Yeom Hye-ran (염혜란; 廉惠蘭) is a South Korean actress born on October 30, 1976, in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province. A graduate of Seoul Women’s University with a degree in Korean language and literature, she discovered theater while in college before joining the Yeonwoo Theater Company. She began her stage career in 2000.
She made her film debut in 2003 in Memories of Murder by Bong Joon-ho. She went on to play numerous supporting roles in films such as Secret Sunshine, Always, Sea Fog, I Can Speak and Innocent Witness. Thanks to her very natural acting style, she has gradually become one of the most recognizable supporting actresses in Korean film and television.
On television, she gained widespread popularity with When the Camellia Blooms in 2019, in which she plays the lawyer Hong Ja-young. She then demonstrated her talent in The Glory in 2022, playing Kang Hyeon-nam, a woman who has been a victim of abuse and helps the heroine carry out her revenge.
In 2023, Yeom Hye-ran delivers a particularly memorable performance in Mask Girl. In it, she plays Kim Gyeong-ja, a mother willing to do anything to find the person responsible for her son’s death. This dark and intense role further solidifies her reputation as an actress capable of portraying highly complex characters.
In 2025, she plays the role of Jeon Gwang-rye, Ae-sun's mother, in When Life Gives You Tangerines. She also appears in Law and the City as Kim Hyeong-min. In 2027, she was cast in a leading role in Speaking Dead and is also set to make an appearance in The Miracles of the Namiya General Store.
With her commanding presence and deeply human performances, Yeom Hye-ran has established herself as one of South Korea’s most respected character actresses.
