“The Housemaid” Cast After 14 Years: Lee Jung-jae & Jeon Do-yeon To Reunite In 2024, Seo

Recently, The Korea Times reported the greatest films of all time chosen by the Korea Film Archive and 240 film industry professionals, and “The Housemaid” was named on the list.

“The Housemaid” was first released in 1960. It was remade in 2010 with the cast of Jeon Do-yeon, Lee Jung-jae, and Seo Woo. 

“The Housemaid” tells about the tragic life of Eun-yi, a young woman who is sincere and hardworking. She works for a wealthy family as a housemaid. Not long after getting hired, Eun-yi quickly becomes accustomed to life there and completes all the tasks perfectly, from taking care of the couple’s daughter Na-mi to preparing the meals.

Eun-yi’s life faces a big change when Hoon, the rich husband, begins to fall for her beauty. Their secret affair results in Eun-yi getting pregnant with Hoon’s child. Finding out about the two’s love affair, another maid Byeong-shik immediately tells Hoon’s mother-in-law. Later, the mother-in-law, Hoon’s wife Hae-ra and Byeong-shik plan to kill the baby Eun-yi is pregnant with and then expel her from the house. Witnessing all the bad deeds that the three do to Eun-yi, Hoon does not react or protect her. In the end, Eun-yi decides to suicide by burning herself in front of the evil people who ruined her life.

“The Housemaid” is 19+ movie about the sensitive topic of a love affair with many provocative scenes. Despite that, it made viewers think about a money-driven society in which money can whitewash even the dirtiest and evilest deeds.

14 years have passed since “The Housemaid” remake premiered and the leading actors have also changed a lot.

Jeon Do-yeon rose to stardom and became a top star in the Korean film industry after playing Eun-yi in “The Housemaid” remake. Thanks to this role, she won many prestigious, such as Best Actress at The Blue Dragon Film Awards and Cannes. After the success of “The Housemaid”, Jeon Do-yeon continues to work hard for a long time. Although her heyday has passed, Jeon Do-yeon is still mentioned as one of the trustworthy actresses.

Last year, Jeon Do-yeon led the drama “Crash Course in Romance” as a middle-aged single mom who suddenly finds love, and received positive responses from viewers. This year, Jeon Do-yeon is expected to return to the big screen with the action thriller “Revolver”, starring alongside Lim Ji-yeon and Ji Chang-wook.

Before “The Housemaid”, Lee Jung-jae, who portrayed Hoon, was already a star as he had won Best Actor at the Blue Dragon Film Awards in 1999. In fact, the period from 1998 to 2006 was Lee Jung-jae’s prime, but from 2006 to 2009, his performance was not significant. The release of “The Housemaid” in 2010 then marked another heyday for Lee Jung-jae. Since then, he has starred in many blockbusters, including “The Thieves”, “Assassination”, “Operation Chromite”, “Along with the Gods”, “Deliver Us from Evil” and most recently “Hunt” (2022). 

What keeps movie fans waiting is the reunion of Lee Jung-jae’s upcoming reunion with Jeon Do-yeon in 2024. In particular, the actor has confirmed his cameo appearance in Jeon Do-yeon’s new movie “Revolver”.

In dramas, Lee Jung-jae also made a big hit with “Squid Game”. As “Squid Game” became popular globally, Lee Jung-jae also bagged numerous awards such as Baeksang, Blue Dragon, Golden Globe, Primetime Emmy Award, etc.

Seo Woo impressed the public with her acting and visual in “The Housemaid” and “Cinderella’s Sister” back in 2010. In 2012, she got the leading role in “Glass Mask” and gained recognition from drama fans.

Many thought Seo Woo would become even more famous with her potential, however, the actress disappeared from the Korean film industry after only three years. The reason was that she overused plastic surgery and this eventually resulted in continuous changes on her face. Losing her natural beauty, the actress no longer received love calls from producers. Seo Woo has not appeared in any dramas since 2015 and only guested in a few entertainment programs. In 2019, she took the lead in the movie “The House” but did not gain much attention.