Hometown () is a 2021 South Korean television series starring Yoo Jae-myung, Han Ye-ri and Uhm Tae-goo. It aired on tvN from September 22 to October 28, 2021.
Set in 1999, Hometown tells about a bizarre murder in a small town. It finds the truth of a recording tape containing mysterious serial killings.
The series follows Jung-hyun, a young woman living in the town of Saju in 1999 with her adoptive mother and her niece Jae-yeong. She is the younger sister of Kyung-ho, a notorious hypnotist responsible for a nerve gas terrorist attack at a train station in 1987 that killed more than 200 people. Because of her connection to him, Jung-hyun and her family live under constant suspicion and hostility from the townspeople.
Detective Choi, whose wife died in the 1987 attack, remains deeply traumatized by the tragedy. His life becomes entangled with Jung-hyunâÂÂs when a high school student murders her mother after encountering a mysterious woman who appears to command her to do so. Around the same time, Jae-yeong and her classmates receive a strange audio tape containing distorted sounds and static, which begins to circulate among students.
As Detective Choi investigates the murder and Jung-hyun searches for her missing niece, the story alternates between 1999 and events in 1987. During their high school years, Jung-hyun and her classmates had explored abandoned buildings marked with strange symbols and ritual tables connected to a secretive organization known as the Yongjin cult. The group worships a mysterious figure called the âÂÂGuruâ and distributes unusual tapes and candies linked to drugs imported from Japan.
Gradually, the present-day investigation reveals that many of the people connected to those earlier events have forgotten what happened in 1987. When some of Jung-hyunâÂÂs former classmates begin receiving the mysterious tapes again, they experience vivid hallucinations and disturbing dreams about the woman they once encountered. Several individuals connected to the past soon die under unexplained circumstances, deepening the mystery surrounding the cult and its influence in the town.
Detective ChoiâÂÂs investigation uncovers connections between the Yongjin cult, organized crime, and powerful political figures, including his former father-in-law, the influential politician Im In-gwan. At the same time, Jung-hyun learns that her niece Jae-yeong may have been chosen by the cult as a successor connected to her brother Kyung-ho.
The investigation ultimately leads Jung-hyun and Choi to an abandoned factory where the cult gathers for a ritual involving the mysterious tape. As members prepare for what appears to be a mass suicide, Jung-hyun and Choi attempt to stop the event. However, Im In-gwan intervenes and releases nerve gas into the facility, killing most of the cult members.
In the aftermath, Jung-hyun confronts Kyung-ho in prison, where further revelations emerge about the past and the true origins of the cultâÂÂs influence. Detective Choi also learns that his late wife had secretly been involved in Kyung-hoâÂÂs plans, forcing him to reconsider everything he believed about the tragedy that shaped his life.
Following Kyung-hoâÂÂs death and the collapse of the Yongjin cult, the truth behind the mysterious tapes, the hallucinations, and the events of 1987 remains only partially understood. Jung-hyun and Jae-yeong attempt to move forward with their lives, while Detective Choi is left confronting the unresolved questions and psychological scars left behind by the case.
Hometown was first announced to be aired on OCN. It was also included in OCN's promotional video for its 2021 line-up. However, in July 2021, it was confirmed that the series aired on tvN instead.