# Homecoming (TV series)
**Homecoming** is an American psychological thriller television series that premiered on Amazon Prime Video on November 2, 2018, starring [Julia Roberts](https://www.edgepedia.org/julia-roberts) as Heidi Bergman, a caseworker at a facility that helps soldiers transition back to civilian life. It was created for television by Eli Horowitz and Micah Bloomberg, adapting their scripted fiction podcast of the same name for [Gimlet Media](https://www.edgepedia.org/gimlet-media), and was directed by [Sam Esmail](https://www.edgepedia.org/sam-esmail), the creator of *Mr. Robot*.[1](https://time.com/5432222/new-on-amazon-prime-november-2018/) • [2](https://www.fastcompany.com/90259445/homecoming-creators-adapt-podcast-for-amazon) • [3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/20/how-homecoming-became-rare-podcast-that-actually-turned-into-good-tv-show/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Premiere | Season 1 released on Prime Video on November 2, 2018[1](https://time.com/5432222/new-on-amazon-prime-november-2018/) |
| Source | Gimlet Media's 2016 scripted narrative podcast by Eli Horowitz and Micah Bloomberg[2](https://www.fastcompany.com/90259445/homecoming-creators-adapt-podcast-for-amazon) |
| Format | Half-hour drama; episodes run 24 to 37 minutes, most closer to the shorter end[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/20/how-homecoming-became-rare-podcast-that-actually-turned-into-good-tv-show/) |
| Lead | Julia Roberts as Heidi Bergman, her first starring role in a television series[4](https://www.etonline.com/homecoming-creators-on-janelle-monae-in-season-2-and-the-future-of-the-amazon-series-146907) |
| Seasons | Two seasons, 17 episodes; season 2 premiered in May 2020 with Janelle Monáe[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/show/Homecoming/) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming) |
| Reception | Season 1 scored 98% on the Tomatometer; season 2 scored 60%; the series averages 79%[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming) |
| Recognition | Emmy nomination for Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (Half-Hour), 2020[7](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/homecoming) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and characters
The series centers on the mysterious Geist Group, an unconventional wellness company, and its unorthodox program, the Homecoming Initiative.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming) In season 1, Heidi Bergman (Julia Roberts) counsels veterans at the residential Homecoming Transitional Support Center, a Florida facility that rehabilitates soldiers with PTSD. Her favorite patient is Walter Cruz ([Stephan James](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephan-james-actor)), a trusting, hopeful veteran working toward a normal life, who navigates a fraught friendship with fellow soldier Shrier ([Jeremy Allen White](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeremy-allen-white)).[8](https://www.tvinsider.com/724266/homecoming-amazon-prime-interview-julia-roberts-sam-esmail/) • [9](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/features/memory-and-morality) Heidi fields regular calls from her fast-talking, opportunistic supervisor Colin Belfast ([Bobby Cannavale](https://www.edgepedia.org/bobby-cannavale)).[9](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/features/memory-and-morality)
The story plays out in timelines four years apart, which gave Roberts what is essentially a dual role: the newly hired 2018 caseworker, and the Heidi of a few years later who has left the facility and can barely remember her time there. Years after her abrupt departure, she is waiting tables when a Department of Defense investigator ([Shea Whigham](https://www.edgepedia.org/shea-whigham)) arrives asking about one of her old patients, Walter Cruz.[9](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/features/memory-and-morality) • [10](https://time.com/5434320/julia-roberts-netflix-amazon-homecoming-bodyguard/) The cast also includes [Sissy Spacek](https://www.edgepedia.org/sissy-spacek).[11](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/11/homecoming-amazon-series-creators-interview)
### Season 2
Amazon had commissioned two seasons from the creators from the outset, and season 2 premiered in May 2020 with [Janelle Monáe](https://www.edgepedia.org/janelle-monae) in the lead as a woman, Alex, searching for her identity; Roberts did not participate.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming) • [17](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2020/05/19/musicale-epuree-etouffante-sociale-une-semaine-de-series_6040059_3246.html) The season runs seven fairly short episodes and scored 60% on the Tomatometer.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming) • [18](https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/homecoming-season-2-review-janelle-monae-amazon-prime-julia-roberts-a9522636.html) The Independent's review judged that the series never reascended to its first season's level, though the pace picks up in the final episodes.[18](https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/homecoming-season-2-review-janelle-monae-amazon-prime-julia-roberts-a9522636.html) A French assessment in *Le Monde* found the second season stripped-down and sophisticated, still gripping for its suspense even if it opened up too much of what had given the first season its unsettling mystery.[17](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2020/05/19/musicale-epuree-etouffante-sociale-une-semaine-de-series_6040059_3246.html)
