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Stories Set in South Korea

Stories Set in South Korea — top stories

Seoul's semi-basements and Gangnam towers, Joseon palaces, zombie trains and deadly playground games — the Korean Wave conquered world screens from these streets. These ten famous works span occupation-era to Netflix-era Korea; StoryTerra's map holds many more by city and decade.

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10 famous stories set in South Korea

Live snapshot of the top 10 most popular catalogue items (2026-09-04). Click any card to open this entry on the live map.

Browse 29 books, 1,913 movies, 130 TV shows and 18 games set in South Korea.

Parasite

Parasite

Barunson E&A
movie

All unemployed Ki-taek's family takes peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks for their livelihood until they get entangled in an unexpected incident.

Setting: Seoul, South KoreaTime Period: 2019
Oldboy

Oldboy

Show East-CJ Entertainment-Egg Film-Cineclick Asia
movie

With no clue how he came to be imprisoned drugged and tortured for 15 years a desperate businessman seeks revenge on his captors.

Setting: South KoreaTime Period: 2003
Miracle in Cell No. 7

Miracle in Cell No. 7

Lanistar Media-Motion Content Group-CJ Entertainment Turkey
movie

Separated from his daughter a father with an intellectual disability must prove his innocence when he is jailed for the death of a commander's child.

Setting: Prison, South KoreaTime Period: 1970s
The Handmaiden

The Handmaiden

Moho Film-Yong Film-CJ Entertainment
movie

In 1930s Korea a swindler and a young woman pose as a Japanese count and a handmaiden to seduce a Japanese heiress and steal her fortune.

Setting: Korea; JapanTime Period: 1930s
Train to Busan

Train to Busan

Next Entertainment World-RedPeter Film-Contents Panda-Union Investment Partners-KTB Network-Korean Film Council
movie

When a zombie virus pushes Korea into a state of emergency those trapped on an express train to Busan must fight for their own survival.

Setting: Seoul, South Korea; Busan, South KoreaTime Period: 2016
Memories of Murder

Memories of Murder

CJ Entertainment-Muhan Investment-Sidus
movie

During the late 1980s two detectives in a South Korean province attempt to solve the nation's first series of rape-and-murder cases.

Setting: South KoreaTime Period: 1980s
20th Century Girl

20th Century Girl

Yong Film
movie

Yeon-du asks her best friend Bora to collect all the information she can about Baek Hyun-jin while she is away in the U.S. for heart surgery. Bora decides to get close to Baek's best friend Pung Woon-ho first. However…

Setting: South KoreaTime Period: 1999
Squid Game

Squid Game

tvshow

Hundreds of cash-strapped players accept a strange invitation to compete in children's games—with high stakes. But, a tempting prize awaits the victor.

Setting: Seoul, South KoreaTime Period: Contemporary
Past Lives

Past Lives

A24-Killer Films-2AM-CJ ENM
movie

Nora and Hae Sung two childhood friends are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny love and the choices that make a life.

Setting: New York USA; South KoreaTime Period: 2020s
All of Us Are Dead

All of Us Are Dead

JQ Lee
tvshow

A high school becomes ground zero for a zombie virus outbreak. Trapped students must fight their way out — or turn into one of the rabid infected.

Setting: South KoreaTime Period: Contemporary 2020s

The 10 stories above are just a sample of the 2,090 in the catalogue for this entry. For the full live catalogue with trailers, locations and time filters, open South Korea in the StoryTerra app. On the live map you can also filter by the exact time the stories take place — any year, decade or century, from BCE to the future.

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