Zyon Barreto played a refugee named Fatima in the South Korean drama series 'Descendants of the Sun.' (Photo : YouTube/Zyon Barreto)
South Korean drama series "Descendants of the Sun" became very popular in several countries including the Philippines. When Filipino fans noticed a character named Fatima played by an actress named Zyon Barreto, they speculated that she was a Filipino and was related to Filipino actress Julia Baretto.
It turned out, however, that the speculations are wrong. First, the family names of the two actresses sound alike but they are spelled differently. Second, the actress who played Fatima in "Descendants of the Sun" is not a Filipino but a Colombian.
The "Descendants of the Sun" actress was one of the 50 multicultural students from 20 countries around the world enrolled in Seoul Itaewon Elementary School in 2013, according to The Korea Times. At the time, she was in third grade and was not thinking of starring in a TV series with top actors like Song Joong Ki and Song Hye Kyo.
In an interview with TV Report, the young actress said she was very shy when she first met Joong Ki and she only knew very little about him, including his recent discharge from the military at the time. The actress added that she got to know that he was a very nice and very respectable man after spending more time with him.
In "Descendants of the Sun," the actress's character Fatima was introduced as the young refugee in a red dress in episode 9. In one scene in episode 10, Si Jin (Joong Ki) told Mo Yeon (Hye Kyo) to do her job in saving lives and he would take the job of deciding when to take one while Gang Boss Ryan Argus (David Lee McInnis) was bleeding from Fatima's gunshot.
On the other hand, the Filipino actress speculated to be related to the actress who played Fatima in "Descendants of the Sun" is the first child of actors Dennis Padilla and Marjorie Barretto. Marjorie's sisters Gretchen Barretto and Claudine Barretto are also actresses.
Meanwhile, here is a clip from "Descendants of the Sun" episode 10:
