Actress Song Hye-kyo has been living in the limelight for nearly two decades, since she rose to stardom in 2000 through “Autumn in my Heart,” a TV series largely credited with igniting the K-drama boom throughout Asia.

Most recently, she starred in drama series “Descendants of the Sun,” which garnered explosive popularity both in and out of the country, alongside actor Song Joong-ki.

But her life is more normal than one would expect, filled with the same worries that occupy women her age, the 34-year-old actress said at a press interview on Wednesday at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seoul.

“Living as Song Hye-kyo ... I think it’s the same,” she said. “I cry if something bad happens, I grab a drink with friends when I get stressed out, I travel, I sometimes lash out at my closest friends.

“The only difference is that I’m a celebrity and I’m shown to the world. Apart from that, I think I’m like most women my age.”

And like most 30-something women, her thoughts on marriage change constantly, the actress confessed.

“I’ve reached an age when I should be considering marriage,” she said. “It goes back and forth. Sometimes I think, ‘I need to get married soon.’ Other days I think, ‘Why get married? Being alone is so comfortable. I can travel to all kinds of places without asking anyone’s permission. It’s so fun to live doing what I want to do.’ It keeps changing. But I guess I should get married, eventually.”

Her real-life personality is more “boyish” than most fans expect, she added, which is why playing the spirited Dr. Kang Mo-yeon on “Descendants” was a lot of fun.

“People assume that I’m girly,” she said. “But people who know me say I’m more boyish. ... Playing Mo-yeon was satisfying, because I could be irritable. I normally can’t be like that in public because of my image.”

Song also addressed the difficulty of being a female actress in the movie and television industries today.

“I wish there were more diverse roles and genres for women, as there are for men.

“There are so many talented actresses in Korea right now, but they’re not seen because there aren’t roles in which they can show their talents,” she said, urging producers and writers to create more such roles for women. 

On her future projects, Song said she is open to any genre or role. “I hope I can be an actress that keeps evolving, not deteriorating. I hope people will see my performance and be able to discover more emotions and expressions than before.”

Song also denied rumors of dating costar Song Joong-ki, which circulated after the two were spotted dining together in New York City last month.

“I’ve dined with Joong-ki many times. ... I couldn’t not meet up with him when we were both all the way in New York,” she said, calling him a close “younger-brother-like friend” with whom she enjoyed working.

By Rumy Doo (doo@heraldcorp.com)