Kim Hye-soo: ‘I know myself well — and what I still need to work on’

South Korean screen icon Kim Hye-soo has been billed as a major force in film and television for nearly four decades.

Throughout a career defined by fierce, charismatic and intelligent roles, she has carved out a legacy, frequently upstaging her male co-stars in a sector long dominated by male-driven narratives.

Defined by a sultry authority and the gravitas of a seasoned screen veteran, Kim has showcased a formidable range since her 1986 debut, spanning heist masterminds, gamblers, and a charismatic Joseon queen steering her royal offspring through palace politics.

Her latest project, however, steers her in a new direction, presenting a character who appears noticeably more superficial than her past roles.

In the eight-part series “The Affair Was Just the Beginning,” Kim stars as Kyung-hee, a digital tastemaker who escapes poverty to build an influencer empire. Now her family’s primary breadwinner, she enjoys a seemingly enviable life surrounded by haute couture and luxury brands — until it unravels after she becomes entangled in a dark chain of events sparked, as the title suggests, by suspicions of her husband’s infidelity.

Reflecting on stepping into the shoes of a highly visible influencer governed by constant social comparison, Kim noted during an Aug. 13 interview that the world felt surprisingly familiar.

“The common ground is that both depend on the public’s attention and affection,” Kim said, addressing the overlap between legacy stars and digital influencers.

Living under the spotlight for 40 years means Kim is no stranger to public commentary, especially regarding her image.

“Of course,” Kim said when asked if she was used to constant comparisons. “Even when it comes to me alone, people compare my past with my present, my acting and even my appearance. It’s unavoidable. People make comparisons based on their own standards, so I don’t find it strange.”

She acknowledged the double-edged sword of high-profile publicity in the modern media landscape that has accompanied her throughout her career.

“There are times (throughout my career) when I think, ‘Oh, are we really taking this that far?’” she added. “But I don’t think the projects I take on are simply about seeing how well we can do among ourselves. The goal is to introduce the work to a wide audience, so (my thoughts are that) the comparisons naturally come with the process.”

To shape her character’s public persona, Kim studied real-life digital creators who turned their lives into lucrative online empires.

“In the case of Kyung-hee, we were selling both her distinctive sense and ideas, while also showing a family that started from the very bottom under difficult circumstances and grew from there. There are rare cases like that,” Kim explained.

“From the outset, I looked at examples of people who succeeded by opening up not only their content and personal information without holding anything back, but also their personal spaces completely, and building a base of public support.”

According to her, the series’ Korean title, which translates more literally to “The Affair Isn’t the Problem Right Now,” was a primary hook for the actress.

“I had a few scripts to choose from, but this title really drew me in. ‘The affair isn’t the problem right now.’ I thought, ‘OK, then what is the problem?’ and picked up the script,” Kim said during an interview on Aug. 13.

“I think the title itself is a device. You’d expect the affair to be the problem, but it’s saying that the affair actually isn’t the issue. The story starts with an affair, but ultimately, I realized that what the writer really wanted to explore was how differently various characters reveal themselves when placed in extreme circumstances.”

While Kim’s extensive filmography spans melodrama, action, crime and romance, “The Affair Was Just the Beginning” represents a rare dive into black comedy — a genre still relatively underrepresented on Korean television compared to other genres like romance.

“I like black comedy. But liking it and taking part in it as an actor are two completely different things,” Kim said. “I think the black comedy in this work comes through so well because each character has a different reason for wanting to protect their family and a different way of doing so.”

“I was drawn to the script because I thought it portrayed the absurdity that comes from those differences, as well as a kind of laughter that lingers rather than forced humor, very well,” she added.

For Kim, however, finding the right tone required more precision than the genre might suggest.

“When you’re acting, you have to examine, calculate and fine-tune things much more carefully than you might expect. I tried to look at the script very closely. Even so, there were still things I ended up missing,” she said.

That approach reflected a broader philosophy that has guided Kim throughout her career. Despite her status as one of Korea’s most established actresses, she said she remains well aware of her own limitations and areas for improvement.

When fellow actors describe her as demanding of herself while being generous toward others, Kim said she does not see it as self-criticism so much as self-awareness.

“It’s not that I belittle myself or am particularly hard on myself. I know myself well. I know what I still need to work on as an actor, where I’m vulnerable, and where I tend to put too much effort into things,” she said.

“So rather than thinking of it as being generous toward others and strict with myself, it’s simply a matter of recognizing the facts. I’d like to pretend I don’t know sometimes, but the more that’s the case, the more accurately I need to understand myself.”

That same focus on the present may have also shaped Kim’s approach to the uncertainty surrounding her projects, including one of her most highly anticipated works, “Signal” Season 2.

The second season of the hit 2016 tvN crime thriller, which peaked at a 15 percent viewership rating, was originally expected to premiere in the network’s summer 2026 lineup. Written by acclaimed screenwriter Kim Eun-hee and featuring Kim Hye-soo, Cho Jin-woong and Lee Je-hoon, the sequel has since been postponed, with tvN continuing to weigh its scheduling and release format.

The delay followed Cho’s retirement from acting in December 2025, days after reports surfaced about a decades-old juvenile record. Cho publicly acknowledged wrongdoing as a minor through his agency while denying involvement in sexual assault. Following the revelations, Cho was removed from several broadcasts, and the fate of “Signal” Season 2 has remained uncertain since.

For Kim, however, the uncertainty is not something she allows herself to dwell on.

“It may be part of my personality or temperament, but I focus only on that particular moment. There is no ‘after’ for me. Once it’s over, it no longer feels like it belongs to me, so I don’t get too shaken by what happens afterward,” she said.

“What I can control is choosing the script, preparing as hard as I can, and making sure I deliver on set without missing anything. Everything after that is beyond my control.”