The most beautiful Miss Korea: At 42, she is still a legend of beauty and happiness

(Dan Tri) - In 2007, Honey Lee became famous throughout Asian social networks when she entered the top 5 of Miss Universe 2007. Her sweet beauty and charming smile are still legendary in the land of kimchi.

Honey Lee is a Korean name famous to the world audience. She won the title of Miss Korea in 2006 and represented the land of kimchi at the Miss Universe 2007 pageant.

At this contest, she was considered the most outstanding Asian contestant with a beautiful face, sexy and toned body. In the end, Honey Lee won the 3rd runner-up position of Miss Universe 2007.

Over the years, she has been praised by international media as an Asian beauty with a beautiful figure and figure. She is also the Korean beauty with the best achievements in international beauty contests from 2007 to present.

Honey Lee is currently active as an actress and MC in many entertainment programs and beauty contests in Korea. The personal life of the 8X generation beauty also makes fans curious.

Different beauty was once despised and criticized

While participating in MC Jaejae's YouTube talk show MMTG, Honey Lee admitted that she was once a victim of body shaming. Honey Lee said that when she was in school, she was criticized for her "bulky" appearance and athletic figure, which deviated from Korean beauty standards.

Honey Lee was a prominent face when participating in Miss Universe 2007 (Photo: My Daily).

The beauty born in 1983 shared that in 2006, when she participated in the Miss Korea 2006 contest, she received strange looks because of her tanned skin, toned, healthy appearance, completely different from the porcelain-white, dewy-looking goddess standard of Korean goddesses.

"When I competed in Miss Korea in 2006, I didn't see many contestants paying attention to physical training. Many of them had pale, almost transparent skin," the beauty recalled.

Honey Lee recalls her time competing in Miss Korea 2006: "I went on stage with my tanned skin. When I stood up straight to pose for a greeting, my thigh muscles were exposed and tensed. Now, that would be considered great at an international beauty pageant, but at a Korean beauty pageant, everyone looked at me with strange eyes: "Oh, what's wrong with her thighs?", "Why are she so "muscular"?"'.

Honey Lee is one of the four runners-up of the Miss Universe 2007 contest (Photo: News).

Honey Lee also revealed that she was advised to moderate her strong and decisive gait, but the beauty born in 1983 believes that her gait and bright smile are synonymous with confidence, so she decided not to change.

All the rumors and doubts about Honey Lee were only dispelled when she shone and affirmed her beauty at the Miss Universe 2007 contest. After winning the title of runner-up at the Miss Universe 2007 contest, she also won the Miss Grand Slam 2007 award.

Turning to become a talented actor

Leaving the world's most prestigious international beauty pageant, Honey Lee spent time studying before officially switching to acting. The former Miss Korea encountered many difficulties when deciding to change careers.

Her acting ability was questioned and she was considered a "mobile flower vase" on the Korean screen. In addition, her dimples were criticized as a defect on her face and the actress was once advised to have plastic surgery to remove this.

Honey Lee is currently a famous MC and actress in Korea (Photo: Cosmopolitan, Bazaar).

"I have lived my whole life with my greatest asset being my confidence. So when I was in my 20s, I had the short-sighted thought that I would not be able to integrate into the world. Later, many people told me that my appearance was not suitable for acting and that I needed to remove the "flaw" of my dimples. Even plastic surgeons contacted me," she said.

After many years of trying and improving her acting, Honey Lee is now considered one of the most beloved TV actresses in Korea with diverse and colorful roles.

She participated in many popular film and television projects such as: Super Difficult Job, Pasta - Flavor of Love, Gentleman Returns, Enthusiastic Priest, Flowers Bloom at Night, One The Woman... Each role left an impression on the audience and brought the beauty several acting awards.

This year, Honey Lee has a project coming out (Photo: Chosun).

On August 22, Netflix released the original series Aema , starring Honey Lee. The comedy tells the story of top stars and rookie actors struggling with the harsh realities behind the glamour of the Korean film industry in the 1980s.

In the film, Honey Lee plays Jung Hee Ran - a top actress at the time, who lost the lead role in a major production due to conflicts with the producer. It is known that the film was filmed while she was pregnant.

After Aema , Honey Lee continues her acting career with a new Netflix original series Slowly and Intensely, scheduled to air in 2026. The series revolves around the dreams of young people striving for success in the Korean entertainment industry from the 1960s to the 1980s. In addition to Honey Lee, the series brings together a famous cast including Song Hye Kyo, Gong Yoo, Seolhyun and Cha Seung Won.

A secret marriage and happy motherhood at 40

Honey Lee suddenly announced her marriage to a non-celebrity husband in December 2021. A representative of the actress's management company - Saram Entertainment - shared: "Honey Lee has found a wonderful person to spend her life with based on love and trust. She will return with a more mature image and better acting. I hope everyone will support and bless her."

Honey Lee is currently happy with her husband working outside the entertainment industry and her two young daughters (Photo: Instagram).

According to a close source, Honey Lee and her husband started dating in early 2021. They have many things in common in terms of interests and outlook on life, so they quickly moved towards married life. It is known that Honey Lee's husband works outside the entertainment industry, so they did not want to hold a noisy wedding or invite the media to attend.

In mid-2022, she gave birth to her first daughter at the age of 39. Just 6 months after giving birth, Honey Lee shocked everyone when she acted in many action scenes in the TV series Flowers Bloom at Night. This work helped the former Miss Korea win the Best Actress award at the 2024 Baeksang Arts Awards.

Last March, the former beauty queen announced her second pregnancy but continued to work hard on set. Regarding her pregnancy, Honey Lee said she is a professional actress and does not want her personal problems to affect the entire crew.

On August 25, Honey Lee’s management company announced: “Honey Lee welcomed a healthy baby girl into her arms on August 24. Both mother and baby are healthy, recovering, and receiving much love from her family. We hope everyone will continue to send warm wishes and love to her family.”

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giai-tri/hoa-hau-dep-nhat-han-quoc-tuoi-42-van-la-huyen-thoai-nhan-sac-hanh-phuc-20250826110907830.htm