Yoo began his career in the broadcasting industry as part of the drama crew at the SBS network. In 2007, Yoo worked as assistant director for director Park Gung-ryeol [ko] on a 20-episode drama series called "Salt Doll [ko]," which was written by Park Eon-hee. Later that same year, collaborated once again with director Park Gung-ryeol and writer Park Eon-hee on the SBS drama Fly to The Sky [ko], which aired every Friday from August 24 to October 26, 2007, and consisted of 19 episodes.[1]
High School King of Savvy[4] was Yoo's first drama series as director. The lighthearted rom-com, penned by Yang Hee-seung [ko], starred Seo In-guk, Lee Ha-na, Lee Soo-hyuk and Lee Yul-eum. it was broadcast on tvN from June 16 to August 11, 2014. Due to the drama popularity, an episode was added, extending it to 17 episodes,[5] and a special broadcast with behind-the-scenes stories was aired on August 12, 2014. It was followed by the 25-episode makjang weekend drama Teras of Heaven (2014), starring Park Ji-young, Hong Ah-reum, Seo Jun-young and Jo Yun-seo. It aired on MBN from October 11, 2014, to January 3, 2015. The drama recorded the highest viewership rating (3.305%) for an MBN drama at that time, and this record remained unbroken until 2019.[6][7][8]
In 2015, Yoo and Yang Hee-seung [ko] collaborated again on the fantasy drama Oh My Ghost.[9][10] The drama was highly anticipated as it marked Park Bo-young's return to television after a seven-year hiatus, and she starred alongside Jo Jung-suk, Lim Ju-hwan and Kim Seul-gi. The drama portrays the love story between Na Bong-sun, an assistant chef with the ability to see ghosts, and her boss, the arrogant star chef Kang Sun-woo. Na Bong-sun is possessed by a virgin spirit one day, which completely changes her timid personality.[11][12][13][14] The 16-episode drama series aired on tvN from July 3 to August 22, 2015.[15][16] The series was a commercial and critical success, with a 7% rating that was the highest for a cable television drama at the time. Park Bo-young received the Excellence Award for Actress in a Miniseries at the 4th APAN Star Awards for her role.
After a two-year hiatus, Yoo returned with a time-travel themed fantasy drama series called Tomorrow, With You. Starring Shin Min-a and Lee Je-hoon, it was started airing on February 3, 2017, on cable channel tvN.[17] However, this series didn't achieve the same level of success as Yoo's previous television series. Following that, Yoo worked as an assistant director under director Ahn Gil-ho on the tvN drama Stranger.
In 2019, Yoo reunited with Park Bo-young in tvN drama Abyss, with Ahn Hyo-seop and Lee Sung-jae joining as her co-stars. The drama revolves around a man and a woman who are resurrected from death with different faces through a mysterious soul-reviving bead called Abyss.[21][22][23]
In 2020, Yoo collaborated with writer Kwon In-woo on the fantasy melodrama Hi Bye, Mama![24] The drama was highly anticipated as it marked Kim Tae-hee's comeback after five years, and it also starred rising stars Lee Kyu-hyung and Go Bo-gyeol. The storyline depicts the 49-day reincarnation story of a ghost mother who reappears in front of her husband and daughter, who have already started a new life after overcoming the pain of bereavement. It aired on tvN from February 22 to April 19, 2020.[25][26]
2021–present: Breakthrough, mainstream success
In April 2021, Studio Dragon announced that Yoo will be reunited with Shin Min-a, as director of Seaside Village Cha-Cha-Cha, a remake of 2004 South Korean film Mr. Handy, Mr. Hong.[27] It was first announced on December 21, 2020, under the working title of Hong Ban-jang (홍반장) with Shin Min-a and Kim Seon-ho being offered the lead roles.[28] In June, it was announced that the series English title is Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha and it will be available for streaming on Netflix.[29][30][31] This is a healing romance drama about a realist dentist Yoon Hye-jin (Shin Min-a) and an all-rounder, Hong Banjang (Kim Seon-ho), a sea village called Gongjin. A genius variety producer Ji PD (Lee Sang-yi) then select Gongjin as setting for his new variety show. This 16 episodes drama were aired from August 28 to October 17, 2021, on tvN's Saturdays and Sundays at 21:00 (KST).[32][33]
On December 21, 2020, Kim Soo-hyun Drama Art Hall operated by Cheongju City Culture Industry Promotion Foundation, selected Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha as '2021 Good Drama of the Year'. Yoo as director, Shin Ha-eun as writer, and lead actors, are recognized in the certificate of award.[45] It was selected by both the viewer evaluation team and expert group and it was praised as a "K-healing drama" that emerged during a period when provocative genre content was rampant, and was loved by viewers both domestically and internationally. The panel, describing it as a work that perfectly fits the criteria of a good drama pursued by the drama art hall, broadcast content that conveys warm stories about human nature and people's lives.[46]
