List of The World of the Married characters

Kim Hee-ae plays Ji Sun-woo

Ji Sun-woo (Kim Hee-ae) is the associate director of Family Love Hospital and has been married to Lee Tae-oh for more than a decade. Sun-woo grew up as a single child in a family in which father is a teacher and mother is a nurse. When she was 17, she lost both her parents in a car accident and had to protect herself against the challenges in life.

To escape the pain and loneliness, she started to study assiduously to get into a medical school in Seoul. There, she met Lee Tae-oh. Together, they started a family and settled in the city of Go-san,[lower-alpha 1] Tae-oh's hometown. She seems to have everything, including a caring husband, a son who lives up to expectations and a great reputation in the community.

Everything seemed to go so smoothly, until she started to suspect that her husband is having an affair after discovering a strand of hair on her scarf. Based on her instincts, she starts to doubt all the people around her husband, and her world falls apart when she discovers what she suspected is true. The perfect life is now crushed. The husband she deeply trusted has betrayed her.

Park Hae-joon plays Lee Tae-oh

Lee Tae-oh (Park Hae-joon) is a movie director who has been married to Ji Sun-woo for more than a decade. Eight years after his graduation, Tae-oh made his feature film debut as an assistant director. However, the movie flopped at the box office. After their marriage, he was unemployed and ultimately started an entertainment company with the help of Sun-woo.

As days go by, he became stressed and pressured to succeed or to stop as he has been dependent on his wife for income. One day, he met Yeo Da-kyung after a performance at a club with the staffs. He felt confident standing in front of the young beautiful woman who thinks he is a successful businessman. It was the thrill different from the sense of stability given by Sun-woo. Tae-oh and Da-kyung then secretly started an affair, unbeknownst to his wife despite that he still loves her.

Yeo Da-kyung (Han So-hee) is the only daughter of Yeo Byung-gyu and Uhm Hyo-jung. Da-kyung grew up in luxury so she lives without worries and life goals. She majored in Contemporary Dance following to her mother's wishes even when she had no passion or talent in dancing. Ultimately, she decided to stop dancing and became a Pilates instructor. The innocent and vulnerable girl then fell in love with Lee Tae-oh, a married man, and has been having an affair with him for over two years.[1]

Go Ye-rim (Park Sun-young) is the wife of Son Je-hyuk, a friend and neighbor of Ji Sun-woo and Lee Tae-oh. After marrying Je-hyuk, Ye-rim became a full-time housewife. She discovered about her husband's affairs, one-night stands and sex addiction a long time ago, yet she still could not break away from him. She didn't want to be a divorcee. Instead of getting a divorce, Ye-rim continues to live in a world full of lies. She eventually noticed that her husband developed a crush on her friend, Sun-woo. She ultimately betrayed Sun-woo by choosing to keep Tae-oh's affair a secret.

Son Je-hyuk (Kim Young-min) is the husband of Go Ye-rim, as well as a friend of Lee Tae-oh and Ji Sun-woo. The accountant is Tae-oh's hometown friend. He loves his calm and faithful wife, but he easily gets bored. He often enjoys affairs and uses the nature of his work as an excuse to get home late. As he continuously engages in adultery, he eventually develops a crush on Ji Sun-woo.

Sul Myung-sook (Chae Gook-hee) is a gynecologist at Family Love Hospital and a close friend of Lee Tae-oh and Ji Sun-woo. Myung-sook is a single woman who has never been in a serious relationship with a man. She is a two-faced woman that would betray anyone she claims as a 'friend' to get anything that she wants. She tries to take advantage of the tensions between Sun-woo and Tae-oh to snatch the associate director position at the hospital from Sun-woo.

Yeo Byung-gyu (Lee Geung-young) is the father of Yeo Da-kyung and husband of Uhm Hyo-jung. Byung-gyu is a very influential businessman, and there is no one in Go-san who dares to go against his will. Along with his wealth, he also has strong connections with local officials and politicians. He is willing to do everything in his power to make his daughter happy.

Uhm Hyo-jung (Kim Sun-kyung) is the mother of Yeo Da-kyung and wife of Yeo Byeong-gyu. Hyo-jung is a full-time housewife and a former beauty pageant. She is also a patient of Ji Sun-woo. Because Hyo-jung wants the best for her daughter, she tries to get everything out of Da-kyung's way, including going against Sun-woo.

