Oh Hyun-kyung first came into limelight when she was crowned Miss Korea 1989. She represented her country at Miss Universe 1990 held in Los Angeles, California, where she was unplaced. After her international beauty contest stint, she was immediately cast in the 1990 KBS2 series Ambitious Times, which won her Best New Actress at the KBS Drama Awards. She continued to appear in many TV series in the succeeding years such as MBC’s My Son’s Woman in 1994 and KBS2’s Into the Storm in 1997.

In 1998, Oh Hyun-kyung was involved in a sex video scandal with her then-boyfriend. Her career took a huge hit despite proof that the clip was recorded without her consent and there was malicious intent behind its release. In 2002, she married Korean-American businessman Hong Seung-pyo, but they ended up getting a divorce after the latter was jailed for embezzlement. They have a daughter together.

Oh Hyun-kyung made a successful acting comeback in 2007 with a starring role in the SBS drama First Wives’ Club, which earned her an Excellence Award at the SBS Drama Awards. In 2011, she led the SBS daily series Miss Ajumma, which gave her an Excellence Award nomination at the SBS Drama Awards. In 2012, she was nominated for a Special Acting Award at the SBS Drama Awards for the sageuk The Great Seer. In 2013, she received a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the KBS Drama Awards for King’s Family. In 2014, she played one of the main characters in MBC’s Legendary Witch, which scored her an Excellence Award at the MBC Drama Awards. In 2018, she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the MBC Drama Awards for the melodrama A Pledge to God.