True Beauty

Official promotional poster

***True Beauty*** (Korean: 여신강림; Hanja: 女神降臨; RR: *yeosingangnim*; lit. ***The Advent of a Goddess***) is a South Korean television series starring Moon Ga-young, Cha Eun-woo, Hwang In-youp, and Park Yoo-na. Based on the Line Webtoon of the same name by Yaongyi, it centers on a high school girl who, after being bullied and discriminated against because of being perceived as ugly, masters the art of makeup to transform herself into a gorgeous "goddess". It aired on tvN from December 9, 2020 to February 4, 2021, every Wednesday and Thursday at 22:30 (KST).

 First Aired
 1

## Synopsis

This series is about Lim Ju-kyung (Moon Ga-young), a high school student who always had a complex about her appearance since she was young. To hide her bare face, she started to wear heavy make-up. Her excellent make-up skills enhance her beauty, and persuade others that her beautiful, made-up face is her natural appearance. She befriends with her high school mate Lee Su-ho (Cha Eun-woo), a wealthy, but cold boy, and Han Seo-jun (Hwang In-yeop), an aggressive student with good talents. This plot follows Ju-kyung as she navigates her daily life and goal of becoming a cosmetologist.

## Cast

### Main

* Moon Ga-young as Lim Ju-kyung
	+ Lee Go-eun as young Ju-kyung

A newcomer student of Class 2-5 recently transferred to Saebom High School; Having been constantly discriminated by her family and bullied by her peers in previous school due to being perceived as ugly, she masters to wear makeup by binge-watching tutorial videos in the Internet and her makeover proves to be transformative as she quickly rises to fame and her peers in new school call her a "goddess", unaware of her real appearance. Ju-kyung prefers reading horror comic books and listening to heavy metal music.
* Cha Eun-woo as Lee Su-ho
	+ Lee Seung-woo as young Su-ho

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School; He is very popular for his handsome looks and being the top of his class. His dysfunctional family and a tragic incident from a year ago have turned him into an ice-cold boy who hates being the center of attention. He is formerly best friends with Seo-jun. Su-ho shares Ju-kyung's penchant for horror comic books.
* Hwang In-youp as Han Seo-jun

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School; Seo-jun is a handsome and equally-popular student at his school who, despite being a tough-looking, is a kind, loving and soft person, especially to his mother and sister. He is formerly best friends with Su-ho and a former idol trainee but a tragic incident a year ago leads to him abandoning his path to stardom and severing his friendship with Su-ho, with whom he has since become extremely hostile.
* Park Yoo-na as Kang Su-jin

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School; She is Su-ho's childhood friend and becomes close friends with the transferee Ju- but is being forced by her parents to excel at school and always being compared with Su-ho.
### Supporting

#### Lim Ju-kyung's family

* Jang Hye-jin as Hong Hyun-sook

Lim Jae-pil’s wife and mother of Hee-kyung and, Ju-kyung and Ju-young. She is the matriarch of the Lim family who owns a beauty shop named Pandora which is popular among older women.
* Park Ho-san as Lim Jae-pil

Hong Hyun-sook’s husband and father of Hee-kyung and, Ju-kyung and Ju-young. He loses a great sum of money to a dubious investment which leads to the family having to move back to their old house.
* Im Se-mi as Lim Hee-kyung
	+ Park Seo-kyung as young Hee-kyung (Ep. 1)

Ju-kyung's older sister; She is adored by the family for being pretty and intelligent. She works at Move Entertainment and develops feelings for Ju-kyung's homeroom teacher Han Joon-woo.
* Kim Min-gi as Lim Ju-young
	+ Park Ju-hwan as young Ju-young (Ep. 1)

Ju-kyung's younger brother; He harbors a crush on Han Seo-jun’s younger sister Go-woon after hearing her sing.
#### Lee Su-ho's family

* Jung Joon-ho as Lee Joo-heon

Su-ho's father; He is a famous actor and CEO of Move Entertainment who is quick to find a new woman after his wife died, much to Su-ho's resentment.
#### Han Seo-jun's family

* Yeo Joo-ha as Han Go-woon

A student at Saebom High School; Seo-jun's younger sister. She has great singing talent, but is bullied by her peers for being perceived as ugly. She befriends with Ju-kyung after Ju-kyung saves her from bullies.
* Park Hyun-jung as Lee Mi-hyang

Mother of Seo-jun and Go-woon; an acquaintance of Hyun-sook (Ju-kyung’s mother). She suffers from an illness requiring a kidney transplant.
#### Kang Su-jin's family

