# Lee Yo-won

Lee Yo-won (born April 9, 1980) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Queen Seondeok in the eponymous hit period drama.

## Career

Lee Yo-won was a sophomore in high school when she won a modeling contest and first appeared as a model in the November 1997 issue of fashion magazine Figaro. This led to commercials, then to minor roles in television series and movies. Though she started getting recognized by the public after the box-office success of anarchic comedy Attack the Gas Station (1999), her first notable acting role was in controversial TV drama Blue Mist (2001), where she played a young woman in her 20s who becomes romantically involved with a married man in his 40s.
Critical darling Take Care of My Cat (2001) followed shortly, for which she received several newcomer awards. In a later interview with Elle Korea in 2009, she cited the film as her most memorable work.
But after starring in a number of big-screen star vehicles that weren't received well by audiences and critics, Lee felt mentally and physically exhausted. After finishing the historical drama Daemang (lit. "The Great Ambition", 2002), she made the surprising announcement that she was temporarily retiring from the entertainment scene.
Lee made a successful acting comeback in 2005, as the lead actress in period drama Fashion 70's, which she chose because she wanted to work with TV director Lee Jae-gyu (who had previously directed Damo), and because it was not a typical love story, but depicted a woman's success in life and career. A supporting role followed in romantic comedy When Romance Meets Destiny.
In 2007, Lee played the titular character in hit medical drama/romance Surgeon Bong Dal-hee, though her next series, melodrama Cruel Love was less successful in the ratings. She then switched to more serious fare as part of the ensemble cast of May 18, a film about the Gwangju massacre and one of the highest grossing Korean films of all time.
Tired of playing fragile characters, Lee portrayed Queen Seondeok of Silla in the massively popular period drama Queen Seondeok (2009). Her follow-up, fantasy melodrama 49 Days (2011) in which she played dual roles as a woman possessed, also resonated with audiences. Afterwards she appeared in The King's Doctor (2012) about a Joseon-era veterinarian turned royal physician, and Empire of Gold (2013) which revolved around a power struggle over a chaebol.
On the big screen, Lee said after her enjoyable experience working with Jeong Jae-eun on Take Care of My Cat, she wanted to work with other female directors, so she starred in Anna Lee's romantic mystery The Recipe (2010) and Bang Eun-jin's crime thriller Perfect Number (2012). In contrast, she was cast in the only female starring role in Kang Woo-suk's Fists of Legend (2013), about middle-aged men who join a televised mixed martial arts tournament/reality show.
In 2016, Lee made a successful comeback to the small screen with the quirky romantic-comedy My Horrible Boss. Her role as a hot-headed career woman was well-received, with many citing it as her "rediscovery role". She then participated in another film, titled Yes, Family, playing a reporter who is the oldest among-st four siblings. Lee also starred in the MBC drama Night Light, alongside Jin Goo and Uee.
In 2017, Lee starred in the black comedy series Avengers Social Club.
In 2019, Lee starred in the espionage melodrama Different Dreams and The Running Mates: Human Rights.

## Personal life

Lee married businessman and professional golfer Park Jin-woo on January 10, 2003. The couple have two daughters & one son (born in Dec 2003, May 2014 and May 2015). Lee is Catholic.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1998 | Scent of a Man | young Eun-hye |
| 1999 | Attack the Gas Station | Ggal-chi |
| 2001 | Take Care of My Cat | Shin Hye-joo |
| 2002 | A.F.R.I.K.A. | Lee Ji-won |
| 2002 | Surprise Party | Wang Ha-young |
| 2005 | When Romance Meets Destiny | Go Yun-kyung |
| 2007 | May 18 | Park Shin-ae |
| 2010 | The Recipe | Jang Hye-jin |
| 2012 | Perfect Number | Baek Hwa-sun |
| 2013 | Fists of Legend | Hong Gyu-min |
| 2017 | My Little Brother | Oh Soo-kyung |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1998 | I Hate You, But It's Fine | Lee Bit-na |
| 1999 | March | Jung Yo-won |
| 1999 | School 2 | Kim Yeon-jin |
| 2000 | Tough Guy's Love | Heo Ji-hye |
| 2001 | Blue Mist | Lee Shin-woo |
| 2001 | Pure Heart | Han Se-jin/Kang Hyun-joo |
| 2002 | The Great Ambition | Yoon Yeo-jin |
| 2005 | Fashion 70s | Han Deo-mi |
| 2007 | Surgeon Bong Dal-hee | Bong Dal-hee |
| 2007 | Cruel Love | Na In-jung |
| 2009 | Queen Seondeok | Princess Deokman/Queen Seondeok |
| 2011 | 49 Days | Song Yi-kyung |
| 2012 | The King's Doctor | Kang Ji-nyeong |
| 2013 | Empire of Gold | Choi Seo-yoon |
| 2016 | My Horrible Boss | Ok Da-jung |
| 2016 | Night Light | Seo Yi-kyung |
| 2017 | Avengers Social Club | Kim Jung-hye |
| 2019 | Different Dreams | Lee Young-jin |
| 2019 | The Running Mates: Human Rights | Han Yoon-seo |
| 2022 | Green Mothers' Club | Lee Eun-pyo |

