Edited by Seo Hayne
Translated by Kim Hoyeun
Kim So Hyun debuted as a child actress playing a supporting role in the 2006 Drama City special titled Ten Minute Minor. Since then, she steadily gained popularity by taking on the main characters’ child roles. She was in charge of the childhood days of Lee Soo Yeon (Yoon Eun Hye), who had to endure a rough life after being branded as the daughter of a murderer, in Missing You, and Jang Hye Sung (Lee Bo Young), who vowed to become a public defender through her past experience of being falsely accused, in I Can Hear Your Voice.
But of all her works, we can’t forget Moon Embracing the Sun, the mega-hit historical drama that garners 42% viewer ratings. Kim played the younger version of Yoon Bo Kyung, who grew up without a shortage, and won K-Drama Star Awards’ Best Young Actress and MBC Drama Awards’ Best Young Actress awards.
Afterward, she challenged double roles in Reset and Who Are You: School 2015 and naturally portrayed two characters with different personalities. Particularly, Who Are You: School 2015, one of Korea’s representative teen series School, received great love in China, Taiwan, and Singapore, and in this project, Kim flawlessly digested two opposite characters, Lee Eun Bi, who is bullied in school, and elite student Go Eun Byul.
Then in Netflix original series Love Alarm, which revolves around the “love alarm” that tells you if your crush is within 10 meters around you, she turned into Kim Jo Jo and received rave reviews for her high synchro rate with the original character in the webtoon. Kim Jo Jo, who is loved by both Sun Oh (Song Kang) and Hye Young (Jung Ga Ram), does not easily show her feelings.
Recently, she has returned to the small screen as Princess Pyeonggang and warrior Yeom Ga Jin in the fusion historical drama River Where the Moon Rises. She once again plays dual roles and pulls off a character who is both a fierce female general and a gentle princess. Plus, she will also be coming back as Kim Jo Jo with Love Alarm 2 on March 12.
After the first season of Love Alarm closed its curtain, Kim So Hyun once expressed her worries during an interview, saying, “I don’t think I have a representative image yet.” Though she might not have a specific image that she imprinted on the public yet, she is steadily solidifying herself as an actress, slowly expanding her territory. I am looking forward to her how far she will grow.
Editor Seo Hayne: I like actors as they faithfully lead through their long running-time. I also like idols who accomplish everything on stage within 3 minutes.
