Meeting when working as a model for a clothing brand, Yoo Ji Tae felt a different vibe when he saw Kim Hyo Jin until finally the positive relationship between the two became role models.
Building a household without much chaos makes the famous celebrity couple Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin a dream. The actor and actress couple first met when they were both models for commercial advertisements.
The relationship between the two grew naturally from friends to lovers even though their age gap at that time was quite far. Even so, this couple has always been a role model because of their cohesiveness both in fostering a household and work.
One proof of the cohesiveness of Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin as a married couple known to be charitable is when both of them carried out noble campaigns and participated in the project of the international humanitarian aid organization World Vision to improve educational facilities in Africa.
The campaign entitled "Dream School Project" named the couple as honorary ambassadors to build schools for children in Nigeria, Africa. Because of this, Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin were nicknamed "Brangelina" (referring to the Hollywood couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie who were previously active in charity campaigns in Africa) from Korea because they both like to do charities.
Given their interesting and peaceful story, the WowKeren team has summarized their love journey from dating to marriage and having two sons. Check out the love story of Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin, let's go! (wk/taki)
1. First Meeting
The beginning of their meeting can be said to have started from one job. Kim Hyo Jin and Yoo Ji Tae met for the first time in 2003 as models for the clothing brand they were paired with.
Please note that before becoming an actor and developing as a director, Yoo Ji Tae started his career as a model. Likewise with Kim Hyo Jin, who has become a model for a teen magazine and then made her acting debut as an actress in 1999. In fact, it was at the beginning of their career that the seeds of love grew.
In an interview, Yoo Ji Tae revealed in detail how he first met his wife. When meeting on the set of a commercial, Yoo Ji Tae confessed that he had good feelings after meeting Kim Hyo Jin.
So many things happened when their friendship fell apart over the years. Until finally, Yoo Ji Tae decided to greet Kim Hyo Jin again even though he had lost communication for a long time.
"I met my wife during filming for a commercial. I had a good feeling at that time. After that, we lived our separate lives for a while, we started dating after I asked her, 'How are you? Thinking about dating me?' He already knew a lot about me by then," Yoo Ji Tae said in an interview after he starred in the Netflix drama "Money Heist Korea: Joint Economic Area".
To prove his love, Yoo Ji Tae came to Kim Hyo Jin to New York at that time. Finally, this cool couple got married in 2007 after 5 years of dating.
2. Moment Revealed
After fighting for their love until they went to New York, in the end, Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin started to open up publicly about their relationship as a couple in May 2007.
The two are known to enroll in a health club in Gangnam, Seoul, and develop a strong love without noticing other people's gazes. This is the first time the couple has appeared in public holding hands without noticing their surroundings and attracting attention.
The couple was caught blatantly enjoying late night dates and showing off a side of a new generation of couples. Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin spent a pleasant time sipping a glass of wine affectionately at the Hyatt Hotel JJ Mahoney in Seoul on the afternoon of September 28.
During their date, Yoo Ji Tae showed super warm concern for Kim Hyo Jin during their time together. She makes Kim Hyo Jin feel like a queen, like going to bars and bringing drinks and even trying to interact with the people around her. Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin left the bar together after having fun until well past midnight.
In fact, Kim Hyo Jin has openly supported Yoo Ji Tae's film project "Hello School Girl" in 2008 at the cinema held at CGV Yongsan on November 19. The two also attended their friend's wedding.
After officially dating for 5 years, Yoo Ji Tae also married Kim Hyo Jin to become his wife in 2011. The news of this upcoming marriage became a scene in the media because this couple always looks cool and calm.
3. Agency Response
Yoo Ji Tae's agency, GBT Entertainment at that time and Kim Hyo Jin's agency, Namoo Actors, announced the good news that the couple would soon get married. After five years of dating, they finally reached their final goal of marriage.
"The date has just been set, and details such as the location have not yet been decided," said Namoo Actors revealing the good news. It was also revealed that the two actors met with each other's parents, and the two families got together to finalize the wedding date.
The couple, who have an age difference of 8 years, have set their wedding day on December 2, 2011. News of the couple's marriage first surfaced when Kim Hyo Jin struggled to make a decision about starring in a film that was recently offered to her. In this film, his role has a slightly vulgar level of exposure and is quite high in risk. Because he wanted to get married, the actress finally decided to turn down the role.
Before getting married, even Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin held a press conference and showed their love for each other. The two came hand in hand and took pictures with various poses that attracted public attention. The chairman of World Vision where the artist couple is an ambassador for education, Park Jong Sam, inaugurated their marriage.
4. Pros and Cons
Although this couple seems to be calm and far from oblique news, Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin also surprised the public because their togetherness is rarely exposed in public. In an online community, a fan of Yoo Ji Tae found out that the actor walked alone for a considerable distance.
