The Main Character Of Netflix’s “Mask Girl” Is Mask Girl — But Another Actress Is Gaining All The Attention

An actress, who impressed audiences with her acting in Netflix‘s The Glory, shocked audiences again with her role in the recently released Mask Girl. 

Last year and early this year, actress Yeom Hye Ran gained attention for her role as Kang Hyeon Nam in The Glory. Kang Hyeon Nam is a mother and a victim of domestic abuse by her husband, who made a deal with Moon Dong Eun (played by Song Hye Kyo); she would help Moon Dong Eun find information and spy on people and in return, Moon Dong Eun would get rid of her abusive husband.

Mask Girl premiered on Netflix on August 18 and has been the talk of the town since its release. Based on the Korean webtoon of the same name, Mask Girl tells the story of Kim Mo Mi (played by Lee Han Byeol), an ordinary office worker with a complex about her appearance. Self-conscious about her appearance but wanting to perform on stage, Kim Mo Mi becomes a broadcast streamer named “Mask Girl” every night, dancing while wearing a mask to hide her face.

In the K-drama, Yeom Hye Ran plays Kim Kyung Ja, a single mother who lost her son due to the actions of Mask Girl. After losing her son, whom she raised alone and who was the joy of her life, Kim Kyung Ja becomes filled with a desire for revenge against the person who killed her son. During her relentless pursuit of vengeance, Kyung Ja has moments of madness, and Yeom Hye Ran’s performance amazed netizens.

At a press conference for Mask Girl, Yeom Hye Ran once described Kim Kyung Ja as “a character you can understand but find hard to support.”

Yeom Hye Ran’s portrayal of Kim Kyung Ja, consumed by vengeance, navigated through a 180-degree transformation from victim to villain—from a sorrowful mother who brought viewers to tears with her wailing after the loss of her son to a fearless mother who is relentless about doing the same thing to the person who killed her son.

The actress’s transformation into the character impressed netizens, and they couldn’t stop talking about it. A scene where she wailed at seeing her dead son shocked netizens the most.

염혜란 연기 미쳤나 pic.twitter.com/xMBeFtu9Do

— 밤새 (@gcda_v) August 18, 2023

Yeom Hye Ran’s acting is crazy

— @gcda_v

One netizen pointed out that her crying scene in Mask Girl was different from when Hyeon Nam’s abusive husband died in The Glory.

I literally got chills. It’s completely different from when she wailed when her abusive husdband died in The Glory. When her husband died, she might have felt a mix of complex emotions, knowing that despite their ups and downs, they had once loved each other enough to get married. However, in the case of Mask Girl, it’s like she was a mother whose life is turned upside down and whose insides crumble due to the death of her son, as if her own life were taken away.

— Anonymous netizen

Others praised Yeom Hye Ran’s acting, some considered her the main character.

• “Her wailing scene was amazing”
• “Wow, so good”
• “She’s so good at acting”
• “She is Kim Kyung Ja herself”
• “How does she make a noise like that when she’s acting? I have the chills”
• “It’s acting, not real life, so how does she make sounds like that? Her body movement, too..”
• “Wow………. Her acting…….. I can’t even breathe”
• “I think Yeom Hye Ran’s acting in ‘Mask Girl’ was extra amazing….”
• “Whenever Yeom Hye Ran came out, I was immersed”
• “She’s so good at acting… I really want to meet her in person one day ;;;”
• “Wow, it really looks like they just brought in someone who really exists”

• “Yeom Hye Ran… Her acting is really insane. I remember her the most. Honestly, I think Yeom Hye Ran is the main character”
• “Honestly, she’s the main character”
• “She’s so good at acting that if she plays the villain, you end up really hating her”
• “Please give her an award”
• “She’s so~~~~~ good at acting. I knew she was good but didn’t know she was this good”
• “She seems like the main character and has the most parts……. And most of all, her acting is the best. Hope she wins a lot of awards!”
• “I really thought they brought in someone named Kim Kyung Ja lol I don’t see the actress. She’s legit so good  at acting scary”

Yeom Hye Ran made her film debut in 2003 with director Bong Joon Ho‘s Memories of Murder and has appeared in numerous productions since then, including Dear My Friends (2016), Guardian: The Lonely and Great God (2016), I Can Speak (2017), When the Camellia Blooms (2019), and The Uncanny Counter (2020-present).