# Seo Hyun-jin

Seo Hyun-jin (Korean: 서현진; born February 27, 1985) is a South Korean actress and singer. Seo debuted as the vocalist of South Korean girl group M.I.L.K. in 2001 and continued until the group disbanded in 2003. She contributed songs as a solo artist after the group broke up before she transitioned into acting in 2006.
Seo made her acting debut in the musical The Sound of Music (2006) then followed by appearances in several television series and film. She is best known for her leading role as Oh Hae-young in the romantic comedy TV series Another Miss Oh (2016), which gained her wider recognition. Seo has since gone on to have key parts in the medical melodrama Dr. Romantic (2016–2017), romance dramas Temperature of Love (2017), The Beauty Inside (2018), and You Are My Spring (2021), and the legal drama Why Her (2022).

## Life and career
### 1985–2005: Early life and music career

Seo was born on February 27, 1985, in Dobong District (now Nowon District), Seoul, South Korea. She was scouted by S.M. Entertainment and later debuted as a vocalist of South Korean girl group, M.I.L.K in 2001, under the label's subsidiary BM Entertainment. However, the group soon fell by the wayside due to fierce competition among manufactured bands, which led to one of the members quitting before they completely disbanded in 2003. After M.I.L.K. was dissolved, Seo attended Dongduk Women's University, where she majored in applied musicology to keep her dream of a singing career alive. Seo contributed songs to a few soundtracks and SM Town compilations as a solo artist.

### 2006–2014: Acting debut and further roles

Seo had the chance to perform in her first musical, The Sound of Music in 2006, which she saw as the turning point in her acting career.
Supporting roles followed in the period drama Hwang Jini (2006), TV police procedural H.I.T (2007), and the queer-themed film Ashamed (2011). Seo first drew attention for her subtler performance in The Duo (2011), as a neighborhood tomboy who later becomes a gisaeng. She played her first villain in Feast of the Gods (2012), as an extremely ambitious chef embroiled in a rivalry. Seo was then cast in leading roles for two historical dramas The King's Daughter, Soo Baek-hyang (2013) and The Three Musketeers (2014).
Seo has also frequently appeared in projects directed by her best friend, actress Ku Hye-sun, notably in the short film The Madonna and in the feature film Magic, in which she had her first leading role.

### 2015–present: Rising popularity and continued television roles

Seo said the character that most resembled her real-life personality was the foodie freelance writer in Let's Eat 2 (2015), adding that she "didn't realize how much fun shooting a lively and comedic drama could be." The drama was Seo's first foray into the romantic-comedy genre. She was reviewed well for the part, to the point that it became a turning-point in her career.
Her popularity grew rapidly after the hit romance comedy drama Another Miss Oh (2016), in which she starred alongside Eric Mun. She was praised for her portrayal of a girl-next-door type, and won the Baeksang Arts Award for Best Actress. Later that same year, she starred in the SBS hit medical drama Dr. Romantic alongside Han Suk-kyu and Yoo Yeon-seok. In 2017, Seo starred in the romantic-themed television series Temperature of Love penned by Ha Myung-hee.
In 2018, Seo was cast in the fantasy melodrama The Beauty Inside which was based on the 2015 romantic comedy film of the same name. She played an actress who spends a week each month inhabiting someone else's body. She then starred in the high school television series Black Dog: Being A Teacher in 2019 and subsequently in the tvN drama series You Are My Spring in 2021.
In 2022, Seo starred in the SBS legal drama Why Her in the titular role of Oh Soo-jae, a lawyer-turned-professor and in the film Cassiopeia as a woman who is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and is slowly turning into a young child due to the loss of her memory.

## Personal life

A devout Roman Catholic, Seo is an ambassador and a member of the One Heart One Body Movement, a Catholic organization from Seoul. Her baptismal name is Gabriella.

## Other activities

In 2019, Seo was recognised as an exemplary tax payer by the National Tax Service of South Korea and was named as an honorary ambassador together with Lee Je-hoon.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Love Me Not | Ji-hye | |
| 2008 | Story of Wine | Jin-ju | |
| 2008 | Dating on Earth (지구에서 연애중) | Soo-hyun | |
| 2008 | The Madonna (유쾌한 도우미) | Nun | Short film |
| 2010 | Magic (요술) | Ji-eun | |
| 2011 | Ashamed | Hee-jin | |
| 2012 | The Peach Tree | Shi-yeon | Cameo |
| 2012 | Fragments of Sweet Memories (기억의 조각들) | Mom | Short film |
| 2016 | Familyhood | Sang-mi | |
| 2017 | Because I Love You | Hyun-kyeong | |
| 2018 | Mystery Pink (미스터리핑크) | Ju-eun | Short film |
| 2022 | Cassiopeia | Su-jin | |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Hwang Jini | Jung Ga-eun | |
| 2007 | H.I.T | Jang Hee-jin | |
| 2011 | The Duo | Dal-yi | |
| 2011 | The Peak | Ahn Il-yang | |
| 2012 | Feast of the Gods | Ha In-joo / Song Yeon-woo | |
| 2012 | The King's Doctor | Jo So-yong (Gwi-in Jo) | Cameo |
| 2012–2013 | Here Comes Mr. Oh | Na Jin-joo | |
| 2013 | Goddess of Fire | Shim Hwa-ryung | |
| 2013 | Drama Festival: "Unrest" | Joon-kyung's mother | Cameo |
| 2013–2014 | The King's Daughter, Soo Baek-hyang | Seol-nan / Soo Baek-hyang | |
| 2014 | The Three Musketeers | Kang Yoon-seo | |
| 2015 | Let's Eat 2 | Baek Soo-ji | |
| 2016 | Another Miss Oh | Oh Hae-young (Soil) | |
| 2016 | Bring It On, Ghost | Department store clerk | Cameo (Episode 13) |
| 2016–2017 | Dr. Romantic | Yoon Seo-jung | |
| 2017 | Temperature of Love | Lee Hyun-soo | |
| 2018 | Let's Eat 3 | Baek Soo-ji | Cameo |
| 2018 | The Beauty Inside | Han Se-gye | |
| 2019–2020 | Black Dog: Being A Teacher | Go Ha-neul | |
| 2020 | Record of Youth | Lee Hyun-soo | Cameo |
| 2021 | You Are My Spring | Kang Da-jung | |
| 2022 | Why Her | Oh Soo-jae | |
| 2024 | The Trunk | Noh In-ji | |

