The “Grandma Flex”: Actress Youn Yuh Jung Is Everything We Want To Be At 75 Years Old
Academy Award-winning actress Youn Yuh Jung is proof that age does not stop anyone from achieving big things. From unveiling the prestigious universities where her two sons graduated to attending an event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as a brand ambassador, the veteran actress showed us a glimpse of her glamorous and inspiring life.
On JaeJae‘s special New York episode of her YouTube show MMTG, she met with Youn Yuh Jung for an interview. The actress, who won Best Supporting Actress for her role in Minari, entered with class and wit, making jokes about how JaeJae’s wardrobe has upgraded since they last met two years ago and showing her motherly side by fixing the host’s clothes.
Youn Yuh Jung was in New York at the time of filming this episode because she was a speaker at Sulwhasoo‘s event at the MET Museum, held on March 29. She was named a brand ambassador of the makeup brand, along with BLACKPINK‘s Rose and actress Tilda Swinton.
Youn Yuh Jung broke stereotypes by becoming a brand ambassador at 75, but she was humble about it.
I never thought about being a pioneer, but it just happened. When I first got the offer, I said, ‘You want me to be a makeup model?’ And I laughed. ‘It’s an honor for me, but do you know how old I am?’ I thought makeup models had to be pretty and young. I think that’s why there are stereotypes.
— Youn Yuh Jung
She also revealed she came to New York often because her two sons used to attend Columbia University and New York University—and she flexed by revealing she paid for everything.
They both studied in New York: Columbia and NYU. I paid for all of it. I put them through college. I paid for living expenses and food expenses.
— Youn Yuh Jung
Youn Yuh Jung’s fame and success, however, did not happen overnight; a recently discovered essay from her elementary years showed a lifestyle different from now. In elementary school, her piece was selected in a writing contest and published in the newspaper. Titled “The Kitchen In My House,” the piece was about her experiences of living in a rented room without a kitchen.
From my memory, because my father passed away, we lived in a rented room. I started with the words: ‘Our house doesn’t have a kitchen.’ Because it was a rented room, there was no kitchen.
— Youn Yuh Jung
In the interview, the actress shared how much she wanted to find it, but nobody was able to—until the producers at MMTG found and did a reading of it. Written in 1959, the essay is about how she hopes to grow up and live in a house where she can cook in a kitchen rather than narrow floorboards.
Now Youn Yuh Jung is an inspiration who is spreading Korea’s heritage through her acting as an Academy Award winner and being a brand ambassador for Korea’s makeup brand.
Watch Youn Yuh Jung explain what heritage means to her as a Sulwhasoo brand ambassador.
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