Werewolf Boy (2012), Mother Vengeance (2012) and The Neighbors (2012).

Kim Sun-young was born on 16 April 1976 in Ganggu-myeon, Yeongdeok-gun, South Korea. She is an actress, known for Concrete Utopia (2023), Three Sisters (2020) and Crash Landing on You (2019).

Kim Mi-kyung was born on 27 September 1960 in South Korea. She is an actress, known for Kim Ji-young: Born 1982 (2019), The Master's Sun (2013) and Always (2011).

Lee Jeong-eun was born on 23 January 1970 in South Korea. She is an actress, known for Parasite (2019), Okja (2017) and Mother (2009).

Kim Min-jung was born on 30 July 1982 in Seoul, South Korea. She is an actress, known for Mr. Sunshine (2018), My Fellow Citizens (2019) and The Merchant: Gaekju 2015 (2015).

Seo Jung-yeon was born on 30 November 1975 in South Korea. She is an actress, known for Defendant (2017), Descendants of the Sun (2016) and Mouse (2021).