Lee Il-Hwa: South Korean Actress and Television Star

Lee Il-Hwa (born January 3, 1971) is a prominent South Korean actress. Active in the entertainment industry for decades, she has gained widespread recognition for her versatile supporting roles in both television dramas and feature films.

Career and Notable Works

Lee made her entry into acting in the early 1990s and has since built an extensive filmography. She is perhaps best recognized by international audiences for her recurring maternal role across the popular tvN nostalgia series Reply 1997 (2012), Reply 1994 (2013), and Reply 1988 (2015–2016). Beyond the Reply anthology, her television credits include My Love from the Star (2013), Good Manager (2017), Witch at Court (2017), and Young Lady and Gentleman (2021–2022).

In addition to her television work, Lee has appeared in numerous films, ranging from No Need to Justify Yearning (1994) to later projects such as The Accidental Detective series, Homme Fatale (2019), Count (2023), and Netflix's My Name is Loh Kiwan (2024).

Awards and Recognition

Throughout her career, Lee has received several accolades for her television performances, including the Best Supporting Actress award at the 2017 KBS Drama Awards for her role in Witch at Court, and the Excellent Actress award at the 10th Korea Drama Awards for Good Manager in 2017. She also won the Special Short Drama Actress award at the 2018 KBS Drama Awards for Drama Special: My Mom's Third Marriage.