Gong Seung-Yeon Admits Feeling Jealous Of Sister Jeongyeon’s Success: ‘I Felt I Was Falling Short’

Being related to a global superstar may sound glamorous from the outside, but sometimes it also comes with quiet pressure, self-doubt and comparisons nobody really talks about. Korean actor Gong Seung-yeon recently got candid about exactly that while opening up about her career struggles and complicated emotions around younger sister Jeongyeon’s massive success with TWICE.

The actor, who is currently being praised for her work in Perfect Crown, appeared on the popular Korean variety show You Quiz on the Block, where she spoke honestly about the difficult phase she went through while trying to establish herself in the entertainment industry.

Gong Seung-yeon shared that despite receiving attention after appearing in the 2015 drama Heard It Through

the Grapevine and participating in several variety shows, acting offers eventually started slowing down. What followed, she admitted, was an emotionally exhausting period marked by financial stress and uncertainty.

According to the actor, there was a time when things became so difficult financially that even basic expenses like rent, insurance and pension payments felt overwhelming. Eventually, the pressure forced her to move back in with her parents while continuing to look for work and audition opportunities.

Determined not to give up, Gong Seung-yeon said she repeatedly asked her agency to send her for auditions and even wrote letters to casting directors hoping for a chance at new projects.

At the same time, her younger sister Jeongyeon’s career with TWICE was exploding globally, making the emotional contrast even harder to process. While speaking about that period, Gong Seung-yeon admitted she experienced mixed feelings watching her sister become one of K-pop’s biggest stars.

“I was happy that my sister was doing well,” she said during the show.

However, the actor admitted that being the eldest sibling also came with its own emotional burden. “But I also harbored the oldest child’s mindset of ‘I have to do even better,’” she confessed.

Gong Seung-yeon further explained that her mother had also hoped the eldest daughter would first become successful and help support the younger siblings. Because of those expectations, she sometimes felt inadequate while watching Jeongyeon achieve international fame.

“There were times when I felt like, as an older sister, I was falling short compared to my younger sister,” she admitted honestly.

Today, both sisters have carved successful careers in different parts of the Korean entertainment industry. While Jeongyeon continues to dominate the K-pop scene with TWICE, Gong Seung-yeon has steadily built her own space as an actor through dramas, television appearances and films.