Kim Hye-yoon

Kim Hye-yoon is a South Korean actress who gained widespread public recognition for her performance as Kang Ye-seo in the television drama Sky Castle. She subsequently established herself as a leading performer across both television and film, earning critical acclaim for her roles in productions such as Extraordinary You and The Girl on a Bulldozer. Throughout her career, she has received major honors from organizations including the Baeksang Arts Awards, the Grand Bell Awards, and the Blue Dragon Film Awards.

Born on November 10, 1996, in Seongnam, South Korea, Kim developed a desire to pursue acting during her third year of middle school. She prepared for her professional ambition by taking classes at an acting academy, entering auditions, and securing minor roles. She completed her secondary education at Seonil Girls' High School and enrolled at Konkuk University in 2015 to study film. Balancing her academic responsibilities with her early acting endeavors, she earned a full merit-based scholarship, worked on student films, and earned her bachelor's degree in film studies in February 2019.

Kim made her professional screen debut in 2013 with a supporting role as a younger character in the television series Samsaengi. She gained further exposure through the 2014 crime thriller series Bad Guys. To preserve her full scholarship while studying at Konkuk University, she purposely restricted herself to minor roles during this period, with a notable appearance in the 2017 feature film Memoir of a Murderer.

As her graduation approached in early 2019, Kim actively sought larger roles and successfully earned the part of Kang Ye-seo in Sky Castle after competing against 200 applicants. Her performance won her the Best New Actress award at the 55th Baeksang Arts Awards. Later that year, she took on her first leading role in the webtoon-based television drama Extraordinary You, winning both New and Excellence Actress honors at the MBC Drama Awards. She subsequently landed key roles in the thriller movie Midnight, the television drama Snowdrop, the film The Girl on a Bulldozer, and the historical series Secret Royal Inspector & Joy.

The theatrical release of The Girl on a Bulldozer in 2022 brought Kim widespread acclaim for her performance as Goo Hye-young. She won Best New Actress titles at both the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Grand Bell Awards, along with the Rising Star Asia Award at the New York Asian Film Festival, accumulating six wins out of ten total nominations. Her achievements led to her inclusion in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. After appearing in the movie Ditto, she returned to television in the 2024 series Lovely Runner, which earned her a nomination for Best Actress at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards and a placement on the Forbes Korea Power Celebrity 40 list.

In early 2026, Kim appeared in the fantasy series No Tail to Tell, followed by a leading role in the folk horror movie Salmokji: Whispering Water, which marked her first commercial box office hit in cinema and demonstrated her range across different genres. Her confirmed future projects include the feature films Three of a Kind and High School Detective, the legal drama Good Partner 2, and an adaptation of The Miracles of the Namiya General Store. Beyond acting, Kim has been dubbed the Nation's Little Sister and My Melody Princess by media and fans, and she has endorsed numerous brands spanning cosmetics, clothing, pharmaceuticals, beverages, and financial services.