Couple Lee Ju-myoung, Kim Ji-seok Face Opposite Reactions to New Projects

Actor Lee Ju-myoung and her boyfriend Kim Ji-seok are getting very different reactions to their newest projects. The two have gone public with their relationship, but in front of the camera, each is being judged strictly as an actor. Lee is building her presence as a leading actor on Korean network TV. Kim, meanwhile, has run into mixed reviews for his latest work on a global streaming platform.

Lee is steadily growing into a lead. Her JTBC weekend drama "Reborn Rookie," in which she plays the title role, recently posted a viewership rating of 11.1 percent. That marks a real step forward. Lee has shown promise in supporting roles for years, and now she is delivering results in a series built around her name.

She first caught the public's attention as Ji Seung-wan, the sharp top-of-the-class student in tvN's "Twenty Five Twenty One." That was a strong supporting turn, but still a role built to serve the central story. She then took the lead in "Like Flowers in Sand" (Moraedo Kkochi Pinda) and "My Youth," though neither performed as expected. Questions started to follow her about whether she could carry a show on her own.

"Reborn Rookie" has shifted that conversation. She plays the youngest daughter of a major conglomerate's chairman, who hides her identity to live as a regular entry-level employee. Lee handles the comic side of the character with an easy, natural touch. In heavier scenes, where the character wrestles with resentment, longing, and tenderness toward her father, she controls the emotional pace and anchors the drama. Clean diction and flexible timing help sell the role. Critics say she has finally found a character that fits her, and that she has moved up a level as a lead.

Kim, on the other hand, is getting a lukewarm response to the Netflix film "Husbands in Action." Being on a global streaming platform gave the movie an easy path to viewers. It has done well on ranking charts. But actual audience reactions have been split.

Common complaints about the film itself include "the story feels stale" and "the comedy doesn't land." Kim's character, Ma Do-joon, has also drawn criticism. Ma is written as the boss of a drug ring, but the setup is standard and the story beats are easy to predict, which made it hard for the role to leave a strong impression. Reviewers felt Kim never fully clicked with the character either. The thin character design and the loose fit between actor and role, they say, hurt the film's immersion.

In a recent interview, Kim said he and Lee "both try to avoid mentioning each other as much as possible." The comment reads as a clear stance: they would rather be judged on their work than on their private life.

That makes their current moment stand out even more. Lee is turning her promise as a lead into concrete numbers with "Reborn Rookie." Kim is absorbing the weaknesses of both his character and his film in "Husbands in Action." Beyond the fact that they are dating in public, their split reviews are a reminder that an actor's standing is still decided inside the work itself.