Photo credits: Kim Hyung Sik / Daniel Jon for Elle Korea

Actor Spotlight: Kim Tae-Ri

We’re back with a new Actor Spotlight and this time we’re taking a look at the career of Kim Tae-Ri. If you need solid recommendations, stick around because everything Kim Tae-Ri is in is honestly amazing.

Kim Tae-Ri’s story is quite cool. She started acting while studying Journalism in college and auditioned after graduating. For the first year she was an understudy, but never got to act on stage. She did act in the plays ‘Pansy’ and ‘To ask about love’. 

Her first screen presence was for the short film ‘Moon Young’ which debuted at Seoul Independent Film Festival. 

The Handmaiden

Kim Tae-Ri’s major breakthrough happened in the 2016 ‘The Handmaiden’ directed by Park Chan-wook. This film, besides being brilliant, skyrocketed Kim Tae-Ri’s name into the hemisphere. She won multiple awards for ‘Best New Actress’. She received awards from the Blue Dragon Film Awards, Director’s Cut Awards, Busan Film Critics Awards and the Buil Film Awards.

In 2017 she played the role of Yeon-Hee for the film ‘1987: When the day comes’ which is a political thriller based on a true story and definitely worth a watch.

The year after she had two projects. The first is the absolutely lovely and comforting film ‘Little Forest’. I’ve raved about it before in my review here. If you’re a foodie at all, go watch it.

The second project she had that year, was the massive hit ‘Mr. Sunshine’. It took me a good while before I was able to start watching it, but as soon as I did, I was mesmerized. She did such a great job and the full production was beyond insane. 

In 2021 she was part of the Netflix production ‘Space Sweepers’. She had such a badass character. I was obsessed. 

Within the next couple of months there will be two projects coming out. Kim Tae-Ri is listed as part of the drama ‘Twenty-Five, Twenty-One’ and the film ‘Alien’. We’ll be looking forward to both. 

Kim Tae-Ri has an interesting filmography and I really enjoy how she takes on roles that show a variety of strong female characters. She’s definitely one to watch. 

Ilse Van Den Heede
A writer with a slight coffee addiction and a tendency to find K-Indie gems in the YouTube rabbit hole.