### Television show

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2014 | SNS Expedition | Regular cast | |
| 2015 | Let's Eat with Friends | Regular cast | |
| 2023 | Wild Plains Serengeti 3 | Narrator | Episode 1–4 |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Song Title | Artist | Ref. |
| 2009 | "One Step at a Time" | Seo Young-eun | |
| 2009 | "Dugeun Dugeun, Tomorrow" | 4Tomorrow | |

## Theater

| Year | title | Role |
| 2006 | The Sound of Music | Liesl von Trapp |
| 2010 | Goong: The Musical | Min Hyo-rin |
| 2015 | Cinderella | Cinderella |

## Discography
### Singles

| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Sales (DL) | Album |
| Title | Year | KOR Gaon | Sales (DL) | Album |
| As lead artist |||||
| "Paradise" (with Fly to the Sky, Lee Ji-hoon, Ji-yeon) | 2003 | — | — | 2003 Summer Vacation in SM Town |
| "Summer in Dream" (with Moon Hee-jun, Shoo, BoA, Jae-won, Park Hee-bon) | 2003 | — | — | 2003 Summer Vacation in SM Town |
| "Raindrops" | 2006 | — | — | 2006 Summer SM Town |
| "Winter of Memories" | 2006 | — | — | 2006 Winter SM Town – Snow Dream |
| "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" | 2007 | — | — | 2007 Winter SM Town – Only Love |
| Soundtrack appearances |||||
| "Grip! " (Korean version) | 2003 | — | — | Inuyasha OST |
| "Give Me a Little Try" | 2006 | — | — | Princess Hours OST |
| "0" | 2006 | — | — | Hyena OST |
| "Calling" | 2007 | — | — | Air City OST |
| "Song of Jeongeup" (feat. Kim Nani) | 2013 | — | — | The King's Daughter, Soo Baek-hyang OST |
| "Up & Down" (feat. Risso) | 2015 | — | — | Let's Eat 2 OST |
| "What Is Love" (with Yoo Seung-woo) | 2016 | 6 | KOR: 705,741+ | Another Miss Oh OST |
| "Falling Flower" (落花)' | 2021 | | — | You Are My Spring OST |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart |||||

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result |
| APAN Star Awards | 2014 | Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama | The King's Daughter, Soo Baek-hyang | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2016 | Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Another Miss Oh | Won |
| APAN Star Awards | 2021 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Black Dog: Being A Teacher | Nominated |
| APAN Star Awards | 2022 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Why Her | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2017 | Best Actress – Television | Another Miss Oh | Won |
| Brand Customer Loyalty Awards | 2020 | Most Influential Actress (Drama) | Seo Hyun-jin | Won |
| Grimae Awards | 2017 | Best Actress | Temperature of Love | Won |
| Korea Best Star Awards | 2018 | Best Drama Star | The Beauty Inside | Won |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2011 | Best New Actress | The Duo | Nominated |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2013 | Excellence Award, Actress | Goddess of Fire, Here Comes Mr. Oh | Won |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2015 | Excellence Award, Actress | Let's Eat 2 | Nominated |
| Korea Drama Awards | 2016 | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Another Miss Oh | Nominated |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2011 | Best New Actress in a Miniseries | The Duo | Won |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2012 | Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama | Feast of the Gods, Here Comes Mr. Oh | Won |
| MBC Drama Awards | 2013 | Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama | The King's Daughter, Soo Baek-hyang | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2016 | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Dr. Romantic | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2016 | Excellence Award, Actress in a Genre Drama | Dr. Romantic | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2016 | Top 10 Stars | Dr. Romantic | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2016 | Best Couple | Seo Hyun-jin with Yoo Yeon-seok Dr. Romantic | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2016 | Idol Academy Award – Best Kiss | Seo Hyun-jin with Yoo Yeon-seok Dr. Romantic | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2017 | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Temperature of Love | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2017 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Monday–Tuesday Drama | Temperature of Love | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2017 | Best Couple | Seo Hyun-jin with Yang Se-jong Temperature of Love | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Grand Prize (Daesang) | Why Her | Nominated |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries Genre/Fantasy Drama | Why Her | Won |
| SBS Drama Awards | 2022 | Best Supporting Team | Why Her | Nominated |
| tvN10 Awards | 2016 | Best Actress | Another Miss Oh | Nominated |
| tvN10 Awards | 2016 | Made in tvN, Actress in Drama | Another Miss Oh | Won |
| tvN10 Awards | 2016 | Romantic-Comedy Queen | Another Miss Oh | Won |
| tvN10 Awards | 2016 | Best Kiss | Seo Hyun-jin with Eric Mun Another Miss Oh | 2nd place |

### State honors

Name of the organization, year presented, and the award given :
| Organization | Year | Award | Ref. |
| 53rd Taxpayers' Day | 2019 | Presidential Commendation | |

### Listicles

Name of publisher, year listed, name of listicle, and placement :
| Publisher | Year | Listicle | Placement | Ref. |
| Forbes | 2017 | Korea Power Celebrity | 26th | |