Three Korean actresses over 40 have captured the spotlight lately, landing coveted leading drama roles, playing fearless, smart and sensitive characters.
All three of these beautiful stars play detective squad chiefs.
Kim Hye Soo is the youngest of the beautiful actresses at 45. She debuted in the 1986 film "Ggambo," when she was only a first year high school student. She hasn't really stopped working since and now she stars as detective squad chief Cha Soo Hyun in the time travel crime thriller "Signal." Cha is a driven police officer who ignores risks and keeps private sorrows to herself.
Kim has been quoted as saying she likes roles that are challenging, that both scare her and make her heart race with excitement.
Her recent roles include the comic drama "Queen of the Office" and the female-driven noir film "Coin Locker Girl."
Kim Sung Ryung, will also play a detective squad chief in the second season drama "Mrs. Cop 2," taking the role of police officer Ko Yoon Jung. Ko returns from training with the FBI to take on a Seoul crime squad.
Kim, 49, debuted after winning a Miss Korea beauty pageant in 1988. She worked as a reporter for "Entertainment Weekly," before branching out into acting. Kim recently appeared in the dramas The Chaser" "Yawang" and "Queen's Flower." She played Lee Min Ho's timid mom in "The Heirs" and Jang Geun Suk's neglectful mom in "You're Beautiful."
The original Mrs. Cop was played by another beautiful actress in her 40s, Kim Hee Ae. In the first season, "Mrs. Cop" focused on detective Choi Young Jin, who struggled to balance raising a child with solving brutal crimes. The show achieved double digit ratings and critics thought Kim Hee Ae did a good job of portraying the conflict that many working moms face.
Recently Kim has alternated film and drama roles. In 2014, Kim appeared in the film "Thread of Lies," followed shortly by the drama "Secret Love Affair." In "Secret Love Affair" she played a piano teacher who falls in love with her young piano prodigy, played by Yoo Ah In. In 2015 the 48-year-old actress played the muse of a folk trio group in the 2015 film "C'est Si Bon."
It's good news for k-drama lovers that these talented actress continue to be cast in drama roles.
