Who is Yoo In-na? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

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Childhood & Early Life

Yoo In-na was born on June 5, 1982 in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, South Korea. She has an older sister named Yoo An-na. She did her high school education from Sunae High School and went on to join Kyungwon University.

When she was young she tried her hand at singing and dancing by joining an entertainment agency as a singer at the age of 16. She even joined a girl group but did not get success to make a name for herself as she had difficulty with the dance steps of Korean Pop. Even after regular practice for a few years she had to give up the idea of a career in singing and dancing and diverted her attention to acting.

She joined YG Entertainment in 2006 to pursue a career in acting. Unlike many of her friends, she did not give up her dream of being a part of show business in whatever capacity possible. She took up minor roles in films to gain experience and learn acting skills on the job.

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Career

She finally got her big break in 2009 with a role in the popular serial ‘High Kick! Through the Roof’ which was aired on MBC network. Her performance got favourable reviews as a result of which many more minor roles started coming her way.

Her performance in a supporting role in the serial ‘Secret Garden’ where she appears as the best friend of the lead actress got her the Best New Actress Award at the Baeksang Arts Awards in 2010. This was followed by her sterling performance in a supporting role in the comedy ‘The Greatest Love’ that was a hit on SBS network. In order to further promote herself, she entered the reality show ‘Heroes’ as a contestant where celebrities find out how popular they actually are with their fans.

She also entered the big screen in the role of Jin-jee in the movie ‘The Fair Love’ and Min-hee in the film ‘My Black Mini Dress’ during the same period. ‘Love Fiction’ was another of her popular movies in 2012.

Having proved herself as a successful actress, she appeared as the MC for ‘TV Entertainment Tonight’ from March 2011 to June 2012. She also took up the assignment as a DJ for KBS Cool FM’s ‘Let’s Crank Up the Volume’. The show became the most popular programme on both AM and FM radio in South Korea.

Yoo had not given up her initial dream of becoming a singer and featured on the sound track of the group Humming Urban Stereo’s single titled ‘You That Day’. She went on to sing for her character in the movie ‘My Black Mini Dress’, which is about the adolescent days of four young girls. She also appeared in the music videos of artists like Big Bang and Brain Joo for their hit numbers ‘Tell Me Goodbye’ and ‘In My Head’ respectively.

She slowly grew into a multi-talented star of the South Korean film and television industry. She got her first lead role in the serial ‘Queen In-hyun’s Man’ on tvN. This was followed by her roles in the family drama ‘You’re The Best, Lee Soon-shin’ and the popular romantic drama ‘My Love from the Star’.

Her popularity soared in China as well and she featured in a lead role in the Chinese romantic comedy movie ‘Wedding Bible’, directed by Heo In-moo in 2014. She also acted in the romantic – mystery series called ‘My Secret Hotel’, which was a murder mystery cum romance.

Yoo In-na became a popular name on South Korean television when she hosted the ‘Get It Beauty’ show that covered latest trends in fashion and beauty products. The manner in which she carried the show boosted the sales.

She has recently starred in the television serials ‘One More Happy Ending’ and ‘Guardian: The Lonely and Great God’ that have been well received by her fans. From a child who found it difficult to learn dancing, she has proved to be a versatile actress, who is at her best in romantic-comedy roles.

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Major Works

Yoo In-na has appeared in the movies ‘The Fair Love’ (2010), ‘My Black Mini Dress’ (2011) and ‘Love Fiction’ (2012).

Her television serials include ‘High Kick! Through the Roof’ (2009 – 2010), ‘Secret Garden’ (2010), ‘The Greatest Love’ (2011), ‘Queen In-Hyun’s Man’ (2012), ‘My Love from the Star’ (2013 – 2014), ‘My Secret Hotel’ (2014) ‘One More Happy Ending’ (2016) and ‘Guardian: The Lonely and Great God’ (2016 – 2017).

She has been the MC for ‘TV Entertainment Tonight’ (2011 – 2012), ‘Get It Beauty’ (2014) and ‘Fashion King Korea’ (2015).

Yoo performed as a DJ for ‘Yoo In-na’s Let’s Crank Up the Volume’.

She has appeared in the music videos titled ‘Tell Me Goodbye’ by Big Bang, ‘In My Head’ by Brain Joo and ‘You That Day’ by Humming Urban Stereo.

Awards & Achievements

In 2011, she won a Special Award at the 1st Olleh-lotte Smartphone Film Festival for her work in ‘Uninvited Guest’, Best New Actress in TV for ‘Secret Garden’ and Best Entertainer in a Variety Show for her work in ‘TV Entertainment Tonight.

The following year she won the Rising Star Award at the 1st K-Drama Star Awards ceremony for her role in ‘Queen In-hyun’s Man’.

She also won the Best Radio DJ award at the KBS Entertainment Awards in 2014 for ‘Let’s Crank Up the Volume’.

Personal Life & Legacy

Yoo In-na dated co-star Ji Hyun-woo from ‘Queen In-hyun’s Man’ for some time in 2012 but later broke-up, but they remain good friends. Her present status is single and she does not seem to be in a hurry to get into a serious relationship at the moment.

Trivia

She gained respect of her fans for continuing her relationship with Ji Hyun-woo during his military service. However, they were disappointed when the couple broke up after his military service.

Yoo In-na Biography