* Seo Sang-won as Kang Jun-hyuk

Su-jin's father; professor and doctor-in-charge of a medical school. He teaches Su-jin to be competitive and abuses her mentally and physically.
* Yoo Dam-yeon as Kim Ji-yeon

Su-jin's mother. Passive with her husband's abuse at first. Later divorces him and leaves Korea with Su-jin.
#### Saebom High School

* Oh Eui-shik as Han Joon-woo

Homeroom teacher of Class 2-5 and literature teacher in Saebom High School. He falls in love with Hee-kyung.
* Kang Min-ah as Choi Soo-ah

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School; Ju-kyung and Su-jin's best friend and classmate; Tae-hoon's girlfriend.
* Lee Il-jun as Yoo Tae-hoon

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School; Soo-ah's boyfriend. Tae-hoon often seeks the approval of Su-ho and later becomes friends with him.
* Lee Sang-jin as Ahn Hyun-gyu

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School.
* Han Yi-young as Ha Ji-young

A student of Class 2-5 in Saebom High School.
* Lee Woo-je as Kim Cho-rong

A student in Saebom High School; Seo-jun's friend.
* Kim Hyun-ji as Kim Si-hyun

A student in Saebom High School.
* Kim Myung-ji as Jin Hee-jeong

A Year 1 student in Saebom High School; webmaster of school's online community. She once bullied Go-woon.
* Kim Byung-chun as the vice-principal of Saebom High School.

#### Yongpa High School

* Shin Jae-hwi as Lee Sung-yong

A student in Yongpa High School. He is a bully who formerly acquainted with Seo-jun.
* Jeon Hye-won as Park Sae-mi

A student of Yongpa High School. A popular girl with pretty face, who used to bully Ju-kyung before she transferred to Saebom High School.
* Oh Yoo-jin as Joo Hye-min

A student in Yongpa High School who later transfers to Saebom High School after being bullied tremendously at her old school.
* Seo Hye-won as Park Ji-hee

A student in Yongpa High School; a friend of Park Sae-mi.
#### Others

* Im Hyun-sung as Wang Ja

The owner of Prince Comics, the comic book store that Ju-kyung and Su-ho frequents.
* Park Young-soo as Columbus Park

The man who tricks Ju-kyung's father out of his money.
### Special Appearances

* Kang Chan-hee as Jung Se-yeon (Ep. 1, 4–5, 11–12, 16)

Su-ho and Seo-jun’s late best friend. Se-yeon was a member of a boy group under Move Entertainment. A victim of harsh online shaming and fake scandals, he committed suicide by jumping off a tall building. His tragic death becomes the center of the broken friendship between Seo-jun and Su-ho, Seo-jun's animosity towards Su-ho's father and Su-ho's life of immense guilt.
* Go Woo-ri as Selena

A famous makeup-artist whom Ju-kyung idolizes and later works for.
* Lee Tae-ri as Wang Hyun-bin (Ep. 1)

A handsome nutritionist of Yongpa High School's canteen whom Ju-kyung had a crush on.
* Ok Joo-ri as a neighbourhood woman (Ep. 1)
* Cha Young-ok as a neighbourhood woman (Ep. 1–2)
* Lee Jae-eun as Su-ho's housekeeper (Ep. 3)
* Song Hoon as a history teacher (Ep. 3)
* Uhm Tae-yoon as a customer (Ep. 3)
* Kim Jeong-hak as Joo-heon's associate (Ep. 3)
* Jang Young-hyun as a guy at the convenience store (Ep. 3)
* Moon Hak-jin as a guy at the convenience store (Ep. 3)
* Ham Tae-gyun as a guy at the convenience store (Ep. 3)
* Kim Hye-yoon as Eun Dan-oh (Ep. 4)

Baek Kyung's classmate and fiancée; Ha-ru's girlfriend whom Suho mistakes as Jugyeong
* Lee Jae-wook as Baek Kyung (Ep. 4)

Dan-oh's classmate and fiancé whom Suho mistakes as Woo-hyun, Jugyeong's blind date.
* Jung Gun-joo as Ryu Hyung-jin

A baseball star playing for Seonil High School who has a crush on Ju-kyung and asks her out. (Ep. 7)
* Woo Hyun as the camping site manager (Ep. 8)
* Template:Ill as MC Jaerong, recreation MC (Ep. 8)
* Jung Ye-nok as the head of imaginary bullies (Ep. 9)
* Lee Han-wi as Min Jae-joon (Ep. 13)

A plastic surgeon.
* Kim Young-dae as Oh Nam-joo (Ep. 15)

A stranger whom Ju-kyung runs into at Namsan Tower, and she mistaken him as Su-ho.
* Lim Da-young as Chae-ni (Ep. 15–16)

A celebrity under Move Entertainment.
## Production

In July 2019, it was announced that the Line Webtoon *True Beauty* would be adapted into a television series. In August 2020, the production team confirmed the casting of Moon Ga-young, Cha Eun-woo and Hwang In-yeop in the lead roles. The first script reading session was held in October 2020. Filming was temporarily halted in late December 2020 after Template:Ill tested positive for COVID-19. The first stills from filming were released on November 10, 2020, one month prior to the series premiere.

