7 Korean stars who became mums later in life: from Son Ye-jin, who’s expecting her first child with Hyun Bin at 40, to Choi Ji-woo, Honey Lee and Lee Young-ae

Jun 29 , 2022

Korean stars Choo Ja-hyun, Sung Yuri, Lee Young-ae and Son Ye-jin all successfully became mothers later in life. Photos: @choo.jahyun, @sung_yuri_, @leeyoungae_official, @yejjyeri/Instagram

After a luxurious wedding, Son announced on Instagram that she’s expecting her first child with her Crash Landing On You co-star – so which other K-stars had kids in their 30s and 40s?

Choi Ji-woo is one of the oldest, giving birth a month before her 45th birthday, while Honey Lee showed off her baby bump in Vogue before having her daughter at 39

Unlike before, it is no longer considered “too late” for women to have children in their 40s. In South Korea, the average age of women giving birth was 33.1 years old in 2020, and statistics from a Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service report in 2016 show that nearly 50 per cent gave birth in the 30-34 age group and around 23 per cent in the 35-39 age group.

Unlike their mothers and grandmothers, modern women are in less of a rush to start a family, in large part due to higher education opportunities and labour force participation.

It’s the same in K-biz, where many stars appear to have chosen to spend their younger years working hard and making a name for themselves before entertaining the idea of creating a family. Superstar Son Ye-jin is just the latest Korean celebrity to announce that she is expecting during her later years; she shared her and her husband Hyun Bin’s happy news on Instagram on June 27. So who are the others?

Son Ye-jin

The 40-year-old Crash Landing on You star just shared on her Instagram that BinJin’s first baby is on the way!

“A new life has come to us,” she wrote on the social media platform. “I’m still a bit dazed, but I am feeling changes in my body every day with concern and excitement. As thankful as I am, I also feel that much [more] cautious, so I haven’t even told anyone around me yet. Before it gets[much] later, I am sharing this news with fans and acquaintances who must have been waiting as much as us.”

Hyun Bin and Son Ye-jin, aka BinJin, appeared to have a dream wedding. Photo: @verawanggang/Instagram