Quick Facts
Biography
Lee Sung-kyung (Korean: 이성경; born August 10, 1990) is a South Korean model, actress and singer. She acted in the television dramas Cheese in the mousetrap (2016) and The Doctors (2016) before taking her first leading role as the titular character in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo (2016) and Dr. Romantic 2 (2020) alongside Ahn Hyo-seop and Han Suk-kyu.
Early life and education
Lee was born on August 10, 1990 in Goyang city, Gyeonggi, South Korea. On February 22, 2016, Lee graduated from Dongduk Women's University.
Career
2008–present: Modelling and acting debut
Lee began her entertainment career as a model where she competed at the local Super Model Contest in 2008. In 2013, The Papers collaborated with Lee with the single "I Love You".
In 2014, Lee made her acting debut with a supporting role in television drama It's Okay, That's Love, being the first model-actress promoted under the joint venture of YG Entertainment and K-Plus. This was followed by weekend drama, Flower of Queen in 2015. She won "Best New Actress" in a Special Project Drama at the MBC Drama Awards for her role.
In January 2016, Lee featured in tvN's college romance series, Cheese in the Trap. On April 28, 2016, Lee released a collaboration single with Eddy Kim, which is a cover of Sharp's "My Lips like Warm Coffee". Lee then starred in the SBS' prime-time medical drama, The Doctors as a neurosurgeon. The same year, she took on her first leading role in Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok-joo, a youth sports drama inspired by the real life story of Olympic weightlifting champion Jang Mi-ran. In 2017, Lee dubbed the film Trolls alongside Park Hyung-sik. She was also cast in the romance film Love+Sling, directed by first-time director Kim Dae-woong. She was also featured in Psy's 4X2=8 with the single "Last Scene". In 2018, Lee starred in the fantasy melodrama About Time. She was cast in the action comedy film Miss & Mrs. Cops released on May 9, 2019 alongside Ra Mi-ran.
In 2020, Lee starred in the second season of the hit medical drama Dr. Romantic, playing Cha Eun-jae, a skilled cardiothoracic surgeon with Ahn Hyo-seop as her leading man.
Discography
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart position | Sales | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaon | |||||
| As featured artist | |||||
| "My Lips like Warm Coffee" (Eddy Kim feat. Lee Sung-kyung) | 2016 | 3 | N/A | Non-album single | |
| Collaborations | |||||
| "I Love You" (with The Papers) | 2013 | — | N/A | 랑의 단상 Chapter 4: You and Me Song | |
| Soundtrack appearances | |||||
| "True Colors" (with Park Hyung-sik) | 2017 | — | N/A | Trolls OST (Korean version) | |
| "Get Back Up Again" | — | ||||
| "My Only One Person" | 2018 | — | About Time OST Musical Special | ||
| "I Am What I Am" | — | ||||
| "Tomorrow will be a better day!" | — | ||||
| "Show Time" (with Ra Mi-ran) | 2019 | — | Miss & Mrs. Cops OST | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region. | |||||
Other charted songs
| Title | Year | Peak chart position | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaon | |||
| "Last Scene" (Psy feat. Lee Sung-kyung) | 2017 | 13 | 4X2=8 |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 17th Super Model Contest | Lex Prize | N/A | Won | |
| 2009 | 2nd Asia Pacific Super Model Contest | Unix Hair New Style Prize | N/A | Won | |
| 2014 | CFDK Fashion Awards | Best Female Fashion Model of the Year | N/A | Won | |
| 2015 | 8th Korea Drama Awards | Best New Actress | Flower of Queen | Nominated | |
| 4th APAN Star Awards | Nominated | ||||
| 34th MBC Drama Awards | Best New Actress in a Special Project Drama | Won | |||
| Popularity Award, Actress | Nominated | ||||
| Best Couple Award | Nominated | ||||
| 2016 | 11th Max Movie Awards | Rising Star Award | N/A | Won | |
| 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actress (TV) | Queen's Flower | Nominated | ||
| 35th MBC Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actress in a Miniseries | Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo | Won | ||
| Best Couple Award | Nominated | ||||
| 24th SBS Drama Awards | Special Award, Actress in a Genre Drama | The Doctors | Nominated | ||
| 2018 | 3rd Asia Artist Awards | Artist of the Year | N/A | Won | |
| Best Emotive | Won | ||||
| 2019 | 24th Chunsa Film Art Awards | Special Popularity Award | Miss & Mrs. Cops | Won |