### Release

The series was originally made available for streaming through Viu and Rakuten Viki. In 2021, it became available on Amazon Prime Video from October 21. In 2023, it became available in Netflix in selected territories.

## Notes

1. ↑ See *True Beauty: Original Soundtrack* for the names of all involved musical score composers.
2. ↑ The end themes used vary per episode but are all singles from *True Beauty: Original Soundtrack*. See the list of singles for details.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 The character appears in a short crossover scene alluding Director Kim Sang-hyeop's previous work *Extraordinary You* (2019) where the character originally appears.
4. ↑ Kim Young-dae's cameo role alludes to his role as Oh Nam-joo in Episode 32 of Director Kim Sang-hyeop's *Extraordinary You* (2019).

## References

1. ↑ Osaki, Tomohiro (May 5, 2019). South Korea's booming 'webtoons' put Japan's print manga on notice. *The Japan Times*. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
2. ↑ 여신강림 OST [True Beauty OST]. *Bugs!* (in ko) (February 5, 2021). Archived from the original on February 5, 2021. Retrieved on February 5, 2021.
3. ↑ Lee, Gyu-lee (December 3, 2020). 'True Beauty' stars feel pressure to satisfy fans with TV adaptation of web comic. *The Korea Times*. Archived from the original on December 27, 2020. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
4. ↑ Kwak, Yeon-soo (December 16, 2020). K-dramas based on webtoons hailed by TV viewers. *The Korea Times*. Archived from the original on December 27, 2020. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
5. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedLee, Jung-hyun (August 12, 2020). {{{title}}} [Moon Ga-Young and Cha Eun-Woo, starring tvN 'Goddess Advent']. *Yonhap* (in ko). Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
6. ↑ 기획 의도: 여신강림이란? [Purpose of the Program: What is "True Beauty"?]. *tvN* (in ko). Archived from the original on December 27, 2020. Retrieved on December 27, 2020.
7. ↑ *True Beauty*. *Korea JoongAng Daily* (December 2, 2020). Retrieved on December 7, 2020.
8. ↑ WATCH CJ ENM. *watch.cjenm.com*. Retrieved on February 10, 2023.
9. ↑ Kim, Jinseok (June 23, 2020). (단독)문가영, tvN 드라마 '여신강림' 주인공 [(Exclusive) Moon Ga-young, the main character of the tvN drama 'Goddess Advent']. *Naver* (in Korean). Sports Daily. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
10. ↑ Kim, Jinseok (April 23, 2020). (단독)차은우, 드라마 '여신강림' 주인공 [(Exclusive) Cha Eun-woo, the main character of the drama 'Goddess Advent']. *Naver* (in Korean). Sports Daily. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
11. ↑ Moon, Ji-yeon (July 14, 2020). (단독) '웹드계★' 황인엽, tvN '여신강림' 주인공 전격 발탁 [(Exclusive) Hwang In-yeop is selected as the main character in tvN 'Goddess Advent']. *Naver* (in Korean). Sports Chosun. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
12. ↑ Moon, Ji-yeon (August 14, 2020). (공식) 박유나, tvN '여신강림' 합류..문가영X차은우와 호흡 [(Official) Park Yoo-na joins tvN 'Goddess Advent'... Breathing with Moon Ga-young x Cha Eun-woo]. *Chosun Ilbo*. Retrieved on October 18, 2020.
13. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedKim, Joon-seok (September 1, 2020). {{{title}}} [Park Ho-san confirmed to appear on tvN's new drama'The Goddess Advent'… Expectations of Ga-young Moon and 'Woman Chemie']. *Chosun Ilbo* (in ko). Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
14. ↑ Lim Se-mi to Star in "True Beauty" as Lim Hee-kyeong. *HanCinema* (August 13, 2020). Retrieved on October 14, 2020.
15. ↑ Jung Joon-ho to Make Special Appearance in "True Beauty". *HanCinema* (September 2, 2020). Retrieved on October 14, 2020.
16. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedMoon, Ji-yeon (September 16, 2020). {{{title}}} [[Official] Kang Min-ah joins tvN 'Goddess Advent'.. Moon Ga-young and best friend breath]. *Chosun Ilbo* (in ko). Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
