Kim You-jung

Biography

Kim You-jung (Korean: 김유정; born September 22, 1999) is a South Korean actress. She started out as a model for a confectionery brand at the age of four and after her acting debut in 2003, Kim became one of the most in-demand child actresses in South Korea leading her to be called "Nation's Little Sister". Kim had her first starring role in the historical romance Love in the Moonlight in 2016 which catapulted her to fame as a leading actress in television and film. She ranked 8th on the Forbes Korea Power Celebrity list in 2017, the youngest to be included in the Top 10 at the age of 17. Through her roles in several acclaimed historical television series in her teens, Kim has been referred to as "Sageuk Fairy" by media outlets. Since then, she further received attention for her performances in the romantic-comedy Backstreet Rookie (2020), historical fantasy Lovers of the Red Sky (2021), teen romance film 20th Century Girl (2022), fantasy romance My Demon (2023–2024), and psychological thriller Dear X (2025). She gained the nicknames "Nation's First Love" following her performance in 20th Century Girl.

== Early life and education == Kim was born in Seongdong District, Seoul, South Korea on September 22, 1999 as the youngest of three siblings. Her older sister, Kim Yeon-jung, debuted as an actress in 2017. She attended Goyang High School of Arts and graduated in January 2018. Kim deferred taking the national College Scholastic Ability Test in 2017, and instead decided to focus on her acting career.

== Career ==

=== 2003–2011: Beginnings as a child model and actress ===

Kim debuted as a model for a confectionery brand at the age of four. After her acting debut when she was four, she quickly became one of the most in-demand child actresses in Korea. By the time she was a fifth grader, Kim had already appeared in 13 television dramas and 15 films. In 2008, she received her first acting award as Best Child Actress for action-adventure series Iljimae and historical drama Painter of the Wind. This was followed by acclaimed performances in Dong Yi (2010) and Flames of Desire (2010). Grudge: The Revolt of Gumiho (2010) marked Kim's first major role that wasn't the childhood counterpart of the female protagonist.

=== 2012–2015: Rising popularity and teen roles ===

She rose to popularity in 2012 when she starred in the fantasy-period drama Moon Embracing the Sun, which reunited Kim with Grudge: The Revolt of Gumiho costar Lee Tae-ri and Iljimae costar Yeo Jin-goo. Moon surpassed 40% ratings and gained "national drama" status. For her good portrayal of the young protagonist, she was nominated for Best New Actress in the 48th Baeksang Arts Awards, and she won Best Young Actress Award in the 1st K-Drama Star Awards and 2012 MBC Drama Awards. She followed this with a well-received turn in May Queen (2012) and a supporting role in the 2013 film Commitment, and family drama Golden Rainbow (2013). In 2014, Kim's performance as a teenage bully in Thread of Lies drew critical acclaim and she was nominated for the Best New Actress in Blue Dragon Film Awards. She next played a traditional funeral singer (or "gok-bi") in the single-episode Drama Special anthology, and was cast in the horror mystery Room 731, an English-language graduate thesis film by USC filmmaker Kim Young-min. This was followed by a starring role in the period drama Secret Door. Kim also began hosting music show Inkigayo in November 2014 and left the show in April 2016. In 2015, she starred in the television series Angry Mom which tackled bullying and school violence. The same year, she reprised her role as a cat-turned-woman in Love Cells, a two-season web series adapted from the webtoon of the same title and played a murderer's daughter in the thriller film Circle of Atonement.

=== 2016–2021: Leading roles ===