### Variety

| Year | Title | Episode |
| 2008 | tvN World Special "LOVE" | Vietnam |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Song title | Artist |
| 1998 | "Please Baby Don't Cry" | Deep |
| 1998 | "WAYO!WAYO!" | O.P.P.A |
| 1999 | "Will You Forgive Me" | A4 |
| 1999 | "To Her Lover" | K2 |
| 2000 | "I Love You" | Position |
| 2001 | "I Wish You Happiness (Joy Project - 1 Year of Love)" | WHY |
| 2002 | "울고 싶어지는 오후" | Ji Seo-ryeon |
| 2006 | "Liquor" | Vibe |
| 2007 | "Love's Greeting" | SeeYa |
| 2007 | "Ice Doll" | SeeYa |
| 2009 | "I'm Terrible in Love" | Shin Seung-hun |
| 2012 | "Love Is All the Same" | Yangpa |

## Discography

| Year | Song title | Notes |
| 2009 | "Bidam (A Sad Story)" | Track from Queen Seondeok Special OST Part 2 |

## Awards and nominations

Year presented, name of the award ceremony, category, nominated work and the result of the nomination :
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2001 | KBS Drama Awards | Popularity Award | Blue Mist | Won |
| 2001 | 9th Chunsa Film Art Awards | Best Actress | Take Care of My Cat | Won |
| 2001 | 22nd Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best New Actress | Take Care of My Cat | Won |
| 2001 | 4th Director's Cut Awards | Best New Actress | Take Care of My Cat | Won |
| 2002 | 38th Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actress (Film) | Take Care of My Cat | Won |
| 2002 | SBS Drama Awards | New Star Award | The Great Ambition | Won |
| 2005 | SBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress in a Special Planning Drama | Fashion 70's | Won |
| 2005 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | Fashion 70's | Won |
| 2007 | 27th Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best Leading Actress | May 18 | Nominated |
| 2007 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Surgeon Bong Dal-hee | Won |
| 2007 | SBS Drama Awards | Netizen Popularity Award | Surgeon Bong Dal-hee | Won |
| 2007 | SBS Drama Awards | Best Couple Award with Lee Beom-soo | Surgeon Bong Dal-hee | Won |
| 2007 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | Surgeon Bong Dal-hee | Won |
| 2007 | KBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Cruel Love | Nominated |
| 2009 | 22nd Grimae Awards | Best Actress | Queen Seondeok | Won |
| 2009 | 10th Korea Visual Arts Festival | Photogenic Award | Queen Seondeok | Won |
| 2009 | MBC Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Queen Seondeok | Won |
| 2009 | MBC Drama Awards | Best Couple Award with Kim Nam-gil | Queen Seondeok | Won |
| 2010 | Asia Model Awards | Special Award for Asian Drama | Queen Seondeok | Won |
| 2011 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Drama Special | 49 Days | Nominated |
| 2011 | SBS Drama Awards | Producers' Award, Actress | 49 Days | Won |
| 2011 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | 49 Days | Won |
| 2012 | MBC Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Special Project Drama | The King's Doctor | Nominated |
| 2013 | 6th Korea Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Empire of Gold | Nominated |
| 2013 | SBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Drama Special | Empire of Gold | Won |
| 2013 | SBS Drama Awards | Top 10 Stars | Empire of Gold | Won |
| 2019 | MBC Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Monday-Tuesday Miniseries | Different Dreams | Nominated |

### Listicles

Name of publisher, year listed, name of listicle, and placement :
| Publisher | Year | Listicle | Placement | Ref. |
| Forbes | 2010 | Korea Power Celebrity | 22nd | |