Yunjin Kim
Yunjin Kim (Hangul: 김윤진), also known as Kim Yun-jin (born November 7, 1973) is a South Korean-born American[1][2][3] film and theater actress. She is best known for her role as Sun-Hwa Kwon on the American television series Lost, and as the North Korean spy Bang-Hee in the South Korean film Shiri. She has also starred in the series Mistresses and XO, Kitty.
Yunjin Kim | |
|---|---|
 Kim in 2022 | |
| Born | Kim Yun-jin November 7, 1973 |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Boston University |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Spouse |
Park Jeong-hyeok (m. 2010) |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 김윤진 |
| Revised Romanization | Gim Yunjin |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kim Yunjin |
Early life
Kim was born in Seoul, South Korea. She immigrated to the United States with her family in 1983-1984.[4] They lived in Staten Island, New York. She joined the middle school drama club in the 7th grade and performed in the musical My Fair Lady.
Kim attended high school at the prestigious Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, a public high school located in Manhattan. From there, she went on to study drama at the London Academy of Performing Arts and later earned her BFA degree in drama at Boston University. Kim has remarked that in her zeal to become Americanized quickly, she studied acting, academics and pronunciation with equal intensity. She is also a trained dancer and martial arts fighter.[5]
Career
After graduation, Kim devoted herself full-time to acting. She garnered several minor parts on MTV, in soap opera-style dramas on ABC, and on the off-Broadway stage. In 1997, she starred in Splendid Holiday, a Korean TV drama shot on location in New York. Kim decided to return to Korea. She was cast in the TV drama Wedding Dress and was also invited to act in Lee Kwangmo's feature Spring in My Hometown, although she ended up not taking this role. Her breakthrough debut came in the 1999 film Shiri, South Korea's first blockbuster film. Shiri became the highest-grossing film in Korean history at the time. In November 2000, she continued her association with Kang Je-gyu in The Legend of Gingko.
After acting in a Japanese film and a feature set in Los Angeles, Kim appeared in the sci-fi feature Yesterday. Then in 2002, Kim took the lead role in Ardor, the feature film debut of documentarist Byun Young-ju. The film was invited to screen in a non-competitive section at the 2003 Berlin film festival.
In 2004, Kim started appearing in the U.S. television series Lost, which ran for six seasons.
In May 2006, Maxim named Kim number 98 on its annual Hot 100 List.[6] In October 2006 she was featured on the cover of Stuff, as well as an inside spread.
In 2013, she had a leading role in the ABC drama series Mistresses.[7]
In 2018, Kim returned to Korean television by headlining the series Ms. Ma, Nemesis.[8]
In 2022, she starred as Seon Woo-jin in the Korean remake of Money Heist, Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area.
In 2023, she acted as Principal Jina Lim in revolutionary English-Korean Netflix TV Series, XO, Kitty.
Personal life
Kim married her former manager Park Jeong-hyeok in March 2010 on the island of Oahu, after shooting her final scenes for Lost.[9]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Shiri | Lee Myung-hyun | |
| 2000 | The Legend of Gingko | Yeon | |
| 2001 | Rush! | Seo-yeong | |
| 2002 | Iron Palm | Ji-ni | |
| Yesterday | Kim Hisu / No Hisu | ||
| Ardor | Mi-heun | ||
| 2005 | Diary of June | Seo Yun-hee | |
| 2007 | Mother | ||
| 2008 | Seven Days | Yoo Ji-yeon | |
| 2010 | Harmony | Jeong-hye | |
| 2011 | Heartbeat | Chae Yeon-hee | |
| 2012 | The Neighbor | Kyung-hee | |
| 2014 | Ode to My Father | Young-ja | |
| 2017 | House of the Disappeared | Kang Mi-hee | |
| 2020 | Pawn | Myung-ja | Special appearance |
| 2022 | Confession | Yang Shin-ae | [10] |
| TBA | Dog Days | Jeong-ah | [11] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Splendid Holiday (화려한 휴가) | ||
| 1997 | Foreboding (예감) | Jang Se-young | 16 episodes |
| 1998 | Wedding Dress drama (웨딩 드레스) | Gina | 22 episodes |
| 1999 | Love in 3 Colors (유정) | Jang Hee-ju | Main role, 56 episodes |
| 2004–2010 | Lost | Sun-Hwa Kwon | Main role, 88 episodes |
| 2013–2016 | Mistresses | Karen Kim | Main role, 51 episodes |
| 2018 | Ms. Ma, Nemesis | Ms. Ma | Main role, 40 episodes |
| 2022 | Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area | Seon Woo-jin | Part 1–2[12][13] |
| 2023 | XO, Kitty | Principal Jina Lim | 8 episodes |
Video games
| Year | Title | Voice role |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Lost: Via Domus | Sun-Hwa Kwon |
| 2012 | Sleeping Dogs | Tiffany Kim |
Awards and nominations
References
- "Actress Kim in Lost as Sun". 2013-07-17.
