Son Ye-jin

Building an actress in Daegu

Son Ye-jin didn't start her career in Seoul's offices. She was born in Daegu in 1982 and moved to the capital to study film at the Seoul Institute of the Arts with one clear goal in mind. Her first major role in 2001, in the series Delicious Proposal, was enough for the industry to notice a gaze that seemed to leap off the screen.

Luck had nothing to do with her rise.

In 2003, she starred in The Classic. That film was such a box office hit that it typecast her in romantic melodrama for nearly five years. But she was looking for something else, because she did not want to be just the pretty face of the tearjerkers flooding the Asian market at that time.

Shooting A Moment to Remember in 2004 led to a massive surge in popularity in Japan and Korea. But in 2005, she decided to break her innocent image with The Art of Seduction. In that film, she played a cold, manipulative woman who shocked her more conservative fans.

The risk of ceasing to be Korea's girlfriend

She won Best Actress at the Blue Dragon Film Awards in 2008 for My Wife Got Married. In that film, she defended polyandry in a Korean society that remains deeply traditional even today. That award was the first in her generation to achieve the Korean film triple crown by adding the Grand Bell and Baeksang awards.

And the gamble on risk paid off.

Over 2014 and 2016, she proved she could carry big action and historical drama productions without breaking a sweat. The Pirates drew 8.6 million moviegoers to theaters. Shortly after, in 2016, she made The Last Princess, taking a decision that few actors dare to make in real life.

She put one million dollars of her own money up to save the shoot.

She invested that money so the production wouldn't lose quality when the budget ran out midway through filming. The movie ended up being a financial and critical hit that reinforced her status as one of the few actresses capable of drawing box office investment on her presence alone.

The TV Phenomenon and Return to Auteur Cinema

Television came back into her life in a big way in 2018 with Something in the Rain. But the true global phenomenon happened between 2019 and 2020 with Crash Landing on You. The series finished its broadcast with ratings above 21% in its home country and was distributed worldwide through streaming platforms.

In March 2022, she married actor Hyun Bin, and in November of that same year, their first child was born. After a period away from work in 2023, her return to film was confirmed alongside one of the most prestigious directors in the world.

Filming for her new project with director Park Chan-wook, titled No Other Choice, was scheduled for the last quarter of 2024. The production has an estimated budget of 15 million euros and a cast that includes Lee Byung-hun.