Han Hyo-joo
Han Hyo-Joo (한효주) was born on February 22, 1987 in Cheongju, Chungcheongbuk-do, South Korea. Her mother worked as an elementary school teacher before becoming an inspector for public schools and her father worked in the military. As a child, Han Hyo-Joo was good in sports and enjoyed track & field. In her sophomore year of high school, Han Hyo-Ju moved to Seoul and attended Bulgok High School. Although her father, conservative & strict, opposed her move to Seoul she was able to go forth with her wishes. After high school, Han Hyo-Joo majored in theatre at Dongguk University. According to Han Hyo-Ju, her personality fits her blood type-A classification: calm, doesn't get angry easily, & able to endure without a lot of expression. In 2003, Han Hyo-Ju won the grand prize for the Miss Bing-geure contest, which attracted the attention from the entertainment world (Bing-geure is a Korean food company). In 2005, Han Hyo-Ju received her first acting roles in the MBC sitcom “Nonstop 5” and the movie “My Boss, My Teacher”. Her debut performances went largely unnoticed. In 2006 Han Hyo-Ju received her first leading role in the KBS2 drama “Spring Waltz”. Director Yun Seok-Ho of “Spring Waltz” stated that he first got the idea to cast Han Hyo-Joo after browsing the Internet and coming across her picture. Yun Seok-Ho felt she still held the purity of a child and a sense of mysteriousness which suited her character well. Han Hyo-Joo also stated that working on “Spring Waltz” was difficult, largely due to her inexperience in acting. Han Hyo-Joo's first leading performance in a feature film came with the 2006 independent film “Ad Lib Night,” helmed by well-regarded director Lee Yoon-Ki. Han Hyo-Joo's experience working on “Ad Lib Night” went far more smoothly than her first leading role in a drama series. Han Hyo-Joo recalled that the one month shoot seemed to zoom by and wished it could have lasted longer. Her performance was enthusiastically received by critics and Han Hyo-Joo received “Best Actress” awards from the 26th Korean Movie Critics Organization and the 20th Singapore International Film Festival. Han Hyo-Joo's commercial break-out role came with her performance in the popular 2009 SBS drama series “Brilliant Legacy,” alongside actor/singer Lee Seung-Ki. The drama series, mixing a healthy dose of Korean melodrama with a Charles Dickens' “Great Expectations” like storyline, captured the attention of Koreans throughout the summer of 2009. “Brilliant Legacy”regularly received ratings in excess of 40% and catapulted Han Hyo-Joo as one of the more popular young actresses in Korea. With her popularity, media reports and gossip magazines began to speculate on who Han Hyo-Joo was dating. In 2010, Han Hyo-Joo branched out of her comfort zone and took the lead role in the MBC historical drama series “Dong Yi”.
Han Hyo-joo has built a filmography of 19 credits over a career spanning from 2007 to 2025.
Han Hyo-joo's most notable role to date came in W: Two Worlds Apart (2016), where she played Oh Yeon-joo. She also appeared in 20th Century Girl (2022) as Adult Na Bo-ra. Most recently appeared in Happiness (2021) as Yoon Sae-bom.
Fans wanting to catch up on Han Hyo-joo's work can find exactly where her shows and movies are streaming below — and TV Butler Pro makes it effortless to keep track of them all. Just search the title, and Butler finds it instantly, tells you which service has it, and remembers what you've already watched.