17. ↑ Ho, Sung jung (September 2, 2020). 이상진, '여신강림' 캐스팅 첫 드라마 데뷔..차은우 친구+모태솔로 (공식) [Lee Sang-jin, 'Goddess Advent' casting first drama debut.. Cha Eun-woo friend + mother-in-law (Official)]. *OSEN* (in ko). Chosun Ilbo. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
18. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedLee, Ji-hyun (September 3, 2020). {{{title}}} [[Official] Shin Jae-hui confirmed to appear on tvN'Goddess Advent'… Hwang In-yeop and Tom and Jerry Chemie]. *Chosun Ilbo* (in ko). Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
19. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedHa, Soo-junh (September 9, 2020). {{{title}}} [Jeon Hye-won confirmed to appear in 'Goddess Advent'...]. *OSEN* (in ko). Chosun Ilbo. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
20. ↑ Lee, Song-hee. [단독 SF9 찬희, tvN '여신강림' 특별 출연…연기돌 활약 이어간다] [[Exclusive] SF9 Chanhee, special appearance on tvN'Goddess Advent'… Continue acting as an actor]. *X-Sports News* (in ko). Retrieved on 2020-10-16.
21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Kim, Ga-Young (30 November 2020). [단독 김혜윤·이재욱·이태리, '여신강림' 총출동…'어하루' 의리] [[Exclusive] Kim Hye-yoon, Lee Jae-wook, Italy,'Goddess Advent']. *E-daily* (in ko). Retrieved on 30 November 2020.
22. ↑ Lee Seung-gil (January 5, 2021). 정건주, 김혜윤·이재욱·이태리 이어 '여신강림' 특별출연…'어하루' 의리 [Jung Kun-ju, Kim Hye-yoon, Lee Jae-wook, and Italy, followed by a special appearance in'The Goddess Advent'… 'Oh day' loyalty]. *Mydaily* (in ko). Naver. Retrieved on January 5, 2021.
23. ↑ Park Soo-in (January 22, 2021). 여신강림' 측 "김영대 특별출연, 2월 초 방송"(공식입장) ["Goddess Advent" side "Kim Young-dae special appearance, broadcast in early February" (official position)]. *Newsen* (in ko). Retrieved on January 22, 2021.
24. ↑ "True Beauty" Gets Virtual Casting Following Drama Confirmation. *HanCinema* (July 2, 2019). Retrieved on October 14, 2020.
25. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedPark, Phanseok (August 12, 2020). {{{title}}} ['Goddess Advent' Moon Ga-young x Cha Eun-woo x Hwang In-yeop, webtoon ripped visuals.. 2nd half of 2020 broadcast [Official]]. *Daum* (in ko). OSEN. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
26. ↑ Cha Eun-woo Releases Charm at Script Reading. *HanCinema* (October 13, 2020). Retrieved on October 14, 2020.
27. ↑ Error on call to Template:cite web: Parameters **url** and **title** must be specifiedSun, Mi-kyung (October 12, 2020). {{{title}}} ['Goddess Advent' Moon Ga-young x Cha Eun-woo x Hwang In-yeop, the first script reading.. pleasant + refreshing chemistry preview]. *Daum* (in ko). OSEN. Retrieved on October 20, 2020.
28. ↑ Schwartz, William (December 22, 2020). Kim Byung-choon of "True Beauty" Tests Positive for COVID-19. *HanCinema*. Retrieved on December 29, 2020.
29. ↑ "True Beauty", Moon Ga-young's First Stills. *HanCinema* (in en) (November 10, 2020). Retrieved on November 13, 2020.
30. ↑ Bjornson, Greta (December 16, 2020). Where to Watch the K-Drama 'True Beauty' in the US. *Decider*. Retrieved on December 29, 2020.
31. ↑ Amazon Prime Video announces its K-Drama slate, includes Mr Queen and True Beauty. *India Today* (in en) (October 21, 2021). Retrieved on October 22, 2021.
32. ↑ Nielsen Korea Cable Daily -TOP 10 LIST FOR TV PROGRAMS. *AGB Nielsen Media Research*. Retrieved on February 5, 2021.
33. ↑ Schwartz, William (December 29, 2020). "True Beauty" to Not Broadcast New Episodes This Week. *HanCinema*. Retrieved on December 30, 2020.
34. ↑ Treasure, Secret Number, D.O., & 'True Beauty' Jawara IHCA 2021 [Treasure, Secret Number, D.O., & 'True Beauty' IHCA Winners 2021]. *Korean Cultural Center Indonesia* (in id) (December 30, 2021). Archived from the original on July 22, 2022. Retrieved on July 22, 2022.