# Love Next Door

Love Next Door (Korean: 엄마친구아들) is a 2024 South Korean television series written by Shin Ha-eun, directed by Yoo Je-won, and starring Jung Hae-in and Jung So-min. It aired on tvN from August 17, to October 6, 2024, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:20 (KST). It is also available for streaming on Netflix in selected regions.

## Synopsis

Love Next Door is a story of a woman who lives the perfect life abroad, being employed by one of the best companies in the world and engaged to an international lawyer. She suddenly returns to Korea. Her mother's friend's son, who is one of her childhood friends, is a top architect in Korea.

## Cast and characters
### Main

* Jung Hae-in as Choi Seung-hyo
    The son of Seok-ryu's mother's friend. A young architect who is attracting attention and the CEO of "the Architecture Atelier In", he is loved by everyone because he is perfect not only in his skills but also in appearance and personality. The only dark past in his life is Bae Seok-ryu.
* Jung So-min as Bae Seok-ryu
    A product manager of a global conglomerate called Greip. She suddenly breaks down one day and returns to her hometown to reboot her life.
* Kim Ji-eun as Jeong Mo-eum
    Seok-ryu and Seung-hyo's childhood friend. As part of the three musketeers, she knows the dark history of the two better than anyone else. She is a 119 paramedic overflowing with passion and justice. Since childhood, she has dreamed of being a hero, so she takes great pride in saving people's lives.
* Yoon Ji-on as Kang Dan-ho
    A field-oriented reporter who only pursues facts. Strong in conviction and responsibility, he meets unexpected changes as he moves next door to Mo-eum's family.

### Supporting

* Park Ji-young as Na Mi-sook
    Seok-ryu's mother, who has a blunt and strong lifestyle.
* Jo Han-chul as Bae Geun-sik
    Seok-ryu's father, who runs a small snack restaurant in the neighborhood.
* Jang Young-nam as Seo Hye-sook
    Seung-hyo's mother, who works at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and loves her work a lot.
* Lee Seung-joon as Choi Kyung-jong
    A professor of emergency medicine and Seung-hyo's father.
* Jeon Seok-ho as Yoon Myung-woo
    The co-CEO of "the Architecture Atelier In" and Seung-hyo's college senior.
* Kim Geum-soon as Do Jae-sook
    Mo-eum's mother, who is a local problem-solver.
* Han Ye-ju as Bang In-sook
    She has a lot of inner anger.
* Lee Seung-hyub as Bae Dong-jin
    Seok-ryu's younger brother, who dreams of becoming a health trainer.
* Shim So-young as Lee Na-yun
    An employee of "the Architecture Atelier In".
* Seo Ji-hye as Jang Tae-Hui
    Seung-hyo's ex-girlfriend.
* Lee Ji-hae as Hwang Young-in
    Dan-ho's boss at work, the head of the social affairs department of Cheongwoo Ilbo.
* Han Joon-woo as Song Hyeon-jun
    Seok-ryu's ex-fiancé.
* Lee Si-hyung [ko] as Park Jeong-woo
    The chief of Hyereung 119 Safety Center Paramedic.

### Special appearances

* Roh Yoon-seo as herself
* Lee Bong-ryun as Im Kyung-ran

## Production
### Development

In August 2023, the series was developed under the working title Mom's Friend's Son. Director Yoo Je-won and writer Shin Ha-eun, who previously worked on Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha (2021), reunited for the series.

### Casting

In November 2023, Jung Hae-in and Jung So-min were in talks for the lead roles; both of their agencies stated they were positively considering the offers. The next month, Jung Hae-in had taken on the role of Choi Seung-hyo. In January 2024, Jung So-min confirmed her role as Bae Seok-ryu. On March 8, 2024, Kim Ji-eun confirmed her participation. On March 13, Yoon Ji-on also confirmed his appearance, and the complete cast of the drama was announced.

## Release

Love Next Door premiered on tvN on August 17, 2024, every Saturday and Sunday at 21:20 (KST). The series is also available for streaming exclusively on Netflix.

## Viewership

| Season | Season | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Average |
| Season | Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Average |
| | 1 | 1.296 | 1.605 | 1.143 | 1.793 | 1.334 | 1.728 | 1.073 | 1.722 | 1.170 | 1.535 | 1.511 | 1.968 | 1.333 | 1.750 | 1.453 | 2.095 | 1.532 |
Average TV viewership ratings :
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) | Average audience share (Nielsen Korea) |
| Ep. | Original broadcast date | Nationwide | Seoul |
| 1 | August 17, 2024 | 4.899% (1st) | 5.854% (1st) |
| 2 | August 18, 2024 | 5.977% (1st) | 6.656% (1st) |
| 3 | August 24, 2024 | 4.276% (1st) | 4.789% (1st) |
| 4 | August 25, 2024 | 6.581% (1st) | 7.233% (1st) |
| 5 | August 31, 2024 | 4.760% (1st) | 5.249% (1st) |
| 6 | September 1, 2024 | 6.788% (1st) | 7.627% (1st) |
| 7 | September 7, 2024 | 3.978% (1st) | 4.426% (1st) |
| 8 | September 8, 2024 | 6.472% (1st) | 7.489% (1st) |
| 9 | September 14, 2024 | 4.545% (1st) | 5.254% (1st) |
| 10 | September 15, 2024 | 5.547% (1st) | 5.678% (1st) |
| 11 | September 21, 2024 | 5.981% (1st) | 6.515% (1st) |
| 12 | September 22, 2024 | 7.348%(1st) | 8.270%(1st) |
| 13 | September 28, 2024 | 5.410% (1st) | 5.857% (1st) |
| 14 | September 29, 2024 | 7.110% (1st) | 8.179% (1st) |
| 15 | October 5, 2024 | 6.065% (1st) | 6.987% (1st) |
| 16 | October 6, 2024 | 8.458% (1st) | 9.469% (1st) |
| Average | Average | 5.887% | 6.596% |
| 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). ||||