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Hallyu Wiki explainers · Hallyu Wiki editors · Updated 2026-10-15

Who is actress Go Hyun-jung, and what is she in now?

A timeline of her main works from Sandglass to Queen Mantis, her age and agency, awards, and where to watch — drawn from 13 press reports and official pages.

Go Hyun-jung — the person behind searches for "go hyun-jung" (English-language outlets also spell it Ko Hyun-jung) — is a South Korean actress who entered show business through the 1989 Miss Korea pageant. Her most recent drama is Queen Mantis (Korean title: Mantis: The Murderer's Outing), which aired on SBS in September 2025.[1][8][9] She played the serial killer Jung Yi-shin, won a Top Excellence Award at the 2025 SBS Drama Awards for the role, and the series entered Netflix's global TV chart.[9][12]

A July 2026 report listed Queen Mantis as her most recent work, and as of October 2026 no new role after it has been confirmed.[1] Each question is answered below, with a source number on every claim.

YearTitleRole · channel or platform
1995SandglassDrama. Marie Claire Korea describes it as the series that made her a top star.2
2005Spring DaysDrama. Her return after a break from acting, co-starring Ji Jin-hee and Jo In-sung.2
2009The Great Queen SeondeokMBC historical drama. She played Misil and won that year's MBC Drama Awards grand prize; in her speech she said she had been nervous because it was her first period piece.3
2016Dear My FriendstvN Friday–Saturday drama written by Noh Hee-kyung. She played Park Wan alongside Kim Hye-ja, Ko Doo-shim and others.4
2021Reflection of YouJTBC drama and her first TV drama in two years. She plays Hee-ju, a painter and essayist.2,5
2023Mask GirlNetflix series released August 18, 2023. She is one of three actresses who play the lead, Kim Mo-mi, at different stages of her life.6
2024NamibENA / Genie TV drama that premiered December 23, 2024. She plays Kang Su-hyun, a star producer who has been fired.7
2025Queen MantisSBS Friday–Saturday drama, September 5 to September 27, 2025. She plays the serial killer Jung Yi-shin.8,10

Who she is: debuted via Miss Korea 1989, signed to IOK ENM

Go Hyun-jung entered show business through the 1989 Miss Korea pageant.[1] As for her age, The Korea Times described her as 38 when she won the MBC Drama Awards grand prize in December 2009.[3] She became a top star with Sandglass in 1995.[2] Her agency is IOK ENM; her contract renewal with the company was reported in July 2026.[1] According to the same report, the agency also represents Gu Hye-sun, Kim Kang-woo and Yoon Sang-hyun, and Go runs her own YouTube channel.[1]

1,2,3

Her latest drama: Queen Mantis

  • The story. A crime thriller in which copycat killings imitate "Mantis," a serial killer caught 20 years earlier, forcing detective Cha Soo-yeol (Jang Dong-yoon) to work with his mother Jung Yi-shin (Go), whom he has hated all his life. It was directed by Byun Young-joo.8
  • Broadcast. It premiered as an SBS Friday–Saturday drama at 9:50 p.m. on September 5, 2025. It was her first SBS drama in seven years, since Return in 2018.8
  • Results. The final episode on September 27 drew 7.4% nationwide and 7.9% in the Seoul metropolitan area, peaking at 10.3%. In its first week it entered Netflix's Global Top 10 (TV) at No. 7, and it reached No. 6 in the non-English category.9,10,11
  • Ending. The final episode closed by hinting that mother and son would team up again. None of the reports checked for this page announced a further season.11
8,9,10,11

Awards

  • 2009 MBC Drama Awards, grand prize (daesang), for playing Misil in The Great Queen Seondeok.3
  • 2025 SBS Drama Awards, Top Excellence Award (miniseries genre/action category), for Queen Mantis. The ceremony was held on December 31, 2025; she was also one of five grand-prize nominees. The grand prize went to Lee Je-hoon for Taxi Driver 3.12,13
3,12,13

Where to watch

Queen Mantis aired on SBS and also entered Netflix's global TV chart under that English title.[9][10] Mask Girl is a Netflix series released on August 18, 2023.[6] Namib aired on ENA and Genie TV, a Korean IPTV service.[7]

6,7,9,10

Reading paths

Starter · 10 articlesK-Drama 101 via NetflixBegin with Squid Game and Hwang Dong-hyuk, pass through a zombie period piece, a revenge drama, a Jeju family saga, 2026's The Scandal and cooking and physical survival shows, and arrive at what Korean drama is.

Related articles

Go Hyun-jung Mask Girl Jang Dong-yoon Kim Hye-ja Ryeoun Netflix

Sources

  1. press 스포츠경향, 고현정, 아이오케이이엔엠과의 동행 이어간다, 2026-07-16
  2. press 마리끌레르 코리아, 믿보배, 배우 고현정의 필모그래피 정주행, 2021-10-14
  3. press 코리아타임스, Ko Hyun-jung Wins Top Drama Award, 2009-12-31
  4. press OSEN, tvN의 첫 꼰대극, 김혜자·고두심·고현정 해낼까[종합], 2016-05-04
  5. press 노컷뉴스, 고현정 2년 만 드라마 복귀…JTBC '너를 닮은 사람' 출연, 2020-11-10
  6. official 넷플릭스, '마스크걸': 세 개의 이름, 세 번의 인생, 세 번의 살인..., 2023-08-03
  7. press 더팩트, "위로와 울림 확신"…고현정·려운, 스타 제작 성장기 '나미브'(종합), 2024-12-16
  8. press 스포츠경향, [스경X현장] 고현정, 연쇄살인마로 7년 만에 SBS 컴백···'사마귀' 자신감 넘쳤다, 2025-09-04
  9. press SBS Star, Ko Hyun-jung Unleashes a Chilling Tour de Force in 'Queen Mantis', 2025-09-17
  10. press 스포츠경향, '사마귀' 대본·연기·연출 3박자 완벽했다···최고 10.3%, 2025-09-28
  11. press 엑스포츠뉴스, '연쇄살인마' 고현정, 장동윤과 공조 수사 엔딩…시청률 10% 돌파 '유종의 미' (사마귀)[종합], 2025-09-28
  12. press SBS 뉴스, 이제훈, 새 역사 썼다…'모범택시'로 두 번째 'SBS연기대상' 영예 [종합], 2026-01-01
  13. press TV리포트, 역대급으로 치열하다…'SBS 연기대상' 고현정→이제훈, '영광의 대상' 주인공은, 2025-12-17
Cite this page

“Who is actress Go Hyun-jung, and what is she in now?.” Hallyu Wiki. https://hallyu.wiki/en/guides/go-hyun-jung-faq/ (Retrieved 2026-10-15).

How this article was made: read official statements, court/regulator records and at least two independent outlets; community posts are used only as attention signals. Written by Hallyu Wiki editors with AI assistance — check the sources. Request a correction