Hyunri Lee, a multifaceted artist known by her mononym "Hyunri" in Japan and Korea, was born in Tokyo, Japan, to a Korean family. As a result, she is fluently bilingual in both Japanese and Korean.
During her teenage years, Hyunri resided in Oxford, England, where she likely developed a unique perspective on the world. She then moved to Korea to pursue her passion for acting, enrolling in the prestigious Shin-Yong Wook Acting Academy. Concurrently, she attended Yonsei University as an exchange student from Aoyama Gakuin University, where she was majoring in law.
After completing her studies, Hyunri returned to Japan and began landing roles in numerous Japanese films and top-tier TV shows. Her breakthrough came in 2016 with her starring role in "The Voice of Water," a film that premiered at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival and received widespread critical acclaim. Her performance earned her the Rising Star Award at the 29th Takasaki Film Festival and the People's Choice Asian Star Award at the Seoul International Drama Awards in 2017.
In 2020, Hyunri appeared as Hiroko Kusakabe in the critically acclaimed film "Wife of a Spy," directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, which won the Silver Lion prize at the Venice International Film Festival. The following year, she played the role of Tsugumi in "The Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy," directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, which received the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Hyunri is perhaps best known in Japan for her roles as Saeko Harada in the TV series "Mistresses," an adaptation of the BBC series, and Yoon Jian in the Hulu original series "Love You as the World Ends" in 2021.
In addition to her acting career, Hyunri hosted her own radio show on J-WAVE, one of Tokyo's largest radio stations, from 2017 to 2022. Her linguistic abilities are impressive, as she speaks fluent Japanese, Korean, and English.
