Jung Ryeo Won

Jung Ryeo-won is an Australian actress and former singer based in South Korea. Born on January 21, 1981, she first began her entertainment career as a member of the K-pop girl group Chakra. After the group disbanded, she transitioned to full-time acting and achieved widespread recognition for her role in the hit television series My Name Is Kim Sam-soon. Over the course of her acting career, she has appeared in various television dramas and feature films, including Two Faces of My Girlfriend, Castaway on the Moon, History of a Salaryman, Wok of Love, and May It Please the Court.

Jung is the second of three children in her family. She emigrated to Brisbane, Australia, with her family in 1991 and adapted to the Australian lifestyle by junior high school. She went on to attend Griffith University, where she majored in international business. While attending Korea University as an exchange student from Griffith University in the 2000s, she was discovered on the streets of Apgujeong by Lee Sang-min.

Following her discovery, Jung was placed in the girl group Chakra alongside members Eeni, Eun, and Hwangbo. The group released its debut album in 2000. During her time as a singer, Jung expressed that her morale was low in 2002, noting that she felt alienated from fellow Koreans and uncomfortable wearing revealing stage outfits. After Chakra disbanded in 2004, she decided to pursue acting full-time. Despite failing eleven auditions that same year, she gained recognition in 2005 for her work in the sitcom Hello Franceska before earning her career breakthrough in My Name Is Kim Sam-soon.

Jung subsequently built a diverse acting portfolio in television and film. She starred in Which Star Are You From? before landing her first leading film role in the 2007 movie Two Faces of My Girlfriend, for which she won Best New Actress at the Blue Dragon Film Awards. In 2009, she appeared in the period drama Princess Jamyung and the film Castaway on the Moon. Her 2011 film projects included the war comedy-drama In Love and War and the melodrama Pained.

In early 2012, Jung starred as the female lead in History of a Salaryman, earning critical acclaim and a Top Excellence Award at the SBS Drama Awards. She followed this with the romantic comedy Never Ending Story and signed with the agency KeyEast in June 2012, later starring in The King of Dramas. In 2013, she launched an official website to communicate with fans and starred in the medical drama Medical Top Team. She later appeared in the 2015 cable drama series Bubble Gum.

In 2017, Jung played an ambitious prosecutor in the legal procedural drama Witch at Court, winning a Top Excellence Award at the KBS Drama Awards. Her subsequent projects included the 2018 black comedy film Gate, the television series Wok of Love, and the 2019 legal drama Prosecutor Civil War. In September 2020, after her contract with KeyEast expired, she signed with H & Entertainment, later renewing her contract with the agency in July 2022.

In addition to acting, Jung has engaged in various art, television hosting, and philanthropic activities. She published an art and writing book titled Ryeo-won's Sketchbook in 2007, and two of her original artworks were sold at a charity auction in 2012. Beginning in March 2014, she hosted the contemporary art audition show Art Star Korea and appeared in Living Together. In February 2023, Jung donated 50 million won through World Vision to assist relief efforts for the Turkey–Syria earthquake.