Part of Lost featuring Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Josh Holloway, Jorge Garcia, and Terry O'Quinn.
Rise to Fame
She spent years going back and forth across the Pacific before she figured out where she fit. Boston University drama degree, minor U.S. TV parts, then a hard left turn back to Korea in 1996. That pivot paid off: Shiri (1999) became the highest-grossing Korean film at the time and made her a star at home. She crossed the Pacific again to audition for Lost, originally going for Kate. The producers liked her enough that they built Sun and Jin around her instead.
In the Spotlight
Most people in her position pick a lane. Kim didn't. After Lost wrapped in 2010, she moved back to Korean cinema, then returned to American TV as a series regular on Mistresses (2013-2016). She's since kept that rhythm going: Money Heist: Korea on Netflix in 2022, XO, Kitty in 2023, a co-producer credit on Dog Days in 2024. The bilingual career that once looked like a detour turned out to be her whole edge.
Side Notes
She grew up in Staten Island after her family emigrated from Seoul in the early 1980s, which means she was crossing the Pacific long before her career made it a regular thing. She married her former manager Park Jeong-hyeok in Oahu in March 2010, right after Lost wrapped its final scenes. Six years of shooting in Hawaii. She got married there too.