Park Gyu-Young is one of the K-drama industry’s latest rising stars. People may recognise her as Nam Joo-Ri, the second female lead in It’s Okay To Not Be Okay. In 2023, her popularity continues to increase, with prominent roles in Netflix’s Celebrity, Squid Game Season 2 and Sweet Home Season 2 and 3 currently on her plate. Her participation in the streaming platform’s recent and upcoming shows even earned her the title ‘Netflix’s Daughter.’ She’s also slated to co-star along ASTRO’s Cha Eun-Woo in the upcoming rom-com A Good Day To Be A Dog.
Which project are you excited to see Park Gyu-Young next? (Photo from: Netflix)
Ready to jump the Park Gyu-Young hype train? Here are four Park Gyu-Young dramas to binge ASAP.
1. Celebrity
A very timely drama on social media fame and influencer culture, Celebrity stars Park Gyu-Young as the ambitious Seo A-Ri. Seo A-Ri’s main drive in creating content is to make tons of money and she’s not afraid to go to drastic lengths to ensure her followers continue to increase. As she continues to thrive in her neo-celebrity status, she also starts to suffer the consequences of the ugly side of fame and fortune.
Why you’ll like it: If you love scandalous yet glamorous shows like Gossip Girl or Bling Empire, Celebrity will definitely get you hooked. While it’s not exactly groundbreaking, it’s an entertaining series that combines reality with a hint of exaggeration to deliver a somewhat relatable yet gratifying watch. Park Gyu-Young also truly shines as Seo A-Ri with her compelling performance.
Watch Celebrity here.
2. It’s Okay To Not Be Okay
This drama follows the story of Ko Moon-Young (Seo Yea-Ji), a famous children’s book author who has an antisocial personality disorder. One day, Moon Gang-Tae (Kim Soo-Hyun), a kind caregiver at a local hospital, catches Moon-Young’s eye. The two start getting entangled, along with Gang-Tae’s older brother Sang-Tae (Oh Jung-Se) who is within the autism spectrum. Despite the many ups and downs of their complicated relationship, Moon-Young and Gang-Tae eventually fall in love. Moon-Young becomes best friends with Sang-Tae as they work together on Moon-Young’s latest story. However, something about the three’s connected past threatens their current relationship.
Park Gyu-Young supports the main trio as Nam Joo-Ri, a nurse who works in the same hospital as Gang-Tae. She and Moon-Young don’t get along since childhood and their rivalry grew even more when Joo-Ri fell in love with Gang-Tae. However, despite the odds, Joo-Ri and Moon-Young develop a civil relationship.
Why you’ll like it: During its initial run, this drama earned praise for its focus on mental health. And while it wasn’t completely perfect in its execution, it was still noteworthy for its portrayal of mental health issues and disorders. It also effectively delivered a great thriller-romance narrative with its amazing direction, script, and overall cast performance.
Watch It’s Okay To Not Be Okay here.
3. Sweet Home
Love post-apocalyptic shows centred on zombie-like monsters? Add Sweet Home to your watch queue right now. It’s about Cha Hyun-Su (Song Kang), a recluse high schooler who loses his family to a car accident. He moves into a smaller apartment complex. One day, a strange phenomenon turning people into zombie-like monsters started spreading into the apartment complex (and all over the world), leaving him and several surviving residents trapped inside their building. Park Gyu-Young plays Yoon Ji-Soo, one of the apartment residents trying to survive alongside Cha Hyun-Su.
Why you’ll like it: It’s exciting and will leave you on the edge of your seat for the most part. But it’s not all thrills and scares either. It also has discussions on existence, humanity, and personal relationships that will surely touch your heart one way or another.
Watch Sweet Home here.
4. Dali and Cocky Prince
Looking for a humorous watch that will guarantee a relaxing K-drama binge? The Park Gyu-Young drama to put on is Dali and Cocky Prince. This series is about Kim Da-Li (Park Gyu-Young), a bubbly only child of a prestigious family. She meets Jin Moo-Hak (Kim Min-Jae), the second son of a family who runs a global franchise of a food and beverage business. When they initially met, they didn’t know each other’s backgrounds. Even so, they still got along well really well. They only find out about each other’s true history after crossing each other’s paths again under different circumstances.
Why you’ll like it: This drama is witty and comedic without sacrificing relatable and heartwarming moments. Park Gyu-Young and Kim Min-Jae’s performances and onscreen chemistry also add to the appeal of the drama. Gyu-Young’s fashion moments also complete the charm of this series.
Watch Dali and Cocky Prince here.
(Cover photo from: Netflix)
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