Kim Hee-ae (; born April 23, 1967) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading roles in

Korean drama Korean drama (), also known as K-drama or Koreanovela, refers to Korean language, Korean-language television shows made in South Korea. These shows began to be produced around the early 1960s, but were mostly consumed domestically until the rise ...

s such as ''Sons and Daughters'' (1992), ''Perfect Love'' (2003), '' My Husband's Woman'' (2007), '' How Long I've Kissed'' (2012), '' Secret Affair'' (2014), and '' The World of the Married'' (2020). She has received multiple acting awards including two Daesang (Grand Prize) and four Best Actress Awards for Television at the

Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the newspaper ''Hankook Ilbo'', ...

. In 2020, she was selected as Gallup Korea's Television Actor of the Year.

Early life

Kim Hee-ae was born in

Jeju Island Jeju Island (Jeju language, Jeju/) is South Korea's largest island, covering an area of , which is 1.83% of the total area of the country. Alongside outlying islands, it is part of Jeju Province and makes up the majority of the province. The i ...

, and her family later moved to

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

. Kim was a freshman at Hyehwa Girls' High School when she was discovered by the younger sister of one of her teachers; she had been visiting the school by chance and worked for an advertising agency. This led to her first modeling job in a commercial for a school uniform brand in 1982. This was actually her debut activity.

Career

1983–2003: Acting debut and stardom

In 1983, Kim made her acting debut in the film ''The First Day of the Twentieth Year''. While studying at Chung-Ang University as a Theater and Film major, she appeared in her first

television drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...

on KBS in 1986. Over the next decade, she would go on to have a successful career on Korean television, alongside fellow top actresses Chae Shi-ra and Choi Jin-sil. Among her most significant dramas during this period were ''Beyond the Mountains'' (1991) and ''Sons and Daughters'' (1992), for which she won the highest award at the

MBC Drama Awards The MBC Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony presented by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually in December. Unlike its counterparts in KBS and SBS, MBC ...

and the

, called the Daesang ("Grand Prize").

2003–2009: Hit dramas

She again drew praise in 2003 for two consecutive hit dramas. In ''Wife'', her husband vanishes and reappears years later as an amnesiac with another family, while in ''Perfect Love'' (written by

Kim Soo-hyun Kim Soo-hyun (; born February 16, 1988) is a South Korean actor. He is the recipient of five Baeksang Arts Awards, two Grand Bell Awards and one Blue Dragon Film Award. Kim made his television debut in 2007 with the family sitcom ''Kimchi Che ...

), her role as the perfect wife and mother who gets diagnosed with a terminal illness earned her another Daesang from the Baeksang Arts Awards. She worked again with Kim a year later in '' Precious Family'' (also known as ''Letters to My Parents''), playing a woman who marries into a rich family who treats her badly after she gives birth to a baby with

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

. Kim next starred in the melodrama '' Snow Flower''. Her third collaboration with Kim Soo-hyun was 2007's '' My Husband's Woman'', but unlike her previous saintly characters, this time she was cast against type as a sexy, worldly woman having an affair with her best friend's husband. The adultery drama was a hit with a peak viewership rating of 38.7%, and Kim yet again won the Daesang at the

Korea Drama Awards The Korea Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony for excellence in television in South Korea. It was established in 2007, and is held annually in October in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province as the official main event of the annual Korea Drama F ...

and the

SBS Drama Awards The SBS Drama Awards (), also known as SBS Awards Festival, is an awards ceremony presented annually by Seoul Broadcasting System (SBS) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually on December 31. The hi ...

2010–2012: Hiatus and focus on commercials and magazines

Afterwards, Kim went on a brief hiatus, during which she continued to appear in commercials and magazines, gaining a reputation as a style icon for Korean middle-aged women (called " ajumma") by inspiring them to wear younger and edgier clothes. Kim returned to acting four years later with ''

Midas Midas (; ) was a king of Phrygia with whom many myths became associated, as well as two later members of the Phrygian royal house. His father was Gordias, and his mother was Cybele. The most famous King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek m ...

