Hell Is Other People (TV series)

For the album, see Hell is Other People (Dynamite Boy album). For the origin of the phrase, see No Exit.
Hell Is Other People
Promotional poster
Also known as Strangers from Hell
Hangul
타인은 지옥이다
Revised Romanization Tain-eun Jiog-ida
Genre Psychological thriller
Based on Strangers From Hell
by Kim Yong-ki
Developed by OCN
Written by Jung Yi-do
Directed by Lee Chang-hee
Starring
Country of origin South Korea
Original language Korean
No. of episodes 10
Production
Producers
  • Kim Woo-sang
  • Kwon Mi-kyung
Running time 60 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network OCN
Release August 31 –
October 6, 2019

Hell Is Other People (Korean: 타인은 지옥이다) is a 2019 South Korean television series starring Im Si-wan and Lee Dong-wook. Based on the Naver WEBTOON webtoon series of the same name by Kim Yong-ki, it is the second series of OCN's "Dramatic Cinema" project which combines film and drama formats. It aired from August 31 to October 6, 2019.

The title is a reference to an often misinterpreted quote by Jean-Paul Sartre from No Exit.

Synopsis

It tells the story of a young man, Yoon Jong-woo (Im Si-wan) in his 20s who moves to Seoul after landing an internship in a company. While looking for a place to stay, he stumbles upon Eden Studio, an ominous cheap dormitory and decides to stay there as he is low on money. Though not thrilled about the quality of the place and its abnormal residents, including his next-door neighbor Seo Moon-jo (Lee Dong-wook), he decides to tolerate it until he saves enough money to move out. However, mysterious occurrences start occurring in the studio, causing Jong-woo to start fearing the studio's residents.

Cast

Main

A writer who comes from countryside and moves in room 303 at Eden Dormitory after landed a new job at a new company his older friend created. He takes Eden Dormitory for cheap price, only to find out that the dormitory isn't just an ordinary dormitory.
A dentist who works near Eden Dormitory and lives in room 304. He comes across as a friendly and compassionate dentist; however, things are not what they seem.

Supporting

Yoon Jong-woo's colleagues

  • Cha Rae-hyung as Shin Jae-ho, Jong-woo's university senior and now boss.
  • Kim Han-jong as Park Byeong-min, Jong-woo's chief at the company.
  • Oh Hye-won as Son Yoo-jeong, Jong-woo's only female colleague.
  • Park Ji-han as Go Sang-man, the head of section at Jong-woo's company.

People at Eden Dormitory

  • Lee Jung-eun as Eom Bok-soon, the owner of Eden Dormitory. She seems friendly but she hides a very dark secret.
  • Lee Hyun-wook as Yoo Gi-hyeok, a mysterious and cold resident who lives in room 302.
  • Park Jong-hwan as Byeon Deuk-jong / Byeon Deuk-soo, twin brothers who respectively live in rooms 306 and 307. Deuk-jong is mentally handicapped, while Deuk-soo has better intelligence than his twin brother.
  • Lee Joong-ok as Hong Nam-bok, a resident who lives in room 313. He is a porn-addict.
  • Hyun Bong-sik as Ahn Hee-joong, a thug resident who lives in room 310. He was planning to leave the dormitory and starting a new and better life.

Others

  • Ahn Eun-jin as So Jung-hwa, a policewoman with a degree in Engineering.
  • Yoon Sung-won as chief of patrol division.
  • Kim Ji-eun as Min Ji-eun, an office worker and Jong-woo's girlfriend.
  • Song Wook-kyung as Cha Sung-ryeol, a detective who often works with gangsters.
  • Lee Suk as Joo Yoo-cheol, a reporter who works for a daily newspaper.
  • Ha Seon-haeng as So Jae-heon, a former detective and Jung-hwa's father.
  • Son Young-soon as So Jung-hwa's grandmother.
  • Noh Jong-hyun as Kang Seok-yoon, a new resident at Eden Dormitory.
  • Song Yoo-hyun as Han Go-eun, Ji-eun's boss.
  • Anupam Tripathi as Kumail

Special appearances

  • Lim Soo-hyung as a taxi driver
  • Park Seung-tae as a flower seller
  • Nam Jung-hee as a murder victim
  • Kim Yannie as Kumail's wife
  • Park cheon-guk as a bully

Production

The first script reading took place in April 2019 in Sangam-dong, Seoul, South Korea.

Original soundtrack

Hell Is Other People OST
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
Released 2019
Genre Soundtrack
Language
Label Music&NEW

Part 1

Released on August 31, 2019
No. Title Lyrics Music Artist Length
1. "Strangers" (타인은 지옥이다) Kim Ho-kyung 1601 The Rose 3:28
2. "Strangers" (Inst.)   1601   3:28
Total length: 6:56

Part 2

Released on September 7, 2019
No. Title Lyrics Music Artist Length
1. "Room No. 303" Taibian
  • Taibian
  • Baaq
 The Vane 3:27
2. "Room No. 303" (Inst.)  
  • Taibian
  • Baaq
   3:27
Total length: 6:54

Part 3

Released on September 21, 2019
No. Title Lyrics Music Artist Length
1. "Blow Off" Yoari
  • Space One
  • Yoari
 Yoari 3:27
2. "Blow Off" (Inst.)  
  • Space One
  • Yoari
   3:27
Total length: 6:54

Part 4

Released on September 28, 2019
No. Title Lyrics Music Artist Length
1. "Ruin" Kim Ho-kyung 1601 Isaac Hong 3:45
2. "Ruin" (Inst.)   1601   3:45
Total length: 7:30

Viewership

Hell Is Other People : South Korea viewers per episode (thousands)
Season Episode number Average
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 1053 938 768 825 551 815 529 674 610 954 772
Source: Audience measurement performed nationwide by Nielsen Media Research.
Average TV viewership ratings
Ep. Original broadcast date Title Average audience share
(Nielsen Korea)
Nationwide Seoul
1 August 31, 2019 Hell Is Other People
(타인은 지옥이다) 		3.763% (3rd) 4.645% (3rd)
2 September 1, 2019 Human Nature
(인간 본능) 		3.538% (2nd) 4.168% (2nd)
3 September 7, 2019 The Secret Whisper
(은밀한 속삭임) 		3.191% (3rd) 4.158% (3rd)
4 September 8, 2019 Mental Derangement
(정신 착란) 		3.082% (2nd) 3.501% (2nd)
5 September 21, 2019 Malte's Notebook
(말테의 수기) 		2.2% 2.436% (6th)
6 September 22, 2019 Lost
(로스트) 		3.400% (2nd) 3.790% (2nd)
7 September 28, 2019 The Horror of the Basement
(지하실의 공포) 		1.964% (5th) 2.410% (4th)
8 September 29, 2019 Voices that Choke Me
(옥죄는 목소리들) 		2.651% (2nd) 2.801% (4th)
9 October 5, 2019 Cognitive Dissonance
(인지 부조화) 		2.355% (5th) 2.603% (5th)
10 October 6, 2019 Gas-lighting
(가스라이팅) 		3.908% (1st) 4.509% (1st)
Average 3.005% 3.502%
  • In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.
  • This drama aired on a cable channel/pay TV which normally has a relatively smaller audience compared to free-to-air TV/public broadcasters (KBS, SBS, MBC and EBS).

Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination
Organization Year Category Recipient Result Ref.
Cable TV Broadcasting Awards 2020 Grand Prize (Daesang) Hell is Other People Won