The Village Barber () is an ongoing South Korean reality television show starring Park Bo-gum working as a barber in the countryside together with Lee Sang-yi and Kwak Dong-yeon. It premiered on tvN on January 30, 2026, and airs every Friday at 20:40 (KST). It is also available for streaming on HBO Max and Viki globally.
The series received positive reviews from critics and audiences with praise for the overall production and the cast's sincerity and chemistry.
Actor Park Bo-gum, who has a license in barbering, opens a barbershop in a remote village in South Korea together with fellow actors and real-life friends Lee Sang-yi and Kwak Dong-yeon, creating bonds and memories with the villagers
The program was developed around Park Bo-gum's National Technical Qualifications Certification as a barber which he earned during his mandatory military service in 2022. Wanting to use his skill to volunteer for the elderly, he began planning the show with the production team nearly a year in advance. On September 16, 2025, YTN broke the news that tvN is producing an entertainment program starring Park. The network officially confirmed the news the same day. The show involves Park working as a licensed barber in the countryside. In addition to his barber's license, he trained for a hairdresser's license to cater to female clients. Park had been involved in the location-scouting, remodeling, and interior design of the barbershop. It is the first show produced by Monstera Haus.
In October 2025, actor Lee Sang-yi, who co-starred with Park in the action-comedy Good Boy (2025), joined the cast. Lee earned a certification as nail technician for the show. The following month, in November 2025, Park's Love in the Moonlight (2016) and Young Actors' Retreat (2022) co-star Kwak Dong-yeon was also confirmed as cast member.
Bogum Magical () is the name of the barbershop Park runs and where majority of the filming takes place. It is located in a village in Muju County, North Jeolla Province, and is also the show's Korean title. Coined by Park as he wants the customers to have a magical time in the place, it is a play on the words "magic" and "curl" in Korean.
A production press conference was held on January 29, 2026, a day before the show's premiere. It was attended by Park, Lee, Kwak and director-producer Son Soo-jung. The Village Barber airs on tvN every Friday at 20:40 (KST), starting January 30, 2026. It is also available for streaming on TVING and Wavve in South Korea, as well as HBO Max and Viki internationally.
The Village Barber received positive reviews from critics. The Chosun Ilbo stated that since its premiere episode, the show has garnered praise from critics and viewers alike for its endless charm. Writer Woo Da-bin of Hankook Ilbo praised the show stating that the "production team's meticulous attention to detail is essential" to its enjoyability "including the narrative of the rural setting, the relationships with the villagers, and the barbershop anecdotes". Woo added that the show captures Park Bo-gum's "intense effort and struggles" and "redefines him not just as polite, but as tenacious and dedicated". Writer Yoo Su-yeon of OSEN gave the show a positive review praising Park, Lee Sang-yi, and Kwak Dong-yeon for doing a good job of providing viewers with diverse entertainment. She added that the show's success is based on the cast's chemistry and "the warm hearts revealed from the project's conception and the sincere preparation". Choi Jae-hyuk, reviewing for CBC News, wrote that Park's "meticulous effort and preparedness have earned him [audience's] admiration".
Entertainment writer Lee Moon-won expressed that through The Village Barber, cable network "TvN once again ascends to the throne of the fiercely competitive Friday evening entertainment market". Popular culture critic and Chungwoon University professor Kim Heon-sik opined that the show should usher in a new era to local entertainment where public interest and social value are combined. He added that the show can inspire policy ideas for public barbering and beauty care systems especially for seniors living rural areas. Upon the show's airing, the barbershop â which remained open â became a popular stopover destination for tourists visiting nearby Deogyusan Mountain and Muju Resort.