Hwang Jung-eum revisits iconic character Kim Hye-jin after 'tacky' makeup criticism

Actress Hwang Jung-eum has once again brought out her representative character from 11 years ago. Following recent criticism from some netizens regarding her makeup after she released a video attempting idol makeup, she has now transformed into Kim Hye-jin from the MBC drama 'She Was Pretty,' recreating facial blemishes, freckles, and even messy hair.

Hwang, who once enjoyed her peak as the 'Rom-Com Queen' by playing a character with a tacky and unrefined appearance, brings more meaning than a simple trip down memory lane by revisiting Kim Hye-jin's face. For an actor, a past representative character is not a faded legacy, but sometimes the most powerful cultural asset that can re-explain their current self.

On the 20th, Hwang released several photos on her SNS with the short caption, "42-year-old Kim Hye-jin."

In the photos, Hwang expresses freckles and facial flushing, and even intentionally disheveled her hairstyle. This is the polar opposite of the typical star image that emphasizes smooth skin and neat hair. Instead, she actively highlighted facial flaws to recreate the appearance of Kim Hye-jin, the character she played in the past.

This style is reminiscent of Kim Hye-jin in 'She Was Pretty,' which aired in 2015.

At the time, Kim Hye-jin was set up as a character who boasted outstanding beauty in her childhood but developed complexes about her appearance as she grew up, due to freckles, redness, and messy hair. Hwang elevated this character to the center of the work by combining it with exaggerated expressions, gestures, and her unique comedic acting.

In particular, the setting where Choi Siwon, who played the role of Kim Shin-hyuk, calls Kim Hye-jin by the nickname 'Jackson' became a representative character device of the drama. While maintaining the exterior of a romantic comedy, the work gained high buzz by playfully addressing issues such as social evaluation of appearance, workplace hierarchy, self-esteem, and identity.

For Hwang, Kim Hye-jin is not just one past role.

Since the late 2000s, Hwang built a unique acting grammar that oscillates between comedy and melodrama through works including 'High Kick!' Since then, she has expanded her acting spectrum through 'Giant,' 'Can You Hear My Heart?,' and 'Golden Time,' to 'Secret,' 'Kill Me, Heal Me,' and 'She Was Pretty.'

In particular, 'She Was Pretty' was a work that simultaneously strengthened Hwang's stardom and her acting image.

The Kim Hye-jin played by Hwang at the time was a character far from the typical media standard of beauty. The important thing is that her 'ugliness' was not an actual aesthetic flaw, but rather a device to satirize the standards of appearance defined by society.

Freckles, a red face, messy hair, and awkward fashion visually embodied the inferiority complex of the character Kim Hye-jin. Hwang pushed this through with acting that thoroughly 'ruined' her appearance, and as a result, the 'paradox of a pretty actress playing an unattractive character' became a major source of enjoyment for the work.

It is interesting that she brought out Kim Hye-jin again after 11 years.

On the 19th, the day before, Hwang attempted idol makeup on her YouTube channel. It was content where she applied the makeup of a young idol star to her own face, accompanied by the caption, "A mother of two who wants to be Jennie."

However, after the video was released, some netizens reacted to the makeup results with comments such as "It's too tacky," "Who does idol makeup in this style these days?", and "You ruined a pretty face."

The relatively private domain of makeup immediately became a subject of public evaluation on SNS.

What is interesting is that Hwang styled her appearance in a completely different way the very next day.

While the latest trends and sophisticated images were the criteria for the idol makeup, in '42-year-old Kim Hye-jin,' tackiness and flaws actually became the core of the content. Although it is the same face, depending on which concept is applied, it can either be a target of 'tacky' criticism or a musical device to recreate a beloved character from over 10 years ago.

This contrast shows how context-dependent appearance is in the modern entertainment industry.

An actor's face is not a fixed product. In a work, it becomes a tool to embody a character; in an advertisement, it becomes a medium to convey a brand image; and on SNS, it becomes a representation of an individual communicating directly with the public. Even with the same face, the evaluation criteria change completely depending on the context in which it is placed.

