Career
A graduate of Kaywon High School of the Arts, Kim made her acting debut in 1992. She worked as a television actress for over a decade before branching out into film, saying in an interview that, "I was getting older by the second, and I hated becoming complacent." In 2005, Kim made her first big screen appearance with a leading role in Lee Yoon-ki"s This Charming Girl, a character study of a twenty-something single woman working at a post office. Due to the success of This Charming Girl on the international film festival circuit, and in recognition of her role in promoting Korean culture overseas, Kim was invited to a Blue House luncheon, where she met then-South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and First Lady Kwon Yang-suk.
In 2006 Kim appeared in several films, first with Jo Jae-hyun in the melodrama Romance, though she was publicly critical about the lack of depth to her character.
In October 2006, she portrayed a victim of the Sampoong Department Store collapse in Traces of Love, which was selected as the opening film of the 11th Pusan International Festival. Kim returned to television in May 2008 with a leading role in the drama Women of the Sun.
In 2010 she starred in her first historical series The King of Legend which focuses on Geunchogo, the 13th ruler of Baekje. Shortly before the drama"s premiere, Kim was involved in a drunken hit-and-run accident (this was her second offense.
Her first Driving under the influence was in 2000 for which she lost her license).
Amidst a wave of complaints demanding that she be fired from the drama, broadcast station Korean Broadcasting System stuck by the actress, and Kim released an official apology and paid the fine of ₩10 million. She was later listed among the top 10 highest-paid entertainers on Korean Broadcasting System for the year 2011, with a salary of ₩400 million. Starring roles followed in Love Again (2012) and One Warm Word (2013).
When asked in an interview if she would consider appearing nude onscreen, Kim replied, "I don"t want to take nude scenes to prove my passion for acting, which I have always had.".