Hoyeon Entered Her Movie Star Era at the Cannes Film Festival
The South Korean star is taking on an action-packed role in her new film, Hope. “I spent about five to six months training before shooting began,” says Hoyeon.
Reported by Vogue.
Hoyeon has always moved fast — from top runway model to Vogue cover star to breakout TV phenomenon in Squid Game. But her appearance at this year's Cannes Film Festival signals something bigger: a full pivot to movie star, and she arrived dressed for the part.
The South Korean actress made her Cannes debut for Hope, a Na Hong-jin-directed thriller in which she plays Sung-ae, a rookie cop hunting a monster terrorizing a South Korean village — alongside Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. According to Vogue, the role demanded more preparation than anything she's tackled before: five to six months of training covering physical conditioning, firearms, a manual driving license, and car action techniques. She performed most of the stunts herself. During one high-speed car sequence, anxiety nearly derailed her — until her co-star Hwang Jung-min, seated beside her, said simply, "Just trust yourself." They nailed it on the first take.
Two Looks, One Statement
On the red carpet, Hoyeon leaned on her Louis Vuitton ambassadorship to deliver what she called "understated glamour with quiet strength." For the evening premiere, she wore a gray Vuitton slip dress embroidered with silver glass florals — a fitted bodice that dissolved into an asymmetric gathered skirt, catching every flash of light as she moved. The following day's photo call brought a sharper, cooler energy: a cream knit co-ord from Vuitton's fall 2026 collection paired with sleek black knee boots. The reference? The spirit of the 1960s — youthful, cinematic, effortlessly controlled.
Between screenings, she walked the Cannes beachfront, had lunch with the Hope crew at La Môme Plage ("Their frozen fruit dessert was especially memorable," she noted), and caught a Korean film night with actor Zo In-sung. The energy was less press junket, more genuine first-timer absorbing a moment she clearly earned. With two additional films currently in post-production, Hoyeon's Cannes appearance wasn't a cameo in someone else's story — it was an opening act.
When the preparation is that serious and the clothes are that good, the era isn't coming — it's already here.
Read the original at Vogue.
