[Dispatch=Yuha Reporter] Last year's Tving series "Dear X." Viewers unanimously said, "Baek Ajin seems like she's actually alive." Kim Yoo-jung cited this response as the highest compliment.

23 years into her career. Kim Yoo-jung has always pursued "living" characters. She started as a child actress and became the lead in youth romance dramas. She crossed between period dramas and contemporary dramas, and even portrayed characters standing on the boundary between good and evil.

The public's memory of her childhood remains vivid. But when she begins acting, that familiarity disappears. Kim Yoo-jung fades away, and only the character remains.

And there's Lee Gakyung from "100 Days' Lie." Cunning and lovable, yet somewhat pitiful. Kim Yoo-jung layered multiple emotions and breathed life into Lee Gakyung.

"We needed an actress with sincere fluency in three languages and explosive power to convince the character's transformation. That answer was actress Kim Yoo-jung." (Writer Ryu Bo-ri)

Kim Yoo-jung's 23 years are not merely a filmography. It is time spent understanding characters, nurturing them, and bringing them to life. Dispatch retraced her acting journey.

◆ Breaking the Child Actress Mold

Kim Yoo-jung displayed a distinctive presence from a young age. After her screen debut in the 2004 film "DMZ" followed by experience in films like "Kind Gold Miss" (2005), she built her acting foundation.

In "Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox" (2010), she played Yeon-i, the daughter of the nine-tailed fox. She portrayed the purity and sorrow of a girl standing before a tragic fate. Even at a young age, she conveyed emotion convincingly.

In "The Moon That Embraces the Sun" (2012), she played young Heo Yeon-woo, acting out the excitement of first love and the pain of parting. Before passing the baton to an adult actress, she captivated viewers.

However, the child actress role had limitations. Most remained in the protagonist's childhood. She had to exit before the story truly began.

Kim Yoo-jung gradually broke that mold. In "Elegant Lie" (2014), she took on her first villainous role as Kim Hwa-yeon, who bullies a friend. She revealed the duality hidden behind a bright face.

In "Angry Mom" (2015), she played O A-ran, who bears the scars of school violence. She conveyed fear, anger, and complex emotions toward her mother. She had grown into a character with her own narrative, not just someone's childhood.

◆ Slowly, But Surely

For child actresses, adult acting is always a challenge. Kim Yoo-jung did not rush. Rather than forcibly changing her image, she focused on acting appropriate for her age and face at that time. Yet she gradually widened her range.

Then in 2016, a turning point arrived. "Moonlight Drawn by Clouds" with Hong Ra-on (Hong Samnom). A eunuch living in male disguise who falls in love with Crown Prince Lee Young (played by Park Bo-gum).

Kim Yoo-jung began by understanding Hong Ra-on. She handled the character's back-and-forth between boy and girl without exaggeration. She delivered Hong Ra-on's sincerity quietly and Hong Samnom's cunning playfully.

Hong Ra-on transformed her into a lead actress. She drove the story from beginning to end. Through this work, Kim Yoo-jung shed her child actress image and gained the weight and responsibility of a leading role.

In "Convenience Store Sabyeol" (2020), she took a step further. Kim Yoo-jung played Jeong Sabyeol, a part-time worker with four-dimensional charm. She added realism to the exaggerated character typical of webtoon adaptations.

If Ra-on's brightness was endearing, Sabyeol's brightness was unrestrained. She freely crossed between comedy, romance, and action. She kept her familiar face intact while layering new colors on top.

◆ Crossing Genres

Kim Yoo-jung did not stay confined to one genre. In "Lovers of the Red Sky" (2021), she played female firecracker maker Hong Cheon-gi and once again demonstrated the appeal of period dramas. She added poignant romance to the period drama skills honed since her child actress days.

In "My Demon" (2023), she moved to fantasy romance. She played Do-do-hee, a conglomerate heiress entering a contract marriage with a demon, and led the drama. Even in an unrealistic setting, she did not lose sight of the character's emotional arc.

And last year, she took on the boldest transformation. "Dear X" with Baek Ajin. A top star with antisocial personality disorder. It was her first villain role in 11 years since "Elegant Lie."

There was no reference material. Kim Yoo-jung consulted with a psychology professor. She asked endless questions about what emotions someone would feel in specific situations and why they would act that way.

However, the answer was not only in theory. Kim Yoo-jung approached Baek Ajin by fully feeling the situations on set. She laughed coldly, then changed her eyes in an instant. Thus, Baek Ajin on screen gained a presence that seemed alive.

◆ Finally, Lee Gakyung

"100 Days' Lie" is a culmination of Kim Yoo-jung's accumulated acting skills. Kim Yoo-jung played Lee Gakyung, Gyeongseong's finest pickpocket. A character who dreamed only of leaving Joseon until she infiltrated the Governor-General's Office as an informant.

In the drama, Gakyung speaks Korean, Japanese, and English. Kim Yoo-jung created her speech patterns with a language instructor and consulted repeatedly with the director. She skillfully changed her face from a sharp-eyed pickpocket to a secretive interpreter.

The moment emotion exploded was even more intense. In the opening of episode 4, as the kidnapper's gun touched her forehead, her wavering eyes changed. She then brimmed with menace and cried out, "My backing is 20 million Joseon people."

In the ending of episode 6, she displayed the opposite acting. After interpreting, Gakyung witnessed the death of independence activist Geum Suk-jung (played by Gam Woo-sung). Kim Yoo-jung expressed the shock through wavering eyes and tears that she struggled to hold back.

Throughout, she did not miss her trademark loveliness. She made an enchanted expression at her first sip of beer, and eased the drama's tension with innocent drunken antics.

"100 Days' Lie" recorded a nationwide viewership of 10.7% as of episode 10. The story has now reached the halfway point.

The crisis of Gakyung's identity as an informant is also approaching. When the 100 days' lie ends, what choice will she make? What remains now is the final face of Lee Gakyung that Kim Yoo-jung will complete.

<Photo sources=respective film companies, MBC, SBS, Tving, tvN>