Sung was born in 1981 inTübingen, Baden-Württemberg,West Germany. Her father Sung Jong-hyun, a prominent professor of theology at the Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary, was studying at the time in West Germany. Sung's family returned to South Korea when she was four years old and she grew up inGangdong District,Seoul. She attended Myung Elementary and Middle School, and Kwang Nam High School, and graduated from Kyung Hee University with a Post Modern Music major in 2005.
When Sung was a high school student, she began her entertainment career in 1998 as the youngest member of the four-memberK-popgirl groupFin.K.L (which stood for "Fine Killing Liberty"), one of the firstKorean idol groups.[1] Fin.K.L quickly rose in popularity, releasing four albums (Blue Rain (1998),White (1999),Now (2001),Eternity (2002)), and various singles, live concert albums andcompilation albums. But after the release of their fourth album, Sung and fellow band membersOck Joo-hyun,Lee Hyori andLee Jin began doing solo activities.[2]
Sung made her acting debut in 2002 withBad Girls, and a year later was cast in her first leading role inThousand Years of Love (2003). Sung learned horseback riding and martial arts in her role as aBaekje princess whotime travels to modern-day South Korea.[3] This was followed by theromantic comedyFirst Love of a Royal Prince (2004), partly shot in Japan andBali, in which Sung's fun-loving sandwich shop delivery girl was a departure from her previous feminine characters.[4] During this time, she was harshly criticized for her acting.[5][6][7]
Sung graduated fromKyung Hee University in February 2005 with a degree in Theater and Film; she also received an Achievement Award for promoting her alma mater.[8] After a brief return to music via Fin.K.L'sdigital singleCorealism in late 2005, she decided to focus solely on her acting career. In line with this, all the Fin.K.L members left their agencyDSP Entertainment, and Sung joinedSidusHQ in June 2005.
In 2006, she starred inOne Fine Day andThe Snow Queen, playing, respectively, an orphan adopted by a wealthy but suffocating family, and a cold-hearted heiress with an incurable disease.
But it was fusion-perioddramedyHong Gil-dong in 2008 that changed how the industry perceived Sung as an actress. The series' screenwriters, theHong sisters were initially criticized for casting her, but they defended Sung, and her portrayal of a tomboyish, vanity-free outlaw drew a positive reception from audiences.[9]
Sung then played an aspiring show director who joins theCirque du Soleil inSwallow the Sun, a 2009 big-budget action-romance series with overseas location shoots inLas Vegas and South Africa.[10] That same year, she also appeared in her first big-screen starring role as a Korean-American adoptee who returns to her native country to search for her biological mother inMaybe (titledRabbit and Lizard in Korean).[6][11][12][13][14]
In 2011, Sung left SidusHQ and transferred toKing Kong Entertainment.[15][16] She then starred inRomance Town, in the role of a maid who wins ₩14 billion in the lottery and keeps it a secret from her boss and fellow household help.[17][18][19]
Sung at theReturn of the Mafia movie premiere in December 2012
When Sung's contract with King Kong Entertainment expired in January 2014, she signed withFantagio.[34] She then appeared for free in the short filmChorogi and the Stalker Guy which screened at 6th Seoul International Extreme-Short Image & Film Festival (SESIFF).[35] Sung next played a diva actress who unexpectedly falls for her loyal manager in the 2015omnibusSummer Snow.[36][37]
On April 20, 2015, Sung signed an exclusive contract with SL Entertainment.[38] She next starred in the revenge melodramaMonster.[39][40]
Sung married golfer Ahn Sung-hyun in May 2017 in a low-key private ceremony. They had been dating for four years and did not publicly announce their marriage until after the ceremony.[41][42] On July 16, 2021, Sung announced on her Instagram that she was pregnant with twins.[43] Later on January 8, 2022, Sung's agency announced that Sung had given birth to twin daughters on January 7, 2022.[44]
^Lee Young-soo (July 16, 2021)."성유리, 쌍둥이 임신 소식 자필 편지 공개 "태명은 사랑이, 행복이"[전문]" [Sung Yu-ri reveals a handwritten letter on the news of twin pregnancy "My name is love, happiness].Sports Seoul (in Korean).Naver. RetrievedJuly 16, 2021.
^Kim Won-gyeom (January 8, 2022)."성유리, 7일 쌍둥이 딸 출산…"건강하고 예쁘게 잘 키우겠다"[공식입장]" [Sung Yuri gave birth to twin daughters on the 7th... "I will raise them healthy and beautiful" [Official position]] (in Korean). SPOTV News. RetrievedJanuary 8, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Park Jeong-seon (July 22, 2022)."성유리, 소외 계층 아이들 위해 3000만원 상당 화장품 기부" [Sung Yuri donates 30 million won worth of cosmetics to underprivileged children] (in Korean).JTBC. RetrievedJuly 22, 2022 – viaNaver.
^Bae, Soo-jung (December 25, 2022)."[종합] 'KBS 연예대상' 신동엽, SF9 찬희의 '대상 10년 주기설'에 설마‥2002-2012년 이후 10년 만에 또 대상 "얄궂다" [[Comprehensive] ‘KBS Entertainment Grand Prize’ Shin Dong-yeop, SF9 Chani’s ‘Daesang 10-year cycle theory’, no way… again 10 years after 2002-2012, “It’s ironic].TopStarNews (in Korean). RetrievedDecember 24, 2022.
^"[한국세정신문] '납세보국'-세금 잘 냈다고 상 받은 연예인은 누구?" [[Korea Sejeong Newspaper] 'Taxation Bureau' - Who is the celebrity who received the award for paying taxes well?].www.taxtimes.co.kr (in Korean). RetrievedOctober 28, 2023.
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