## From podcast to television
Horowitz and Bloomberg began the project as a long-distance collaboration, Horowitz from San Francisco and Bloomberg in New York, intending an experimental fictional podcast: a noir-ish, fractured conspiracy thriller about a government facility helping soldiers overcome PTSD. Horowitz came from book publishing, including [Dave Eggers](https://www.edgepedia.org/dave-eggers)'s McSweeney's imprint and the serialized iPad novel *The Silent History*; Bloomberg was a production-sound mixer on indie films and commercials. With Gimlet Media's backing, the podcast drew actors including [Catherine Keener](https://www.edgepedia.org/catherine-keener), Oscar Isaac, and [David Schwimmer](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-schwimmer).[11](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/11/homecoming-amazon-series-creators-interview) • [12](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/homecoming-star-julia-roberts-and-creator-sam-esmail-on-the-bingeable-drama/)
Esmail, who loved the podcast when his agent sent it to him, directed all ten episodes of the first season and executive produced alongside the podcast's creators.[13](https://www.wired.com/story/sam-esmail-homecoming/) • [14](https://www.thewrap.com/homecoming-why-the-amazon-series-abandons-its-source-material-halfway-through-season-1/) He saw the audio format's limits as the opportunity: much of the podcast consisted of found audio, overheard phone calls, and recorded therapy sessions, and television could place viewers inside the events those recordings only described.[13](https://www.wired.com/story/sam-esmail-homecoming/) The adaptation stays fairly faithful to its source until about halfway through season 1, then departs from it entirely; Esmail said the team "got together and sort of invented this new back half of the storyline."[14](https://www.thewrap.com/homecoming-why-the-amazon-series-abandons-its-source-material-halfway-through-season-1/)
## Style and reception
Critics consistently noted the show's visual craft and pacing. Esmail's direction uses slow pans and overhead shots that suggest surveillance, a narrowed frame for present-day scenes, and small details such as tiny palm trees in Heidi's fish tank to underscore themes of deception.[10](https://time.com/5434320/julia-roberts-netflix-amazon-homecoming-bodyguard/) The Washington Post described the tension as deriving from characters and shifting relationships rather than explosions and car chases, in the manner of 1970s paranoia thrillers such as *The Parallax View* and *All the President's Men*.[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/20/how-homecoming-became-rare-podcast-that-actually-turned-into-good-tv-show/)
**Critical scores.** Season 1 holds a 98% Tomatometer from 100 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, with a critics consensus calling it an impressive small-screen debut for Julia Roberts; the audience Popcornmeter stood at 73%.[15](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming/s01) On Metacritic the season scored 75, with 44 positive and 12 mixed reviews and none negative.[16](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/homecoming/critic-reviews/) Reviewers singled out the half-hour format for keeping the pace lively, the performances of Roberts and Stephan James, and Shea Whigham's work as the investigator.[16](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/homecoming/critic-reviews/)
## References
1. [Here's What's New on Amazon Prime in November 2018, Time](https://time.com/5432222/new-on-amazon-prime-november-2018/)
2. ["Homecoming" creators learned on the job to turn a podcast into a TV series, Fast Company](https://www.fastcompany.com/90259445/homecoming-creators-adapt-podcast-for-amazon)
3. [How 'Homecoming' became the rare podcast that actually turned into a good TV show, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/20/how-homecoming-became-rare-podcast-that-actually-turned-into-good-tv-show/)
4. ['Homecoming' Creators on Janelle Monae in Season 2 and the Future of the Amazon Series, Entertainment Tonight](https://www.etonline.com/homecoming-creators-on-janelle-monae-in-season-2-and-the-future-of-the-amazon-series-146907)
5. [Homecoming, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/show/Homecoming/)
6. [Homecoming, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming)
7. [Homecoming, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/homecoming)
8. ['Homecoming' Cast & Director Tease the Series' Twisted & Dangerous Mind Games, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/724266/homecoming-amazon-prime-interview-julia-roberts-sam-esmail/)
9. [Memory And Morality, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/features/memory-and-morality)
10. [Psychological Thrillers 'Bodyguard' and 'Homecoming' Examine the Trauma That Haunts Veterans, Time](https://time.com/5434320/julia-roberts-netflix-amazon-homecoming-bodyguard/)
11. [Bingeing Julia Roberts's New Series, Homecoming, Yet? These Are the Guys to Thank, Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/11/homecoming-amazon-series-creators-interview)
12. [Homecoming Star Julia Roberts and Creator Sam Esmail on the Bingeable Drama, Rotten Tomatoes](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/homecoming-star-julia-roberts-and-creator-sam-esmail-on-the-bingeable-drama/)
13. [Sam Esmail's Homecoming Is Nothing Like Mr. Robot, WIRED](https://www.wired.com/story/sam-esmail-homecoming/)
14. ['Homecoming': Why the Amazon Series Abandons Its Source Material Halfway Through Season 1, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/homecoming-why-the-amazon-series-abandons-its-source-material-halfway-through-season-1/)
15. [Homecoming: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/homecoming/s01)
16. [Homecoming critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/homecoming/critic-reviews/)
17. [« Homecoming », « I Know This Much Is True », « Little Fires Everywhere » : une semaine de séries télé, Le Monde](https://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2020/05/19/musicale-epuree-etouffante-sociale-une-semaine-de-series_6040059_3246.html)
18. [Homecoming review: Amazon Prime drama fails to live up to past glories, The Independent](https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/homecoming-season-2-review-janelle-monae-amazon-prime-julia-roberts-a9522636.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license