Jung HoYeon (정호연) is an icon, a legend, and she’s the moment. The model-turned-actress has been capitulated to stardom after making her debut in her first dramatic screen role in “Squid Game”.
According to All Kpop, the 27-year-old actress only had 400,000 Instagram followers before “Squid Game” aired on 17th September. Fast forward 2 weeks later, she currently has 12.7 million followers on Instagram.
Reports show that Jung HoYeon has overtaken Song Hye Kyo (who currently has 12 million IG followers) as the 2nd most-followed Korean actress on the social media app. To date, she’s gained 20x the followers and that number continues to grow on a daily basis.
In case you’re curious, Lee Sung Kyung is the Korean actress/model with the highest number of followers with 12.9 million at the moment. But it looks like Jung HoYeon could overtake and claim the #1 spot, seeing as how “Squid Game” is still a trending worldwide hit. It’s no wonder even costars like Park Hae Soo has jumped on the bandwagon and gotten himself an IG account.
Currently helming the top 3 spots:
- Lee Sung Kyung – 12.9m
- Jung HoYeon – 12.7m
- Song Hye Kyo – 12m
In speaking about her huge following on Instagram, HoYeon said, “In the beginning, I was very surprised as I checked in real-time. When I opened the app once, the number went up, and when I opened it again, it went up further. I thought that the love for ‘Squid Game’ was being reflected in numbers, like fate, and I was thankful. Just the fact that so many people around the world are showing their interest puts me in a good mood.”
The newfound fame didn’t hit until she started doing press interviews. She added, “I was in a call with Park Hae Soo the other day, and he said, ‘Let’s keep our feet on the ground.’ Whenever I feel overwhelmed, I live with the thought that my feet are on the ground. In terms of my acting, I think I was lacking in many ways. The director, senior actors, and staff put it all together for me, and I know that my personal skills are lacking. I’m thankful for all of the love people have been giving me despite that, and I will work harder in the future to improve.”
The future is certainly looking very bright for Jung HoYeon and we’ll probably hear about her claiming the #1 spot pretty soon 😉
Update (5th October):
True enough, Jung HoYeon is now the most followed Korean actress on Instagram – surpassing Lee Sung Kyung! As at time of writing, she currently has 13.4 million followers. Since she’s quite active on the social media app, we wouldn’t be surprise if she hits 20 million by next week.
