Park Gyu-young’s 8 Best K-Dramas, Ranked

Park Gyu-young has been in several great TV shows from It's Okay to Not Be Okay to Squid Game, so which one of her K-dramas is the best among her projects is a tricky question. Park Gyu-young's acting career includes diverse roles that span across multiple genres. While she's been in many romantic K-dramas, she's also starred in horrors like Sweet Home, and mystery legal dramas like The Devil Judge. The award-winning actor has shown that she can handle her own, whether it's in a supporting or lead role, thus proving that she is one of the most versatile K-drama actors.

Born in Busan, South Korea, Park Gyu-young began acting in 2016 in the K-drama, Bring It on Ghost. Since her K-drama debut, she's gone on to appear in other films and TV shows such as Wretches and even led the Netflix original K-drama Celebrity. Recently, Park Gyu-young took on the role of Kang No-eul in Squid Game season 2 and was praised for the complexity she brought to her surprising role. With so many popular K-dramas in her resume already Park Gyu-young will likely have a bright future in the K-drama industry.

8 A Good Day To Be A Dog (2023)

Character: Han Hae-na

Starring Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung’s Cha Eun-woo and The Liar and His Lover’s Kang Han-gyul, A Good Day to Be A Dog is a fantasy romance K-drama that focuses on Han Hae-na’s (Park Gyu-young) complicated love life. Hae-na, a high school teacher has a big secret that has ruined all her romantic relationships: her family was cursed to transform into dogs whenever they kissed someone. The transformation would occur at midnight for six hours and would only stop when they kissed the same person again. Things get dicey for Hae-na when she kisses Jin Seo-woon, who is terrified of dogs.

A Good Day to Be A Dog isn't a run-of-the-mill K-drama, which gives Park Gyu-young a chance to shine in the lead role. Hae-na is a funny and lovable character, and Park Gyu-young makes it easy to root for her and hope she finds love. A Good Day to Be a Dog is intriguing from its very first episode, and the chemistry between Park Gyu-young and Cha Eun-woo is one of the reasons why. While A Good Day to Be A Dog might not be Park Gyu-young’s best K-drama, her comedic timing in the series makes it very enjoyable.

7 Romance Is A Bonus Book (2019)

Character: Oh Ji-yul

Released in 2019, Romance Is A Bonus Book follows Kang Da-ni and Cha Eun-ho’s love story. Kang Da-ni is a former copywriter whose life takes a turn for the worse when her husband divorces her and she is left out in the cold with no job or prospects. Her childhood friend, Cha Eun-ho is the editor-in-chief at a publishing company where Da-ni gets a job. As the two interact, their shared past and mutual respect result in them falling in love.

Park Gyu-young’s Oh Ji-yul is a bit spoiled and is easy to dislike because of that, but her struggles with her mother show that she also has some complications in her life. Park Gyu-young only has a supporting role in Romance Is a Bonus Book so she doesn't have a lot of screen time compared to the lead characters. However, she still gives a great performance during the times that she is on screen. The actor’s performance in Romance Is a Bonus Book showed that she has the charisma and versatility that is often seen in lead characters.

6 Dali And The Cocky Prince (2021)

Character: Kim Dali

In her second lead role, Park Gyu-young plays Kim Dali in Dali and The Cocky Prince. The K-drama sees Dali, a young woman who loses her father and finds herself in debt. Dali meets Moo Hak, the managing director of a global restaurant chain. Dali and Moo Hak come from opposite sides of life: she grew up rich while he earned his wealth and only cares about money. Although the two characters are different, their relationship, which starts as creditor and debtor develops into something more as they get to know each other better.

Dali is a researcher who prefers getting lost in books to anything else. While she has a calm demeanor, Dali isn't afraid of voicing her opinions. Park Gyu-young proved that she is a versatile actor who shines in every role she plays. She makes it easy to like Dali and her portrayal of the character is one of the best things about the K-drama. Although Dali and the Cocky Prince isn't a very well-known K-drama, it certainly is worth watching because of Park Gyu-young’s powerful performance, which earned her the Best New Actress award at the 2021 Baeksang Arts Awards.

5 The Devil Judge (2021)

Character: Yoon Soo-hyun

2021 was a busy year for Park Gyu-young as she not only starred in Dali and the Cocky Prince but also had a lead role in The Devil Judge. One of the most unique legal K-dramas, The Devil Judge is set in a dystopian South Korean future where the courtroom is a television studio. The K-drama follows Kang Yo-han, a judge whose word is law. Park Gyu-young’s character, Yoo Soo-hyun begins to challenge Judge Kang to bring justice to society by getting rid of the malicious judge.

