👽 'Hope' Tops South Korean Box Office

According to data from the Korean Film Council’s (KOFIC) KOBIS tracking service, the big-budget feature grossed $11.3 million from 1,500,019 tickets sold across its three-day opening frame, capturing a massive 66.62% market share of the country’s total theatrical revenue.

Directed by Na Hong-jin, the blockbuster boasts a star-studded international and local cast, featuring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, and Jung Ho-yeon alongside Hollywood stars Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander. Driven by pre-release buzz and previews, Hope has already accumulated $16 million in total grosses (2,129,723 admissions).

Second place went to the animated feature Minions & Monsters, which brought in $2.1 million for the weekend (308,575 admissions), elevating its cumulative Korean tally to $2.6 million. Rounding out the top three was Moana, generating $1.2 million in its second weekend (173,555 tickets sold) to bring its local total to $5.6 million.

Occupying the fourth spot was Pixar’s animated feature Toy Story 5 with a $834,900 weekend performance; since its June release, the picture has grossed $19.1 million in the country, drawing 2.75 million viewers. Closing out the top five was the psychological horror remake The Eyes, directed by Yum Ji-ho and starring Shin Min-a, which added $552,700 in its fourth weekend (reaching a cumulative $9.9 million from 1.43 million admissions).

Holding on in the lower half of the top 10 was Yeon Sang-ho’s long-running hit Colony, which took seventh place; the thriller has accumulated $42.2 million in box office receipts and 5.94 million viewers since launching in late May. Josh Safdie’s sports comedy-drama Marty Supreme, starring Timothée Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow, finished ninth, pushing its South Korean total to $853,800.

Propelled by the strong launch of Hope, total South Korean box office revenue for the weekend surged to $17.1 million, more than doubling the previous week’s $8.2 million figure.