One fan spotted Yoo Ji Tae walking alone and probably returning from picking up his letter at the end of the driveway a few miles away. From here, fans speculated why Yoo Ji Tae was alone without his wife accompanied. This has led to rumors that the actor and his wife are not together anymore. However, these unsubstantiated rumors have not been proven.
Apart from that, both of them actually get support from the public because they are always compact and complement each other. Moreover, Yoo Ji Tae is very happy to worship his wife on one occasion on the show who is 8 years younger than him.
Besides, they became friends while working together as commercial models and developed into lovers, but they never appeared together in a drama or film. In fact, they are a married couple who are both involved in the acting industry.
In an interview when asked why Kim Hyo Jin and Yoo Ji Tae never worked together, the 1976-born actor mentioned their scheduling problems which often clash. Yoo Ji Tae also emphasized professionally that work is the most important thing above all else.
5. Romance twists
Before officially becoming a couple, Yoo Ji Tae had an extraordinary struggle to prove his love for Kim Hyo Jin. After both knowing each other was single, Yoo Ji Tae thought about Kim Hyo Jin again and asked how he was.
"We're both single. There's someone my wife wants to introduce to. After I heard that, I said, 'I'll ask her opinion.' When I told the friend over a drink, she said, 'Kim Hyo Jin isn't my style.' It makes me think that Hyo Jin is 10 million times better than you," said Yoo Ji Tae about how he finally won his wife's heart.
This confession was also mentioned by Kim Hyo Jin himself in an interview. He said that his activities at that time lived in New York for half a year.
"I had the opportunity to live in New York for half a year, and that's when he first told me how he really felt. He said that he missed me when we were apart," said Kim Hyo Jin.
To make their relationship official, Yoo Ji Tae went to Kim Hyo Jin, who was then in New York. The actor said that he called his future wife on the way home. "Just date me," said Yoo Ji Tae.
At that time, Kim Hyo Jin asked Yoo Ji Tae to come, "If you come to New York, I will think about it". And yes, when Yoo Ji Tae was there, they started dating. "I said to him, 'I'm really here.' And we started dating," said Yoo Ji Tae. "We've known each other for a while," Kim Hyo Jin said at the time.
In addition, during the courtship period, Yoo Ji Tae, who is active as an actor and director, has a busy schedule. Being busy, Yoo Ji Tae says that he regrets not being able to do better for his girlfriend because he doesn't have much time. After officially becoming lovers, they were not shy about announcing their love affair in public and getting married.
6. Recent Status
Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin's wedding was held on December 2 at the Shilla Hotel. and Chairman of World Vision Park Jong Sam inaugurated the two as husband and wife. Their wedding ceremony was hosted by actress Ji Jin Hee and comedian Kim Jun Ho for the second part.
In particular, their wedding party was attended by artists such as Lee Ki Chan, Jinju, Bada S.E.S and jazz vocalist Yoon Hee Jung who sang a congratulatory song to the bride and groom. The guests included Moon Geun Young, Jung Woo Sung, Han Hyo Joo, Girls' Generation's Sooyoung, Kang Hye Jung, Super Junior's Choi Siwon, Ha Ji Won, Song Yoon Ah, Bae Seul Ki, Cha Yae Ryun and more.
Uniquely, the couple is known for their charitable endeavors. As is known, they both serve as honorary ambassadors for the charity World Vision. The couple chose to donate part of their prize money to help build a school in Myanmar. Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin are also very environmentally conscious. They use wedding invitations with recycled paper that are unique and different from the others.
After officially getting married in 2011, Yoo Ji Tae and Kim Hyo Jin were blessed with their first son in 2014. The couple is known to have been expecting their first child for 3 years, the couple finally had a child.
In early 2019, Kim Hyo Jin gave birth to her second child, which is known to be a boy. Kim Hyo Jin often shares moments of togetherness with her two sons. This is because the actress often shares their moments of togetherness through her personal Instagram.
Even though they rarely appear together in public, this couple always shows warmth to each other at some moments. In fact, this one couple also expressed their love for each other when they were on a TV show openly.
"It was amazing when I found out two years later that I had grown so comfortable with each other that we both watched the same movies, read the same books, rode bicycles together, and did our daily chores together. I thought my husband was my soulmate. ," said Kim Hyo Jin praising the beauty of their marriage.
Not wanting to be left behind, the actor who plays the drama "Healer" has also expressed his great love for his wife on an episode of SBS's "Thank You" in 2013. He remembers their early years as girlfriends and the changes now that they are married.
Yoo said, "It's been 12 years since I first met him. We were in a relationship for five years and lived together for two years. I still feel as if he is my boyfriend. He is my best friend. He has given me a lot of help in my life." Ji Tae then.
So far, the two stars are still active in the entertainment industry and support each other's careers. It can be said that this couple is quite good at balancing themselves between being an artist and being parents to their two adorable sons.
