Actor Spotlight: Yeom Hye-Ran

The iconic Yeom Hye-Ran is our latest Actor Spotlight. This incredibly talented actress really deserves this spotlight. 

Beginnings

Yeom Hye-Ran started off in theatre before coming onto the big screen in the 2003 film ‘Memories of Murder’. That film was directed by none other than Bong Joon-Ho (yes, from Oscar winning ‘Parasite’ fame). 

Until 2016, she played a bunch of minor roles, mostly in films. She started getting a lot of attention after her role in the popular film ‘I can speak’. Yeom was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for both the 38th Blue Dragon Film Awards and 54th Baeksang Arts Awards. After this role Yeom Hye-Ran also started playing in K-dramas rather than just films. 

Growth

She really knows how to pick them because most of her dramas ended up being big hits both nationally and internationally. She got roles in ‘The K2’, ‘Goblin’, ‘Prison Playbook’, ‘Live’, ‘Lawless Lawyer’, ‘Life’, ‘When the Camellia blooms’, ‘Chocolate’, ‘Hospital Playlist’, ‘Mystic Pop-up Bar’. Right now she’s in ‘The uncanny counter’ and that has been having record breaking highs. 

Her character in ‘Mystic Pop-up Bar’ suited her really well.

Her role in ‘When the Camellia blooms’ earned her the award for Best Supporting Actress in the KBS Drama Awards. She also got the Best Couple Award there together with Oh Jung-se. 

The roles in her films also started becoming bigger. Though she does get stuck in the ‘mom’ role a lot, not that I’m complaining. Yeom starred in films like ‘Baseball Girl’, ‘Kim Ji-Young: Born 1982’, ‘Miss & Mrs. Cops’, ‘Innocent Witness’ and more. 

Her role in ‘Innocent Witness’ was mind-blowing and I’m still sad she only got a nomination and not the actual award at the Baeksang Awards and the Grand Bell Awards. 

Yeom Hye-Ran 

I love Yeom Hye-Ran’s acting because usually, even if her character is a fantastical being and really powerful, her acting stays rooted in something real and grounded.

She often gets the ‘mom’ role or powerful magical being role, but that doesn’t stop her from exploring the full depth of her character. She’s also not afraid to get really silly. There’s a variety of women she plays with all their own imperfections and I love that.

Here’s a compilation I found. Watch her transform for every role, even if it’s just the slightest twitch of her eyebrows.

I’m so happy to see that Yeom Hye-Ran is starting to get the recognition she deserves, because she’s an incredible actress that manages to embody her role so well. I hope to see her in many projects in the future. 

Go ahead and check out her full filmography here.

As a way of closing, I just want to share this incredible photo shoot Yeom Hye-Ran did with Harper’s Bazaar. She looks absolutely stunning!