Hwang's summoning of Kim Hye-jin can also be read in this context.

She did not feel the need to hide her current age and appearance. Rather, she directly named it "42-year-old Kim Hye-jin." By recreating the character she played in her late 20s as her current 40-year-old self, she has utilized the passage of time itself as content.

Between the past Kim Hye-jin and the current Hwang, 11 years have passed. For an actor, this time is not just a number. It has been a period of significant personal change, including marriage, childbirth, and divorce, as well as a time when her public image as an actress has undergone several transformations.

Hwang married former professional golfer Lee Young-don in 2016 and has two sons, but announced her divorce in 2024. Since then, she faced a period of inactivity following controversies regarding her agency's funds.

As personal and legal issues arose, public interest occasionally shifted from her acting work to her private life. For an actor, a hiatus does not simply mean a break from filming; it influences how their characters are reconstructed in the public memory and how they will be received upon their return.

Hwang began communicating with the public again through YouTube this past May.

The fact that her return came through a personal channel rather than an official broadcast medium also reflects changing times. While celebrity returns were once primarily facilitated through programs scheduled by broadcasters and production companies, actors can now directly engage with the public and rebuild their narratives via YouTube and SNS.

For Hwang, YouTube serves as a platform for image reconstruction.

And in that process, summoning the past Kim Hye-jin can be seen as a very clever choice.

'She Was Pretty' remains one of the works with the strongest public memory in Hwang's filmography. Showing a beloved character to viewers is a much more immediate way to build intimacy than trying to explain an entirely new image.

In particular, Kim Hye-jin symbolizes Hwang's signature 'transformative acting.'

The way an actor lets go of physical perfection, distorting their face to prioritize the character's emotions and situations, aligns with Hwang's unique comedic style. It is the paradox where the more she moves away from the premise of being a 'pretty actress,' the more her individuality shines through.

Therefore, the importance of these photos lies not in the freckles or the facial flushing, but in the fact that Hwang has reconnected her representative role to her current self.

Eleven years ago, Kim Hye-jin was a character intimidated by her appearance, but she ultimately gained recognition for her abilities and human charm. Now, as a 42-year-old, Hwang has summoned that character after enduring many of life's evaluations and gazes.

While she once acted out a character's appearance complexes, she is now using her own age and changing image as a narrative itself.

The recent 'tacky makeup' criticism ultimately leads back to the same point. While a celebrity's appearance is always subject to public scrutiny, an actor's true competitiveness does not lie solely in aesthetic perfection at a single moment. The ability to create a character regardless of one's look, and to reinterpret past images within a modern context, is a far more vital asset.

Hwang once overturned appearance stereotypes through 'Kim Hye-jin.' And 11 years later, she has brought that face back once again.

However, the situation is different this time.

Back then, Kim Hye-jin was a character; now, Hwang is a 42-year-old actress in reality. The moment she describes herself as "42-year-old Kim Hye-jin," the boundaries between past and present, character and actor, and youth and middle age overlap.

Time is not something to be erased, but something to be accumulated.

Drawing freckles or disheveling her hair cannot return her to 11 years ago. However, for an actor, a past character can serve as a tool to confirm the passage of time while simultaneously redefining who they are today.

Ultimately, this transformation is less an attempt to 'look younger' and more an act of 'the current self performing the past self.'

While her attempt at idol makeup drew criticism, her return to Kim Hye-jin instead evoked a sense of familiar warmth. It demonstrates that rather than chasing the latest trends, revisiting a character that fits best can be a much more powerful image strategy.

For an actor, the greatest fear is not aging, but failing to find a way to connect their past to their present.

It seems that, at least this time, Hwang Jung-eum knows the answer.

"42-year-old Kim Hye-jin."

In this short phrase, there is both the enduring legacy of a representative work and the current self that has changed enough to summon that character once more. This is why the freckles and messy hair of Kim Hye-jin feel more welcome than the 'tacky' idol makeup.