[CELEB] Seo Hyun-jin plays two very different lawyers on big and small screens

Television

Published: 07 Jun. 2022, 12:22

[CELEB] Seo Hyun-jin plays two very different lawyers on big and small screens

Seo Hyun-jin portrays a lawyer, a single mom, and a daughter of In-woo (portrayed by Ahn Sung-ki), who one day finds out that she's been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. [TRIPLE PICTURES]

Actor Seo Hyun-jin is back on both the silver screen and the small screen as a lawyer — but despite the same profession her characters couldn't be more different.

If there is a similarity between the two characters, it would be that they both start off as elitist, perfectionist lawyers who topple down from the peaks of their careers.

In the film “Cassiopeia,” released in local theaters on June 1, Seo plays Su-jin, who struggles to be a perfect single parent for her daughter and also the perfect lawyer. Due to her busy career, Su-jin’s father In-woo (portrayed by Ahn Sung-ki) comes to live with her family. An untimely car accident reveals that Su-jin is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

In SBS drama series “Why Her,” Seo portrays TK Law Firm’s star lawyer Oh Soo-jae, who initially starts off as an avaricious go-getter, willing to do anything to win. But she is pushed aside when by an affiliated university professor due to unprecedented misfortune.

“Cassiopeia” marks the actor’s first return to the silver screen in four years since “Because I Love You” (2017). According to Seo, she chose the film because she “sympathized with [the character] more than anything else” due to her maternal grandmother, who also suffered from Alzheimer’s.

From someone who was striving to lead a perfect life as a lawyer, a daughter, and a mother, Su-jin is thrown into emotional turmoil, fearing that she is destined to end up forgetting her own family. As her memory worsens, In-woo remains by her side.

“Because of the strict social distancing measures, I wasn’t able to personally meet any patients with Alzheimer’s,” Seo said during a recent online press interview. “I tried to look up as much information as I could, but it was my personal experience that helped me the most. I acted while reminiscing on the memories of my grandmother, who went through the same disease.”

Scenes from SBS drama series "Why Her," where Seo portrays elitist lawyer Oh Soo-jae who will do anything to climb to the top. [SBS]

In “Why Her,” Seo’s character Soo-jae may seem ruthless from the outside, but the actor says she was attracted to the role because she stood in the grey zone between good and evil.

“A person cannot always be good, and the world isn’t only full of good people,” Seo said during an online press event on May 31. “Even though they know that it’s wrong, they make the wrong choices. Oh Soo-jae is a woman whose distinction between good and evil has become merged after she makes a certain choice. I thought it would be interesting and impactful to have such a character lead the drama.”

Seo’s strong point in acting lies in her crystal-clear diction and vocalization, which is particularly piercing in this series as her character Soo-jae coolly delivers law codes, with complete assurance and confidence in her demeanor.

Seo Hyun-jin [TRIPLE PICTURES]

The actor has been consistently active on the small screen in series such as “You Are My Spring” (2021), “Black Dog: Being A Teacher” (2019-20) on tvN, “Dr. Romantic” (2020) on SBS, “The Beauty Inside” (2018) on JTBC and “Temperature of Love” (2017) on SBS, but even her longtime fans may be surprised to know that she initially entered the entertainment industry as a K-pop idol. She was scouted by SM Entertainment to debut as a lead vocalist in the girl group M.I.L.K in 2001, created by SM’s affiliated label BM Entertainment. However, the group eventually disbanded when one of the members, Bae Yoo-mi, quit and left the agency in 2003.

After the group dissolved, Seo attended Dongduk women’s University to major in musicology.

Her transition to acting came in 2005 when she portrayed the role of Captain von Trapp’s eldest daughter Leisl in the musical “The Sound of Music.” From then on she began to feature in small and big roles on television, but the turning point in her acting career came after a decade in tvN drama series “Let’s Eat 2” (2015) where she portrayed the female protagonist Baek Su-ji. Her cute nature toward her crushes was highlighted in the series, fueled by her famous mukbang scenes and chemistry with actor Yoon Du-jun, who portrays her romantic interest Koo Dae-young.

Seo shot to stardom with the role of "just" Oh Hae-young in tvN drama series "Another Miss Oh" (2016) [TVN]

The following year, she shot to stardom through tvN drama series “Another Miss Oh,” where she portrayed the lead protagonist Oh Hae-young. Oh is a 32-year-old woman who believes that she leads a pitiful and unlucky life — dumped by her ex-fiancé merely a day before their wedding. She compares herself to another woman named Oh Hae-young, who appears to have the perfect life, simply because they have the same name.

The series ended with a remarkably high viewership rating of 10 percent, which at the time was the fourth-highest rating on the cable channel. (The series now sits at No. 18 in the viewership chart.) Since then, the actor has been working almost non-stop and receiving praise for her performances across a variety of genres.

“Why Her” airs on SBS every Friday and Saturday 10 p.m.

Seo Hyun-jin

Date of birth: February 27, 1985
Zodiac sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Nowon District, northern Seoul (yet to be confirmed)
Debut: December 2001 as a member of girl group M.I.L.K
Agency: Management Soop

Seo Hyun-jin debuted as a singer as part of K-pop girl group M.I.L.K under BM Entertainment, an affiliate of SM Entertainment in 2001 with the album “With Freshness.” She turned to acting in 2005 through the musical “The Sound of Music.” She featured in small and big roles across the small screen, but her turning point as an actor came in 2015 through tvN drama series “Let’s Eat 2” and the following year in “Another Miss Oh.” She has also starred in popular series such as “Black Dog: Being A Teacher” (2019-20) on tvN, “Dr. Romantic” (2020) on SBS, and “The Beauty Inside” (2018) on JTBC.

This information was confirmed by Management Soop on June 7, 2022.

BY LEE JAE-LIM [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]