The Glory Cast & Creators: Meet the Team Behind K-Unpacked's Article Series
Meet the creative team and cast of The Glory, from writer Kim Eun-sook to Lim Ji-yeon, whose performance became a career-defining turn.
If you have followed this series, you already know the story. Part 1 introduced The Glory and Song Hye-kyo’s dramatic image change. Part 2 broke down the ending and its biggest twists.
This final part is about the people who built the show. Let’s meet the writer, the director, and the cast who made The Glory one of the most talked-about K-dramas in recent years.
The Writer: Kim Eun-sook
Kim Eun-sook is one of the most successful screenwriters in Korean television. Before The Glory, she was already known for huge hits like Descendants of the Sun, Goblin, and Mr. Sunshine. Most of her earlier work leaned toward romance and warm, witty dialogue.
The Glory was a big departure for her. It is darker, slower, and far more painful than her past projects. Kim has explained that the idea developed after her teenage daughter asked her a striking question: whether it would hurt more to beat someone nearly to death, or to be beaten nearly to death herself. That question became the seed for Dong-eun’s story. Kim also studied real Korean school-bullying cases while writing the series.
Kim Eun-sook does not keep a public social media account, so there is no official SNS link to share for her.
The Director: Ahn Gil-ho
Ahn Gil-ho directed The Glory, bringing his experience from tense, atmospheric dramas like Stranger and Memories of the Alhambra. His style favors quiet tension over big, loud moments, which fit perfectly with a story about a revenge plan built slowly over nearly two decades.
Fans online have often pointed out that pairing Kim Eun-sook’s writing with Ahn Gil-ho’s directing gave The Glory a very different feel from Kim’s earlier, more romantic dramas.
Ahn Gil-ho also does not appear to keep a public social media account, so no official SNS link is available for him either.
Song Hye-kyo as Moon Dong-eun
Song Hye-kyo plays Moon Dong-eun, the woman at the center of the entire revenge plot. As covered in Part 1 of this series, this role marked a major shift for an actress long associated with warm, romantic leads.
📸 Official SNS: Instagram @kyo1122
Lee Do-hyun as Joo Yeo-jeong
Lee Do-hyun plays Joo Yeo-jeong, the doctor who becomes Dong-eun’s closest ally and, eventually, much more. Lee had already built a strong reputation through dramas like Sweet Home and Youth of May before this role expanded his range even further.
📸 Official SNS: Instagram @ldh_sky
Lim Ji-yeon as Park Yeon-jin
Lim Ji-yeon plays Park Yeon-jin, the show’s central villain. She already had a solid acting career before this role, including her award-winning film debut in Obsessed and a supporting part in Money Heist: Korea. But The Glory became a major career breakthrough for her, bringing her much wider international recognition.
📸 Official SNS: Instagram @limjjy2
Jung Sung-il as Ha Do-yeong
Jung Sung-il plays Ha Do-yeong, Yeon-jin’s husband. His character’s slow realization of the truth about his wife becomes one of the story’s quieter but more emotional threads.
📸 Official SNS: Instagram @ygmicael
Park Sung-hoon as Jeon Jae-jun
Park Sung-hoon plays Jeon Jae-jun, one of Dong-eun’s former bullies. His portrayal of a wealthy, spoiled man slowly losing control of his own life became one of the more talked-about performances from the supporting cast.
📸 Official SNS: Instagram @boxabum
Yeom Hye-ran as Kang Hyeon-nam
Yeom Hye-ran plays Kang Hyeon-nam, a woman trapped in an abusive marriage who becomes an unlikely ally to Dong-eun. Yeom is a respected veteran actress, and her performance added real emotional weight to one of the show’s more grounded storylines.
📸 Official SNS: Official account not publicly confirmed.
Why This Cast Worked So Well Together
The Glory did not rely on just one strong performance. It needed an entire ensemble willing to play deeply unlikable, morally complicated characters and make them feel real. From Song Hye-kyo’s icy control to Lim Ji-yeon’s chilling charm, the cast turned a slow-burn revenge story into something audiences could not look away from.
That combination of a bold script, patient direction, and a fearless cast is exactly why The Glory became a global phenomenon, and why many K-drama fans continue to regard it as one of the genre’s standout revenge dramas.
If you’re looking for more dark, twisty dramas with unforgettable casts, check out our series on Squid Game Season 1 or Queen of Tears.
A personal note from the Editor. It’s easy to praise a lead performance, but shows like this only work when every supporting actor commits just as fully. That’s what made The Glory click.