‘Inspector Koo’: Where You’ve Seen the Female Cast Members Before
Inspector Koo has an outstanding cast of women actors in its roster. Netflix’s Korean drama cast includes veteran actors Lee Young-ae and Kim Hae-sook. Rising actor Kim Hye-jun joins them in the role of the K-drama’s female serial killer. To round out the cast is Kwak Sun-young, who many fans will recognize from director Shin Won-ho’s famed medical K-drama.
The main cast is more than enough to get fans invested in watching Inspector Koo’s storyline of an ex-cop turned insurance investigator who gets a whiff of a murder mystery. K-drama fans will feel the resonating power and presence the woman actors have in the drama.
Kwak Sun-young recently finished starring in ‘Hospital Playlist’
The South Korean actor made her debut in her first role in 2018. Kwak appeared in a supporting role as Song Ji-yun in the legal drama You Honor. The same year, she would gain recognition in the romance melodrama, Encounter. Kwak has since starred in well-known K-dramas like VIP and Mystic Pop-up Bar. Her claim to fame is her role in tvN’s highest-ranked K-drama in its history, Hospital Playlist.
Kwak played the role of Lee Ik-sun, a military officer who falls in love with one of the main characters. For Inspector Koo, Kwak plays the role of Na Je-hee, an insurance investigator who gets Koo Kyung-yi (Lee) to re-enter everyday life and solve insurance fraud cases.
Kim Hae-sook stars in ‘Inspector Koo’ cast as a charity director
Inspector Koo is a reunion between actors Kwak and Kim. Kim also starred in Shin Won-ho’s Hospital Playlist as the mother of one of the main characters. She also guests stars in Mountain Village Playlist, a variety show with the main cast. The veteran actor’s accolades go as far back as 1974 in an uncredited TV role. She has played roles in every television genre, from melodramas, crime, thrillers, and romance.
In the fan-favorite K-drama Pinocchio, she played a mother and a wealthy CEO. Kim starred in a crime-fantasy K-drama called Room No.9. Her character and another woman switch bodies, and one man holds the key to their fate. Kim also starred as a maternal character in Netflix’s Start-Up. In Inspector Koo, she plays Director Yong, the head of a charity foundation with an underlying dark persona.
Kim Hye-jun rose to fame as a Queen in Netflix’s ‘Kingdom’
Playing the role of a female serial killer in a refreshing new take in Inspector Koo is rising actor Kim Hye-jun. The 26-year-old actor got critical acclaim starring in a lesbian romance titled Lily Fever in 2015. Fans of the romance K-drama Just Between Lovers starring 2PM’s Juho would remember Kim for playing the role of his character’s sister, a doctor at the local hospital.
Kim gained notoriety when she starred as the King’s concubine, Queen Consort Cho, in Netflix’s hit political-horror K-drama Kingdom. According to The South China Morning Post, Kim initially received backlash over her acting in season 1, but it still became her most prominent role. Kim plays the role of Kei, a young college student obsessed with drama who is a serial killer in Inspector Koo.
‘Inspector Koo’ is Lee Young-ae’s return to a K-drama main cast
Lee Young-ae leads Inspector Koo’s cast as its main character Koo Kyung-yi. The K-drama is Lee’s return to the small-screen after her marriage. According to Soompi, Lee commented, “It’s been a while since I did a drama after I got married, but I’m glad that I can show a new side of myself. I picked this drama for myself. I thought that if I enjoyed myself, the viewers would enjoy it as well.”
Her role in Inspector Koo is a significant change from what previous work fans have seen her in. As Kyung-yi, she portrays a somewhat closed-off character who went into seclusion after her husband’s death. Behind the beer and video games, Kyung-yi is an eccentric and gifted former detective.
The veteran actor gained fame starring as a revenge-driven mother in Sympathy for Lady Vengeance from 2005. Her role landed her the Best Actress award at the 38th Sitges Film Festival, 26th Blue Dragon Film Awards, and 42nd Baeksang Arts Awards. Lee would again be called a powerhouse as the character Shin Saimdang/ Seo Ji-yoon in the fantasy historical-romance drama, Saimdang, Memoir of Colors.
