Lee Jeong-eun (Korean: 이정은; born February 7, 1981), better known by the stage name Lee Bong-ryun (Korean: 이봉련), is a South Korean character actress. In 2020, Lee was cast as Princess Hamlet in the gender-blind production of Shakespeare's Hamlet for the 70th anniversary of National Theater Company of Korea. For this role, she won the 57th Baeksang Arts Awards for Best Actress in a Play. She is also frequently cast in other notable productions by the National Theater Company of Korea.
Lee started her career on stage in 2005 in Daehangno, performing in plays and musicals. Since 2012, she has appeared in supporting roles in various films and television dramas. Her notable screen works includes the films Burning, Exit, and Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, as well as the series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, Crash Course in Romance, and Resident Playbook.
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Early life
Lee Bong-ryun was born Lee Jeong-eun on February 7, 1981, in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. Her father was an employee at Pohang Steelworks. After attending high school in Pohang for one month, she withdrew at age sixteen and relocated to Daegu. There, she completed an eight-month course at an academy before passing the General Educational Development (GED) equivalency exam.
At age 17, Lee enrolled in Daegu Arts University to study photography. She later earned a master's degree in photography from Chung-Ang University in Seoul, completing her studies at age 24. During her career as a photographer, she used the pseudonym Zhuge Bong-ryeon for her exhibitions.
Career
Beginning
Lee's transition from photography to the performing arts began with a role in a short film directed by a colleague who had transferred from photography to film studies. In 2003, after watching a production of the musical Singin' in the Rain, Lee was inspired by the performance of actor Park Dong-ha. This prompted her to enroll in the musical department of a social education center at a nearby university, where she attended night classes for two years. During this period, her instructor and stage director, Kim Dong-yeon, appointed her as the assistant director for his play Fantasy Fairy Tale.
In 2005, Lee made her professional acting debut in the musical Five Drawings of Love. Originally cast as an understudy, she performed the role for one month due to the absence of a lead actor. Following her debut, she appeared in a wide range of stage productions, establishing a foundation in both plays and musicals.
In 2008, Lee auditioned for the musical Laundry after seeing Lee Jung-eun's portray the role of the grandmother. She successfully secured the part for the following season and remained with the production for three years. During this time, Lee participated in several other stage works, including Roberto Zucco, directed by Oh Kyung-taek; Almost, Maine, directed by Yi Sang-woo; and Comrades of the Century Wind, directed by Kim Soo-jin. Lee also collaborated with director Kim Dong-hyun on the play Beeul (Punishment). She has noted that the director's guidance during this production was a significant factor in her professional development. During rehearsals, Kim encouraged her to explore dramatic nuances beyond the comedic expressions she was primarily known for, an experience she describes as a lasting influence on her acting philosophy.
Theater Company Alleyway, Film and television debut
Lee made her cinematic debut with a minor role in Choo Chang-min's film Late Blossom (2011). This was followed by other minor roles in Masquerade (2012) and Confession of Murder (2012).
Lee first met director Park Geun-hyung at the Namsan Drama Center while he was preparing Jeon Myeong-chul Biography. This initial encounter led to their collaboration. Subsequently, Lee participated when the Alleyway theater company decided to stage Ode to Youth for their 10th anniversary. In Ode to Youth, Lee played a coffee shop waitress who suffered from epilepsy. Following this, she officially joined the Alleyway theater company and appeared in July performance of Jeon Myeong-chul Biography. It was followed by lead role in youth drama Red Bus, written and directed by Park Geun-hyung.
In 2013, Lee began her acting career in television. Her first role was as a college friend of Na-jung (played by Go Ara) in tvN drama Reply 1994. Despite a brief appearance, she made a lasting impression as a college student from Yeosu who engaged in whose hometown was better dispute with Hae-tae (played by Son Ho-jun) from Suncheon.
