The Korean star of the hit U.S. drama "Lost",
Kim Yoon-jin is to reveal the inside story of her struggle and triumph in Hollywood in a memoir provisionally titled "Hollywood Story" to be published in June.
Despite her ascent to top stardom in Korea's Chungmuro, Kim decided to try her luck as an unknown in Hollywood. But the L.A film scene was an unfamiliar world, where the star of "
Shiri", Korea's first blockbuster, was just another aspiring Asian actress. Before she landed her exclusive contract with ABC TV, Kim was afflicted by sudden facial palsy, and her doctor said she might never fully recover. But she was determined to succeed, and with the help of physiotherapy she overcame the disease and landed what was initially a marginal part in "Lost". In fact, her audition persuaded the production team to create the character Sun, who was not in the script in the first place.
Kim recalls an incident of racial discrimination while taking pictures for the poster of "Lost", when all non-Caucasian actors were put in the back row. She also describes how she had to overcome difficulties in Korea, where she wanted to appear in the movie "
Peppermint Candy" in 1999 but was turned down due to her "foreign" image. That added to the identity crisis the actress was suffering as a Korean living in the U.S. But she regained her confidence as the only actress able to star in both Korea and Hollywood when she landed another role in a Korean movie. Kim makes it clear in the book that hers is not a Cinderella story, and that she is a Korean actress performing on the world stage.