Yoo reunited with Yang Hee-seung [ko] for their third collaboration in the romantic-comedy drama Crash Course in Romance which premiered on tvN in January 2023. The series, starring Jeon Do-yeon and Jung Kyung-ho, revolved around a former national handball player who now runs a banchan shop, raising her high school daughter alone and celebrity math instructor at a popular private academy.[47]
The drama Crash Course in Romance gained significant popularity during its airing. On March 5, 2023, the tvN drama concluded with an impressive audience rating of 17%, marking a substantial increase from its initial rating of 4.0% on the first broadcast. The drama consistently climbed in ratings, eventually surpassing four times its starting rating for the final episode. This remarkable performance was not limited to viewership ratings alone; the drama also garnered high topicality throughout its entire run. It held the top spot in topicality for eight consecutive weeks in the TV drama category. The second half of the drama witnessed a notable surge in both ratings and popularity.[48]
According to Good Data Corporation,[b] the drama program has achieved remarkable success and recognition. In the drama division, it consistently ranked first in the Top 10 TV Topicality Ranking for four consecutive weeks, securing a topical share of 23.8%.[50] The program's initial topicality score was 9,654 points during its first week, and it reached a peak of 43,030 points, more than four times the initial score. Additionally, this work has set various records, including eight consecutive weeks in first place in the topical TV drama category, six consecutive weeks in first place in the TV-OTT integrated category, and six consecutive weeks with actor Jung Kyung-ho leading the TV topical performer category. Roh Yoon-seo also achieved first place in the TV topical performer category for five weeks. Furthermore, the program topped the TV search response for six consecutive weeks, held the first position in the TV topical VON category for seven weeks, and attained first place in the TV topical news category on five occasions.[48]
Personal life
On May 17, 2008, Yoo tied the knot with Lee Shi-ra. On this special day, Lee Hoon volunteered to host the wedding ceremony. In line with their reputation for great teamwork, a large number of cast members of drama I am Happy [ko] also attended the wedding ceremony. Kim Jong-seo serenaded the couple with a congratulatory song during the wedding.[2]
^FlixPatrol is a portal that provide provides VOD charts and streaming ratings worldwide, includes the Netflix charts (Netflix TOP 10 or what is Trending on Netflix), iTunes charts, Amazon Prime charts and HBO charts. These charts are based on the official trending or the most popular movies and the most popular TV shows on VOD. TOP 10 lists are updated daily.[39]
^Good Data Corporation (굿데이터코퍼레이션은) is an online public opinion analysis service. It analyzes online information and public opinion by field, and provides TV topical broadcasting program, online topic ranking, and quality evaluation of performers and marketing effect analysis. TV topicality survey target series that were being aired or scheduled to be broadcast. Unlike the audience rating, which measures only the viewing time for the broadcast time, TV topicality is to diagnose the evaluation by examining, indexing, and analyzing the netizens' reactions that appeared in online news, blogs, communities, social media, and videos for one week after each program was broadcast.[49]
^Shin Hye-sun also worked with Yoo Je-won for 3rd time in Stranger Season 1
^Kim Soo-hyun Drama Art Hall managed by Cheongju Cultural Industry Promotion Foundation is drama literature center, an exhibition space of drama writer Kim Soo-Hyun and her works
^ ab"날아오르다" [Fly up]. 위키백과, 우리 모두의 백과사전 (in Korean). 2022-03-12. Archived from the original on 2023-08-29. Retrieved 2022-10-01.
^ abc"김종서, 또 엽기 축가?...'행복합니다' 조연출 결혼식서 축가" [Kim Jong-seo, another bizarre celebration?... 'I am happy' Assistant director's wedding ceremony]. Naver News (in Korean). 2008-05-08. Archived from the original on 2022-10-01. Retrieved 2022-10-01.
^ ab"인생은 아름다워 (2010년 드라마)" [Life is Beautiful (2010 drama)]. 위키백과, 우리 모두의 백과사전 (in Korean). 2022-07-31. Archived from the original on 2023-08-29. Retrieved 2022-10-01.
^"[TF포커스] '오 나의 귀신님', 대세 뭉친 완전체 로코물 탄생할까" [[TF Focus] 'Oh, my ghost', will the trend's perfect rom-com be born?]. 더팩트 (in Korean). 2015-06-30. Archived from the original on 2023-08-29. Retrieved 2022-04-16.
