“Reply 1988” actress said to be “the 2nd Gong Hyo Jin”: improving visuals yet dwindling popularity

Once predicted to become the next Gong Hyo Jin on the Korean small screen, this actress’ career did not live up to expectations.

Fans of hit K-drama “Reply 1988” will remember the female lead’s sister Bo Ra, who was the “nightmare” of the Ssangmun Dong street and played by actress Ryu Hye Young. At first, Bo Ra seems like an annoying and harsh sister who is favored by the female lead’s parents. However, as the series went on, she is shown to be more caring and thoughtful behind her cold facade. Her relationship with Sun Woo also contributed greatly to the success of “Reply 1988”.

At the time, Ryu Hye Young, the actress behind Bo Ra, was a rookie face on the small screen, having mostly starred in movies and independent projects. Through her limited screen time, Ryu Hye Young managed to sway the hearts of the audiences, and earned huge popularity after “Reply 1988” ended. In fact, even now, many news sites still refer to the actress as Bo Ra. 

While Ryu Hye Young is not praised for fitting Korean beauty standards, her visuals bring an unique charm, making her memorable to many eyes. She is also compared to the famous actress and “romcom queen” Gong Hyo Jin, and even earned the nickname “Gong Hyo Jin of independent films”.

With the huge launching pad that is “Reply 1988”, many people expected Ryu Hye Young to become a big name after this series. Unfortunately, unlike the remaining cast of “Reply 1988” like Park Bo Gum, Hyeri, Ryu Jun Yeol, Go Kyung Pyo, who all became top stars, Ryu Hye Young fell behind in terms of popularity. She also rarely takes on new projects, leading to many people forgetting her name. In fact, ever since “Reply 1988”, Ryu Hye Young only starred in 2 movies and 2 series, including a major role in “Law School”, where she starred alongside actor Kim Bum. However, even “Law School” can’t be said to be a huge success, especially against the intense K-drama competition in 2021.

Now 31 years old, Ryu Hye Young still boasts an admirable beauty with surreal youthfulness. However, fans can’t help but hope that they can see the actress more on the screen, and that she will finally get her big breakthrough.