Born in 2003 in South Korean Daegu, Park Ji-hoo attended the Hanyang University’s Department of Theater and has always navigated towards acting. After participating in street auditions, she was able to land minor roles in successful South Korean movies, such as Fabricated City and The Witness. It wasn’t until 2018, however, when Ji-hoo finally gained recognition as an actress on the Korean grounds for her debut feature film role. As of recent, Ji-hoo has been able to make a name for herself on the international stage due to starring in the apocalyptic Netflix series All of Us Are Dead, which was recently renewed for season 2. Let us take a look at some of her other best performances.

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5 Beautiful World (2019)

     JTBC

Beautiful World is a 2019 South Korean drama centered around a high school boy who gets seriously injured due to school violence. The topics of school bullying, violence, and the injustice that comes with it are extremely prevalent in South Korean media. The ones with power always sweep the abuse and discrimination under the carpet and the families of the hurt have to fight to reveal the truth. As for Ji-hoo, she only managed to land a small supporting role, but those are also very important in building your career, especially at such a young age. The Korean acting industry is very competitive, and it depends on the entertainment you’re signed to whether you immediately land huge roles or not.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

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4 Sweet Revenge 2 (2018)

     XtvN

Similarly to the Japanese anime Death Note, Sweet Revenge almost serves as a modern take on it. The plot follows a pushover high-school girl who discovers an app that helps her take revenge on anyone whose name she writes down. The second season in which Ji-hoo stars in follows the same premise. Given the fact that it’s a web series, the episodes weren’t long enough to properly flesh out the characters. However, thanks to the success of the first season, they produced a second one as well and gave it longer episodes. Once again, Ji-hoo didn’t land the biggest role, but she played one of the high-school students Lee Ha-yan. It gave her a bigger opportunity to push her name out there.

3 Black Light (2021)

     Film New Wave

Black Light is a Korean mystery drama movie that focuses on the shared misfortunes of two women. Due to a traffic accident when the perpetrator drives over the centerline, a man ends up in a coma. The perpetrator’s wife Hee Joo starts blaming the victim and his wife Young Nam for running in front of the car and causing the accident. The whole situation involves a lot of politics, as well as discussions of mental health such as depression. Hee Joo accidentally gets close to the victim’s daughter Eunyoung (Ji-hoo). Beware that the plot leaves a lot of open endings and will definitely leave you wondering. Ji-hoo’s character in particular gets a very ambiguous ending.

2 All Of Us Are Dead (2022)

     Netflix

And now for the role that Ji-hoo’s globally known for: her lead role as Nam On-Jo in Netflix’s All Of Us Are Dead. If there’s one thing South Koreans excel at, it’s producing quality zombie apocalypse movies and TV series. This one in particular was highly anticipated after the global success of Squid Game. The whole story takes place at one high school where a science experiment goes wrong and the students are forced to fight for survival from the zombie virus that spreads. All the actors, whether main or supporting ones, did an excellent job. The intertwined relationship between the characters, such as Ji-hoo’s Nam On-Jo (a role, per Slash Film, Ji-hoo chose herself) and her childhood best friend Lee Cheon-Sang, creates a lot of emotions for the spectators, and you can’t help but to root for them. According to Collider, Ji-hoo is set to return for the series’ second season.

1 House of Hummingbird (2018)

     Epiphany Films

Last but not least, we have the drama movie House of Hummingbird for which Ji-hoo got the most critical recognition. It follows the life of a 14-year-old Eunhee, who has to deal with abuse at home from her older brother, as well as total negligence from her parents who focus more on her brother. While dealing with her family problems, she also has to deal with romance and a lump that she discovers on her head. Throughout the story, she gets really close with her teacher, who serves as a proper mother figure. House of Hummingbird draws on themes of scarred national psyche, as well as the inequality that women face in South Korean society. It’s safe to say that without the incredible performance of the protagonist, the movie wouldn’t have as much impact as it did.