- William Keck (January 15, 2006). "Actress Kim gets 'Lost' in generous gifts, jewels". USA Today. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
- Jae-Ha Kim (April 13, 2005). "Asian stars are rising – Latest TV breakthroughs look like the real deal". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 9, 2008. Retrieved July 14, 2009.
- Todd Gilchrist (August 29, 2006). "Interview: Yunjin Kim". IGN Entertainment, Inc.
- "Yunjin Kim Pictures, Blog, Interviews, News, Trivia, Yunjin Kim Biography". Buddytv.com. 1973-11-07. Retrieved 2012-05-21.
- "2006 Hot 100 List". Archived from the original on 2015-02-02. Retrieved 2014-07-08.
- Matt Webb Mitovich Lost's Yunjin Kim Finds Role on ABC's Mistresses, TVLine, March 16, 2012
- "Yunjin Kim hopes 'Ms. Ma, Goddess of Revenge' becomes her best Korean TV series". Yonhap News. March 17, 2018.
- "Lost's Yunjin Kim gets married in Hawaii". CNN. March 30, 2010.
- Lee Mi-ji (April 22, 2022). "소지섭X김윤진 '자백', 제24회 우디네 극동영화제 폐막작 선정(공식)" [So Ji-sub X Kim Yun-jin's 'Confession' selected as the closing film of the 24th Udine Far East Film Festival (official)] (in Korean). Herald POP. Retrieved April 23, 2022 – via Naver.
- Kim Na-ra (April 28, 2022). "도그데이즈', 크랭크업…윤여정 "웃음+공감 있는 영화" [공식]" [Dog Days', crank up... Yoon Yeo-jeong "Laughter + Sympathetic Movie" [Official]] (in Korean). My Daily. Retrieved April 28, 2022 – via Naver.
- Kim Na-young (March 31, 2021). "한국판 '종이의 집', 유지태·김윤진→박해수·전종서·김지훈 출연 확정 (공식)". MKSports (in Korean). Retrieved March 31, 2021.
- Lee Min-ji (April 29, 2022). "'종이의 집:공동경제구역' 6월 24일 파트1 공개, 하회탈 선택[공식]" [House of Paper: Common Economic Zone’ Part 1 released on June 24, Hahoe Mask Selection [Official]] (in Korean). Newsen. Retrieved April 29, 2022 – via Naver.
- Kim, Soo-hyung (January 1, 2019). "베스트커플→대상" 감우성♥김선아, 노련美로 완성한 '무진커플'의 위력 [2018 SBS 연기대상]" [Best Couple → Daesang" Gam Woo-sung ♥ Kim Seon-ah, the power of 'Mujin Couple' completed with expert beauty [2018 SBS Drama Awards]] (in Korean). Osen. Retrieved September 8, 2022 – via Naver.
- Yang, So-young (September 4, 2023). "김서형 류준열, 영평상 주연상 받는다...작품상은 '다음 소희" [Kim Seo-hyung Ryu Jun-yeol, Youngpyeong Award for Best Actor... 'Next Sohee' for Best Picture] (in Korean). Star Today. Retrieved September 6, 2023 – via Naver.
External links
