Relentlessly bullied in high school for her looks, a teenager leaps at the opportunity to transform herself into a true beauty when she has to transfer schools. But makeup can only hide so much — the truth about her secret past is bound to catch up with her when she ends up in a love triangle with the two most popular boys at her new school.

Adapted from a popular webtoon of the same name, True Beauty stars Moon Ga-young (In the Interest of Love), Hwang In-youp (The Sound of Magic), and K-pop idol Cha Eun-woo (Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung) from Astro. The young adult dramedy was co-created by Kim Sang-hyeob (Melancholia) and Lee Si-eun (Lovely Runner).

When will True Beauty be released?

Stream all 16 episodes of Season 1 now.

Who’s in the cast of True Beauty?

• Moon Ga-young (In the Interest of Love) as Lim Ju-kyung
• Cha Eun-woo (Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung) as Lee Su-ho
• Hwang In-youp (The Sound of Magic) as Han Seo-jun
• Park You-na (Hotel del Luna) as Kang Su-jin
• Kang Min-ah (At a Distance, Spring Is Green) as Choi Soo-ah
• Chang Hye-jin (Parasite) as Hong Hyun-sook
• Park Ho-san (Flower Crew: Joseon Marraige Agency) as Lim Jae-pil
• Lim Se-mi (The Whirlwind) as Lim Hee-kyung
• Kim Min-gi (All of Us Are Dead) as Lim Ju-young
• Kang Chan-Hee (Under the Queen’s Umbrella) as Jung Se-yeon

What happens in True Beauty?

Lim Ju-kyung (Moon) is your average teen girl. All she wants is to read horror comics, listen to heavy metal, and hang out with her only pal — a  semi-friendly acquaintance. But Ju-kyung’s not that lucky. She’s bullied by her peers for her smarts, her nerdy hobbies, and — most of all — her looks. Normally, Ju-kyung smiles in the face of her haters, but when the popular kids film her getting rejected by her crush and post it to social media, she wonders if life’s even worth living. In a moment of darkness, Ju-kyung finds a tall building and stands on the roof, seemingly about to jump.  But before she can make the worst decision of her life, she’s yanked to safety by a handsome stranger, Lee Su-ho (Cha Eun-woo). He berates her, asking if she’d even thought about those who she’d leave behind. His obvious pain — implying he lost someone in the same way and feels immense anger and survivor’s guilt — makes Ju-kyung realize she still has her whole life ahead of her, and she heads home with a new lease on life.

When she arrives at her family’s fancy apartment, her parents announce that they’re selling the place and moving back to the neighborhood where Ju-kyung and her siblings were born. Her father’s terrible investments are forcing them to downsize. Unlike her siblings, Ju-kyung is overjoyed. Now, she can start fresh at a new school. This time around, she refuses to be the ugly duckling who’s constantly bullied. 

With the help of online makeup tutorials, Ju-kyung transforms herself. On her first day at the new school, her makeover seems to be working wonders — everyone wants to get to know her. Everyone, that is, except for one familiar face: Su-ho, her angsty savior, who’d rather meet no one at all. The pair agree to keep Ju-kyung’s past self a secret, and soon, Ju-kyung finds herself drawn to Su-ho, despite his moodiness. As Ju-kyung tries to show Su-ho that a better future is possible, just as he did for her on the rooftop months ago, she gets caught in a bitter rivalry between Su-ho and his charming ex–best friend, Han Seo-jun (Hwang). 

Is True Beauty based on a book?

True Beauty is based on the hit South Korean webtoon of the same name by artist Kim Na-young, better known by her nom de plume, Yaongyi. The live-action series is the second adaptation of True Beauty for television; there’s also an anime adaptation that just confirmed a Season 2.

Where does True Beauty take place?

True Beauty takes place in Seoul.

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