By Jae-Ha Kim
Kocowa.com
July 30, 2020
MBC is having success with its latest series, “CHIP-IN.” The intriguing K-Drama shares plot elements with the 2019 Chris Evans film, “Knives Out,” and also has a sprinkling of the popular board game “Clue” thrown in.
Starring Oh Na-Ra and Kim Hye-Jun, the K-Drama tells the story of a mother and her daughter, who are among a group of people vying for an esteemed painter’s wealth. Yoo Bit-Na (played by “Kingdom” queen Kim Hye Jun) is a hard-working college student, who doesn’t want handouts from her rich dad, Yoo In-Ho (played by Nam Moon-Cheol). Kim Ji-Hye (Oh Na-Ra of “SKY Castle” fame) is the artist’s former mistress.
Kim Si-Eun plays In-Ho’s niece and Bit-Na’s younger cousin.
After its July 22 premiere, the series had the distinction of being at the top of its time slot, according to Nielsen ratings in South Korea.
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Let’s get to know three of the actresses who are knocking it out of the park in this series:
The 25-year-old actress is best known for starring opposite Ju Ji-Hoon in “Kingdom,” where she portrays Queen Consort Cho. While still a student at Hanyang University, where she studied film and theater, Kim auditioned for and appeared in several commercials, before making her 2015 professional acting debut in the web series “Lily Fever.” The following year, she showed her range by joining the ensemble cast of “Saturday Night Live Korea.” In a fun meta moment, she appeared on the KBS2 series “Matrimonial Chaos,” where she played her “Kingdom” co-star Bae Doo-Na‘s little sister.
Where to find her on KOCOWA: “CHIP-IN,” “Dr. Romantic,” “Matrimonial Chaos” and “Green Fever”
Though she has been acting since 2008, it was the 2018-2019 series “SKY Castle” — the second highest-rated Korean cable series — that made her instantly recognizable. She portrayed a mom who sucked up to whoever seemed likely to give her child a leg up on the competition. Her first major award was Best Actress for at the 2006 Korea Musical Awards for “Finding Mr. Destiny.” Last year, she won the Fashionista Award at the Asia Models Awards for her impeccable style. Of her leading role in “CHIP-IN,” Oh has said that part of the fun of working on the series is that the cast members all are in the dark as to the plot’s central devices. So when they film their scenes, the actors and actresses are as surprised as the viewers watching.
Where to find her on KOCOWA: “CHIP-IN,””Hyde, Jekyll, Me” and “Woman of 9.9 Billion”
The young actress has been active for just three years, but she’s racked up some impressive work. She had a role in the 2017 series “Sweet Recenge.” And Kim followed that up with the 2018 Kim Hyun-Joong K-Drama “When Time Stopped” and “Special Labor Inspector, Mr. Jo” — as well as the Son Ye-Jin and Hyun Bin feature film, “The Negotiation.”
Where to find her on KOCOWA: “CHIP-IN,” “Special Labor Inspector, Mr. Jo”
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