In 2014, she starred in Park Geun-hyung's play, Manchurian Front, which explored the lives of young Koreans in Manchuria around 1940. Set in Xingjing (modern-day Changchun, China), the play followed students who met to discuss literature, history, and their shared ambition of achieving wealth and honor in Manchuria, aspiring to live like the Japanese. The play ran at Small Theater Siwol and was critically acclaimed, earning a spot as one of the BEST 7 performances of 2014 by the Korean Theater Company. She reprised her role in Manchurian Front when it served as the opening performance for the 2015 Seoul Theater Festival at the Daehakro Jayu Theater.
In 2015, Lee acted in play The House of Bernarda Alba. Lee landed her first supporting role in 2015 as Mi-ran in the JTBC drama Songgot: The Piercer, which starred Ji Hyun-woo and Ahn Nae-sang. The drama was based Choi Kyu-seok's webtoon Awl, inspired by a true story from 2007. This was followed by minor film roles including A Matter of Interpretation (2015), Girl On the Edge (2015), Life is but an Empty (2015). In 2016, Lee act in play Press Guideness. This was followed by minor film roles including Run Off (2016), and How to Break up with My Cat (2016).
Critical acclaim and further recognition
In 2019, Lee appeared in several film and television projects, including the dramas When the Devil Calls Your Name and Melting Me Softly. In the film Birthday, she portrayed Jeong-suk, a relative providing support to the protagonists (Sul Kyung-gu) and Soon-nam (Jeon Do-yeon) following the loss of their son. She also appeared as the third older sister of Yong-nam (Jo Jung-seok) in the action film Exit, which recorded over 10 million admissions at the box office.
Lee gained wider recognition for her role in Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, film starring Jung Yu-mi and Gong Yoo. Based on the million-seller novel of the same name by Cho Nam-Joo, it was released on October 23, 2019. She portrayed Hye-soo, a character who encourages the protagonist's professional aspirations and assists in her return to the workforce. Her performance was noted for its portrayal of a supportive peer providing practical guidance to the titular character.
Lee has been a frequent cast member in productions staged by the National Theater Company of Korea. In 2020, she was cast as Princess Hamlet in the gender-blind production of Shakespeare's Hamlet for the National Theater Company's 70th anniversary. For this role, she won the 57th Baeksang Arts Awards for Best Actress in a Play.
In 2020, Lee starred in When the Weather Is Fine. In the latter half of the year, she held supporting roles in two television projects. She portrayed Myung-sook in Lee Eung-bok's Netflix series Sweet Home, a woman grieving the loss of her infant. As the narrative progresses, the character undergoes a transformation into a non-aggressive entity motivated by a protective instinct. Her portrayal was noted for its emotional depth and the character's unique behavioral traits within the series. Later in 2020, Lee appeared in the JTBC drama Run On as Park May, the CEO of an art film production company and the roommate of the protagonist, Oh Mi-joo (Shin Se-kyung). Her performance in the series was noted for the rapport established with co-star Shin.
In 2021, Lee collaborated with director Yoo Je-won and actress Shin Min-a in the tvN series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha. She played Yeo Hwa-jung, a seafood restaurant owner and the village chief of Gongjin. In the series, her character is a divorcée co-parenting their son Yi-jun with her ex-husband, Jang Young-guk (In Gyo-jin), and serves as the landlady for Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a). Later that year, Lee appeared as Hwang Ma-jin in the JTBC drama Only One Person. In November 2021, following the expiration of her previous contract, Lee signed an exclusive agreement with AM Entertainment.
Personal life
Although Lee is Catholic, she selected her stage name, "Bong-ryeon," for its perceived Buddhist resonance. She was inspired by a segment on the television program VJ Special Forces regarding name changes, where she found the phonetics of the name familiar and humorous. For the Chinese character (Hanja) transcription, she chose 鳳輦 (Bong-ryeon), meaning "the king's palanquin," while noting the characters could be adapted to mean "peak" (峰) or "lotus" (蓮) in the future.
Lee married actor Lee Gyu-hee on March 11, 2019. The couple met as colleagues through the Alleyway Theater Company.