Yoo Soo-hyun is a lieutenant in the Regional Investigation Unit who together with her childhood friend Kim Ga-on seeks to to right the injustices in their world. Soo-hyun is brave and is willing to do what it takes to ensure that the world she lives in is free of corruption and injustice. The Devil Judge is a departure from Park Gyu-young’s past K-drama roles as it doesn't have romance at its center. However, her portrayal of Soo-hyun is enthralling. Although Park Gyu-young didn't have a lot to work with in The Devil Judge, her character is still memorable.

4 Celebrity (2023)

Character: Seo Ah-ri

The thriller K-drama Celebrity delves into the world of rich social media influencers. Seo Ah-ri, portrayed by Park Min-young is a door-to-door makeup salesperson who has no social media presence. However, that changes when she runs into an old friend, Oh Min-yhe who seems to have it all: wealth, great looks, and a devoted husband. After seeing how fame can change someone's life, Ah-ri endeavors to be an influencer. But she soon discovers that the world of the rich and famous is far more different than what is seen on social media.

Park Gyu-young captures the intensity of her character and pulls audiences in with her performance. The actor nails her character, as she can seamlessly transition from a shy woman to someone capable of standing up for herself when the situation calls for it. Celebrity isn't just about seeing the super-rich and famous flaunt their wealth. It also offers smart commentary on the pitfalls of social media. Park Gyu-young did a great job of bringing that theme to life, and Celebrity is one of her best K-dramas.

3 Sweet Home (2020)

Character: Yoon Ji-su

Adapted from Kim Carnby and Hwang Young-chan’s webtoon of the name, Sweet Home is one of the most popular zombie K-dramas. Starring the “son of Netflix” Song Kang as Cha Hyu-soo in one of the lead roles, Sweet Home centers around a group of tenants stuck in their apartment building after a virus breaks out that turns people into monsters. Sweet Home was popular with critics and audiences, having become the first K-drama to enter Netflix's Top 10 charts.

Park Gyu-young takes on the role of Yoon Ji-su in Sweet Home. Ji-su is a lonely bass guitarist dealing with the pain of losing her boyfriend who died from suicide. She goes through a lot in Sweet Home, but she remains tough through all her adverse moments. As Ji-su, Park Gyu-young showed a different side to her because she was both tough and kindhearted. Ji-su is one of the best characters in Sweet Home, and it's all thanks to how Park Gyu-young embodied her, even though the series changed a lot from the webtoon.

2 It's Okay To Not Be Okay (2020)

Character: Nam Ju-ri

It's Okay to Not Be Okay sees So Yea-ji's Ko Moon-young and Kim Soo-hyun's Moon Gang-tae fall in love. Moon-young is a selfish children's book author who likes things to always go her way. Gang-tae, on the other hand, is a caring character who finds himself working at OK Psychiatric Hospital. Gang-tae and Moon-young have an encounter after the former becomes a patient at the hospital due to her antisocial personality disorder. While Moon-young and Gang-tae are completely different, they eventually begin to fall for each other.

Nam Ju-ri is Park Gyu-young’s first major role. Ju-ri is a nurse at OK Psychiatric Hospital with a huge crush on Gang-tae. One of the best K-dramas of all time, It's Okay to Not Be Okay is what put Park Gyu-young on the map. As Ju-ri, Park Gyu-young contributed to some light-hearted moments in the K-drama. The South Korean actor shined as Ju-ri and nailed her character’s nuances and emotions, especially after a big secret about her past was revealed.

1 Squid Game (2021)

Character: Kang No-eul

One of Netflix's biggest shows, Squid Game played a huge role in how popular K-dramas have become, especially on streaming platforms. The intense K-drama centers around a group of people who owe large amounts of debt and are tricked into playing children's games that result in the losers being killed. Squid Game season 1 was Netflix's most-watched show of all time, with the show then being renewed for two more seasons.

Park Gyu-young joined the cast of Squid Game in season 2 and her character, Kang No-eul, was one of the biggest twists of the show. Kang No-eul was a departure from the usual K-drama characters that Park Gyu-young plays because she was a villain in Squid Game season 2. Park Gyu-young's role as Kang No-eul is arguably her best so far because of how she turned what was supposed to be a faceless soldier into a complex character whose decisions have sparked a lot of debate, giving Squid Game one of its most fascinating side stories.