Actress Kim Young-ran has bravely opened up about the difficult times she faced following two divorces.
During her appearance on MBN’s ‘당신이아픈사이’ on the 17th, Kim Young-ran gave an honest account of her tumultuous life, covering everything from her marriages and divorces to her eventual career comeback.
Reflecting on her first marriage at age 28, she recalled becoming the eldest daughter-in-law of a traditional head family. She shared, “My husband told me, ‘If you marry me, you’ll be the eldest daughter-in-law of a head family,’ but I didn’t realize how serious that was at the time.”
Her life changed completely after the wedding. In a strict household, she had to prepare ancestral rites four times a month, and with parents-in-law’s birthdays and other family events, she had to host more than six major feasts a year.
“I prepared food almost every day, even waking up early for breakfast,” she revealed. “I longed for the warmth of a family. Even though I was married, I couldn’t feel any warmth or consideration.”
As her relationship with her husband grew distant, she chose to divorce after four years of marriage and the birth of her daughter. She shared a heartbreaking moment, recalling how her mother came from the US, cried, and told her, “Think of your daughter before yourself.”
The pain didn’t end there. She remarried in 1990, but that marriage also came to an end. With a bittersweet smile, she noted, “I think marriage just isn’t meant for me in this lifetime.”
Following her second divorce, Kim Young-ran spent time in seclusion, struggling with a reality that felt too heavy to bear alone. Overwhelmed by guilt toward her child, she suffered from insomnia and confessed, “I felt why some people have extreme thoughts.”
To make matters worse, she hit a low point when casting offers stopped coming in. However, Kim Young-ran refused to give up. She made a stunning comeback through a series of dramas and historical pieces, eventually earning the title of the “Queen Specialist Actress” for her unrivaled presence on screen.