'', in the role of a wealthy

chaebol A chaebol ( , ; , ) is a large industrial South Korean conglomerate run and controlled by an individual or family. A chaebol often consists of multiple diversified affiliates, controlled by a person or group. Several dozen large South Kore ...

heiress who fosters greed and ambition in a young lawyer. She then won Best Actress at the Baeksang Arts Awards for her portrayal of a housewife increasingly stifled by her husband's obsession with status who finds herself falling for her son's dentist in '' How Long I've Kissed'', one of the inaugural dramas in 2012 of new cable channel

jTBC JTBC (shortened from Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company; ; stylized in all lowercase) is a South Korean nationwide pay television network. Its primary shareholder is JoongAng Holdings, with a 25% stake. It was launched on December 1, ...

2013–present: Return to the big screen and continued success

2013 marked Kim's first regular appearance in a

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

with '' Sisters Over Flowers'', in which she,

Youn Yuh-jung Youn Yuh-jung (, ; born June 19, 1947) is a South Korean actress, whose career in film and television spans over five decades. Her accolades include an Academy Award, Screen Actors Guild Award, British Academy Film Award, and Independent Spir ...

, Kim Ja-ok, Lee Mi-yeon and

Lee Seung-gi Lee Seung-gi (; born January 13, 1987) is a South Korean singer, actor, host, lyricist and entertainer. As one of the highest paid celebrities of South Korea and recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including a Golden Disc Awards, Golde ...

go on a backpacker tourism trip around

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. In 2014, Kim returned to the big screen after a 21-year absence in '' Thread of Lies'', a

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

of Kim Ryeo-ryeong's novel ''Elegant Lies'' about teen bullying which leads to a young girl's suicide. Kim said she accepted the project because the script was "faultless" and she felt empathy for the characters, and one review described her performance as "excellent as the grieving mother ..understated but somehow believable, touching and honest." Shortly after, Kim reunited with the writer and

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

of '' How Long I've Kissed'' in ''Secret Affair'', about an art foundation director who embarks on a passionate affair with a poor but talented pianist 20 years her junior. She next played the

muse In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...

of real-life

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

group Twin Folio in the 2015 film '' C'est Si Bon'', named after a music lounge located in Myeong-dong which was famous in the 1970s and 1980s for its live performances. She returned to the small screen with the police procedural drama '' Mrs. Cop'', playing a violent crime detective who struggles to become a good mother. In 2016, Kim signed with

YG Entertainment YG Entertainment () is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment agency established in 1996 by Yang Hyun-suk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and conce ...

. The same year, she starred in the family melodrama '' Second to Last Love''. Kim then returned to the big screen, starring in the psychological thriller '' The Vanished'' and drama film ''

Herstory Herstory is a term for history written from a feminist perspective and emphasizing the role of women, or told from a woman's point of view. It originated as an alteration of the word "history", as part of a feminist critique of conventional his ...

'', based on the real story of comfort women. In 2019 she starred in Lim Dae-hyung's film '' Moonlit Winter''. In March 2025, Kim left

and signed with new agency

KeyEast KeyEast (; stylized in all caps) is a management agency founded by actor Bae Yong-joon. History In May 2009, KeyEast acquired Japanese company () () and made it an affiliated company. After the acquition by SM Entertainment, it was renamed Stre ...

Personal life

Kim married ,

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the

web portal A web portal is a specially designed website that brings information from diverse sources, like emails, online forums and search engines, together in a uniform way. Usually, each information source gets its dedicated area on the page for displayin ...

DreamWiz, in 1996. They have two sons. Kim is a Roman Catholic and was one of 50 Catholic celebrities who appeared in the 2014 music video for the digital single "Koinonia" to commemorate

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

' visit to South Korea, the first time in 19 years that the pope visited Asia. Her baptismal name is Maria.

Filmography

Film

Television series

Television shows

Radio program

Awards and nominations

State honors

Listicles

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kim, Hee-ae 1967 births 20th-century South Korean actresses 21st-century South Korean actresses South Korean television actresses South Korean web series actresses South Korean film actresses South Korean female models Chung-Ang University alumni Living people South Korean Roman Catholics Actresses from Jeju Province Best Actress Paeksang Arts Award (television) winners Asia Contents Awards & Global OTT Awards winners Actresses from Seoul