Lee Joon-young (Jeon Jin-seo) is the only son of Ji Sun-woo and Lee Tae-oh. Joon-young is closer to Tae-oh because Sun-woo is busy at work most of the time. He was a bright and happy single child in the family. Unfortunately, problems arise right during his adolescence. As a teenager, he continuously sides with either one of his parents while he deals with his inner conflicts and psychological pain.

Min Hyun-seo (Shim Eun-woo) is a bartender who suffers from physical and emotional abuse by her boyfriend, Park In-kyu. She endured every pain caused by In-kyu out of pity. She had to face her misery with In-kyu until she gets to know Ji Sun-woo as one of her patients, she befriends Sun-woo and helps her discovering the affair of Tae-oh and Da-kyung, while Sun-woo tries her best to help Hyun-seo in her medical needs as well as trying to escape from In-kyu.

Park In-kyu (Lee Hak-joo) is the abusive boyfriend of Min Hyun-seo. After falling into gambling and failing the public exam multiple times, In-kyu's parents cut off their financial support and as a result, In-kyu became increasingly angry in his daily life. Violence began as an excuse for Hyun-seo to not have another man every time she returns from work late. He mistakes dependence and attachment for love.

Kim Yoon-ki (Lee Moo-saeng) is a doctor and specialist in the neuropsychiatry department at Family Love Hospital. Yoon-ki got married at a young age, but his marriage ended in divorce. After the divorce, he moved to Go-san and joined Family Love Hospital. He becomes fond of Sun-woo as he observes her dealing with her problems from afar.[2]

• Ma Kang-seok (Park Choong-sun) is doctor at Family Love Hospital who has been suffering from alcoholism since the death of a loved one.
• Kong Ji-cheol (Jung Jae-sung) is the head director of Family Love Hospital. He shows a lot of sexist tendencies toward his female worker, particularly Ji Sun-woo and Seol Myung-sook.
• Ha Dong-sik (Kim Jong-tae) is a regular patient of Ji Sun-woo. Dong-sik suffers from a neurological disorder and anxiety. He is a patient who most doctors try to avoid as he visits the hospital every day even for minor problems, and the professional spirit Sun-woo is the only doctor in Go-san who dares to treat him.
• Nurse An (Kim Ha-neul)
• Nurse Joo Hwa-ni (Yoon Dan-bi)

• Jang Mi-yun (Jo Ah-ra) is the secretary of Lee Tae-oh, and the single mom of Yoon No-eul. She maintains a good relationship with Sun-woo even after she no longer works for Tae-oh as their children are close friends.
• Yoon No-eul (Shin Soo-yeon) is the daughter of Jang Mi-yun and a classmate of Lee Joon-young who later develops a crush on him. She dealt with her parents' divorce but rather than being traumatic about it, she embraces it and isn't much affected with it.
• Cha Hae-kang (Jung Joon-won) is a friend of Lee Joon-young and Yoon No-eul, and the son of Cha Do-cheol. Hae-kang has a crush on No-eul. Like his mother, he likes bad mouthing others, especially Ji Sun-woo and Lee Joon-young.
• Cha Do-cheol (Kim Tae-hyang) is a councilor in the city of Go-san.
• Cha Do-cheol's wife (Yoon In-jo) is Cha Hae-kang's mom and a member of Go-san Women's Association who likes to bad-mouth others, especially Ji Sun-woo.
• Chairman Choi (Choi Beom-ho) is a real estate guru in Go-san and a friend of Yeo Byung-gyu.
• Chairman Choi's wife (Seo Yi-sook) is a former patient of Ji Sun-woo, who discovers her husband's affair through Ji Sun-woo's medical checkup. In return, she starts to support Sun-woo in joining the Go-san Women's Association and counter-attacks people who bad-mouth Sun-woo.
• Kong Ji-cheol's wife (Park Mi-hyun)
• Lee Jenny (Lee Ro-eun) is the daughter of Lee Tae-oh and Yeo Da-kyung and stepsister of Lee Joon-young.
• Lee Min-ki (Lee Dong-ha) is the assistant of Yeo Byung-gyu.
• Sang-hyun (Song Hoon)
• Sun-woo's attorney (Kwon Hyuk)
• Zoe (Oh So-hyun) is a bartender who Son Je-hyuk is infatuated with and will eventually have an affair with her.
• Woo Ho-sang (Yoo Yong)
• Bae Jung-sim (Jeong Jae-sun)