Shin Eun-kyung (; born 15 February 1973) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading roles in Downfall (1997) and My Wife Is a Gangster (2001). Shin is one of the most prominent Korean actress in the 1990s, alongside Shim Eun-ha, Ko So-young and Jeon Do-yeon, whom she starred with in General Hospital (1994).
Career Shin began appearing in commercials in 1986 at the age of 13, and made her television debut in 1988 on KBS. Throughout the late eighties and early nineties, she acted in a great number of films and TV dramas (notably in the 2001 medical drama General Hospital), garnering fame for her warm screen presence. In 1997, however, she took on her most daring role as a prostitute in veteran director Im Kwon-taek's Downfall. The film was a box-office success, leading her to star status.
In 1999, she starred in two films, including the Korean-Japanese co-produced horror film The Ring Virus, based on the novel by Koji Suzuki. Her success in this role led to her being cast in a small role for a Japanese film, Uzumaki (also known as Spiral). Around this time, Shin was also working as an MC for a television game show.
In 2002, Shin starred in her most famous role as a tough, female gang boss in My Wife Is a Gangster. The film drew more than 5 million spectators and became a strong hit throughout Asia. She also appeared in the sequel, My Wife Is a Gangster 2, but the film faltered at the box office in 2003. Other roles Shin starred in around this time were as a detective in This Is Law (also known as Out of Justice), as a professional matchmaker in the romantic comedy A Perfect Match, and as a naval officer in the box office bomb Blue.
Shin went on a short hiatus after she married and had a baby, and returned to acting in 2005, starring in films such as Bystanders and Mr. Housewife, and television series such as Bad Couple, Mom's Dead Upset, White Lie, Still You and The Scandal. She gained praise for her impassioned portrayals of ruthless and ambitious women in the 2010 melodrama Flames of Desire and the 2014 revenge thriller The Plan.
Other activities Shin has been a professor at Seoul Hoseo Art College's Department of Performing Arts since 2011.
Personal life On 22 September 2003, Shin married Kim Jung-soo, who was then the CEO of her talent agency Good Player Entertainment. The following year, she gave birth to a son, who was later diagnosed with hydrocephalus. On 24 August 2007, Shin filed for divorce when she learned that Kim had used her private seal without her permission to misappropriate () for his business after its merger with Fantom Entertainment and the box office failure of several films he'd produced. In November, Shin sued Kim for forgery of private documents. In a separate case, she was sued by KM Culture, the company from whom Kim had taken a loan which amounted to (). On 28 December 2008, the court ruled that Shin was not liable for her ex-husband's debts, stating that although Shin's seal is on the loan contract, Shin had not seen any of the money loaned, had not authorized her seal's use, and is therefore not responsible for the debt.
She again landed in the entertainment headlines in 2011 when she underwent bimaxillary osteotomy surgery (or jaw realignment surgery), reportedly because she felt making her strong jawline "slimmer and more rounded" would give her a "younger, softer, more feminine" look, which would result in more acting roles. Shin later spoke candidly that she regretted having undergone the procedure for pure cosmetic purposes, saying the public should be better informed about the pain and danger associated with the invasive surgery. In 2012, she sued an oriental medicine clinic for violating her portrait rights and privacy after it posted false ads on the internet without her permission, featuring her photo and treatment process; she had gone to the clinic to decrease the swelling of her face, a side effect of her jaw reconstruction surgery, but the clinic's treatments proved ineffective. The court ruled in Shin's favor and awarded her damages amounting to .