^"[종합] "서인국·정소민+서은수·박성웅"..'1억개의 별' 황금 라인업 완성" [[Comprehensive] "Seo In-guk, Jung So-min + Seo Eun-soo, Park Sung-woong"..' Completion of the '100 million stars' golden lineup]. Osen (in Korean). July 9, 2018. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
^‘하늘에서 내리는 1억개의 별’ 서인국→이홍빈, 대본리딩 현장 공개 ['100 million stars falling from the sky' Seo In-guk → Lee Hong-bin, script reading site revealed]. Seoul Economic Daily (in Korean). August 10, 2018. Archived from the original on August 10, 2018. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
^ abChoi, Ju-ri (January 3, 2020). "'하이바이,마마!' 김태희, 드디어 베일 벗은 '49일 리얼 환생 스토리'" ["Hi Bye, Mama!" Kim Tae-hee finally took off her veil, "49 Days Real Reincarnation Story."]. Sedaily (in Korean). Archived from the original on August 29, 2023. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
^Kim, Hye-young (December 28, 2019). "김태희, 5년 만에 '인생캐' 만나 복귀 "연기 그리울 때 좋은 작품 만나 감사해"" [Kim Tae-hee met "Life Character" for the first time in five years and returned, "Thank you for meeting a good work when you miss acting."]. iMBC (in Korean). Archived from the original on January 31, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
^ ab"[발표] 2021「올해의 좋은 드라마 선정" [Announcement Selected as 2021「Good Drama of the Year」]. Kimsoohyundrama.org. Archived from the original on 2022-10-28. Retrieved 2022-10-27.
^Park, Chang-seo (December 21, 2021). "김수현드라마아트홀 선정 "올해의 좋은 드라마", 갯마을 차차차" [Kim Soo-hyun's Drama Art Hall Selection "Good Drama of the Year", Hometown Cha Cha Cha]. CJ ILBO (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2022-04-30.
^ ab"8주 연속 화제성 1위 '일타 스캔들'의 2가지 인기 비결" [2 popular secrets of the No. 1 topic 'Il-Tata Scandal' for 8 weeks in a row]. 반론보도닷컴 (in Korean). 2023-03-09. Archived from the original on 2023-03-22. Retrieved 2023-08-31.
^"조사 Flow". Good Data Corporation (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 15, 2022. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
^"'일타 스캔들' 4주 연속 TV·OTT 통합 드라마 화제성 1위" ['Crash Course in Romance' No. 1 on TV and OTT integrated drama for 4 weeks in a row]. Star Today (in Korean). February 20, 2023. Archived from the original on February 22, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
^Shin, So-won (2015-08-27). "'오나의귀신님' 박보영 조정석 오빠와 키스신, 부끄러웠다 (인터뷰)" ['Oh My Ghost' Park Bo-young "I was ashamed to kiss Jo Jung-suk oppa" (Interview)]. mydaily.co.kr. Archived from the original on 2022-12-19. Retrieved 2022-12-19.
^Ahn Yoon-ji (June 21, 2022). "전도연x정경호, '일타 스캔들' 출연..코믹 멜로 입시 잔혹사[공식]" [Jeon Do-yeon x Jung Kyung-ho, 'Another Scandal' Appears..Comic Melody Cruelty of Admissions [Official]] (in Korean). MT Star News. Archived from the original on June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022 – via Naver.
^"'갯차' 감독X작가, '엄마친구아들'로 의기투합..신상 로코 기대" ['Gaetcha' director X writer, 'Mom's friend's son'.. Looking forward to the new Rocco]. 스타뉴스 (in Korean). 2023-08-08. Archived from the original on 2023-08-29. Retrieved 2023-08-12.
^Park Chang-seo (December 21, 2021). "김수현드라마아트홀 선정 "올해의 좋은 드라마", 갯마을 차차차" [Selected as “Good Drama of the Year” by Kim Soo-hyun Drama Art Hall, Hometown Cha Cha Cha] (in Korean). CJ Ilbo. Archived from the original on October 27, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022 – via Naver News.
^AAA 2022 National Winner Announcement. YouTube. Asian Academy Creative Awards. September 30, 2022. Event occurs at 19:42. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
^"김선호·신민아 '갯차'→김태리·남주혁 '2521', AACA 노미네이트" [Kim Seon-ho and Shin Min-ah 'Gacha Tea' → Kim Tae-ri and Nam Joo-hyuk '2521', AACA nominees]. 싱글리스트 (in Korean). 2022-10-11. Archived from the original on 2022-10-11. Retrieved 2022-10-11.