Filmography Film Year Title Role 1989 Kuro Arirang Sook-hee 1990 This Is the Beginning of Love Hyeon-im 1991 The Lover on the Bicycle 1992 Life Isn't a Multiple Choice Test Min Cho-hee 1993 No Emergency Exit1994 Love on a Rainy Day Peng Young-mi The Young Man Jae-yi 1997 Downfall Eun-young 1998 A Mystery of the Cube Shin Tae-kyung 1999 The Ring Virus Hong Sun-joo2000 Uzumaki Chie Maruyama General Hospital the Movie: A Thousand Days Kang Eun-soo2001 My Wife Is a Gangster Cha Eun-jin This Is Law Kang Min-joo2002 A Perfect Match Kim Hyo-jin Baby Alone2003 Blue Kang Su-jin My Wife Is a Gangster 2 Cha Eun-jin2005 Mr. Housewife Go Soo-hee Diary of June Chu Ja-young 2010 Love, In Between Han So-young 2013 Born to Sing Moon Bo-ri's mother 2014 The Plan Se-hee 2020 Shiho Su-jeong 2022 It's Alright TVING Shorts Film
Television series Year Title Role Network 1988 Door of Desire KBS11990 What the Women Live MBC Pacheonmu Queen JeongsunKBS21991 Thief's Wife Velvet Grass of the Old Days 1992 Self-Portrait in Black 1993 January Pilot Do Jin-sook MBC1994 The Last Match Kim Soo-jin General Hospital Lee Jung-hwa 1995 Yeo (Woman) Yong-seol 1996 Salted Mackerel Yoo Young-woo 1998 Song of the Wind Jung Sun-jooSBS 1999 Wave Lee Ok-jeom 2007 Bad Couple Kim Dang-ja2008 Mom's Dead Upset Na Young-su KBS2 White Lie Seo Eun-youngMBC 2010 Flames of Desire Yoon Na-young 2012 Still You Cha Soon-young/Baek In-ah SBS2013 The Scandal Yoon Hwa-young MBC Your Neighbor's Wife Hong Kyung-joo jTBC2014 Wife Scandal:"The Wind Rises" Wife (episode 1: "Lie") TV Chosun Family Secret Han Jung-yeontvN2015 Oh My Ghost Jo Hye-young The Time We Were Not in Love Gu Yeon-jung SBS The Village: Achiara's Secret Yoon Ji-sook2017 Drama Special:"Bad Families" Park Myung-hwa KBS 2018 The Last EmpressEmpress KangSBS2020–2021The Penthouse: War in Life Kang Ma-ri SBS 2023–2024 The Escape of the Seven Cha Joo-ran SBS
Variety shows Year Title Notes 1997 Beautiful Morning with Shin Eun-kyung and Kim Chang-wan Host 1999 Creating a Better World 2011–2012 She and Him 2014 A Man Who Satisfies 99 Women Host
Music video appearances Year Song title Artist 2001 "Fixing My Makeup" Wax 2002 "Ace of Sorrow" Jo Sung-mo 2005 "Smile Again" KCM
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Nominated work Result1994 TV Journal Star of the Year Awards Excellence Award, TV Acting categoryGeneral Hospital MBC Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actress 1995 31st Baeksang Arts Awards Best New Actress (TV) 1997 18th Blue Dragon Film Awards Best Leading ActressDownfall Popular Star Award 1998 34th Baeksang Arts Awards Most Popular Actress (Film) 199920th Blue Dragon Film AwardsBest Leading ActressThe Ring Virus 2001 22nd Blue Dragon Film Awards Popular Star Award My Wife Is a Gangster 2002 1st Korean Film Awards Best Actress A Perfect Match 2007 SBS Drama Awards Top Excellence Award, Actress Bad Couple Top 10 Stars 2008 KBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama Mom's Dead Upset 2009 MBC Drama Awards Top Excellence Award, Actress White Lie 2010 MBC Drama Awards Flames of Desire 2012SBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actress in a Weekend/Serial Drama Still You Top 10 Stars 2013 21st Korean Culture and Entertainment Awards Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Drama The Scandal MBC Drama Awards Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Special Project Drama 2020 SBS Drama AwardsExcellence Award, Actress in a Mid-Length Drama The Penthouse: War in Life 2021 57th Baeksang Arts Awards Best Supporting Actress (TV)
References
External links Shin Eun-kyung at Run Entertainment