James Cameron’s long-awaited “Avatar: Fire and Ashes” achieved overwhelming success at the Korean box office, grossing $10.2 million from 1.3 million admissions in the December 19-21 window.
According to KOBIS, a tracking service run by the Korean Film Council, the film accounted for nearly two-thirds of the weekend’s box office total, playing on 2,514 screens and rapidly increasing its cumulative box office gross to $13.6 million in just five days.
Disney’s Zootopia 2 moved into second place, but remained in a formidable position, adding $4 million to take its South Korean box office total to $41.2 million after its first four weekends. The animated sequel attracted more than 620,000 admissions and continued to dominate the family audience, despite being the focus of Prime Minister David Cameron’s attention.
Local animated title “Pororo the Movie: Sweet Castle Adventure” took third place with $250,668 for a total of $805,395.
South Korean comedy-drama “The People Upstairs” followed in fourth place with $262,926, earning a total of $3.2 million. Directed by Ha Jung-woo and starring Gong Hyo-jin, Kim Dong-wook, Lee Ha-ni, and Ha Jung-woo himself, the film follows a downstairs couple who are exhausted by the constant noise from their upstairs neighbors. A tense dinner to resolve issues quickly turns into an evening of sharp confessions and shifting dynamics.
The Japanese animated feature film Jujutsu Kaisen Shibuya Jihen / Selection Game THE MOVIE ranked fifth, with box office revenue of $129,992 and a total of $2.3 million. Directed by Shota Goshozono, the film is a condensed version of the Shibuya Incident arc of the anime, in which Yuji Kojo and his friends face a systematic curse attack on Halloween. In the aftermath, the looming “culling game” and Yuta Otsukotsu’s mission that puts Yuji’s fate in jeopardy are set up.
Universal’s horror sequel “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” came in sixth place with $126,015, raising its total box office revenue to $1.4 million.
The preview screening of “Crayon Shin-chan: Super Hot! Spicy Kasukabe Dancers” was ranked 7th with $75,097 ahead of its release on December 24th. The musical sequel “Wicked: For Good” continued in eighth place with $49,252, bringing the total to $6.5 million.
Japanese director Sho Miyake’s Locarno Golden Leopard winner Two Seasons, Two Strangers added $45,916 for a total of $238,103. Based on Yoshiharu Tsuge’s 1967 and 1968 short stories, the film follows screenwriter Lee (played by Korean actor Shim Eun-kyung) as he embarks on a journey through contrasting seasons: a summer encounter in a seaside town and a winter retreat to a remote mountain lodge.
The Japanese period drama “Kokuho,” which was shortlisted for an Oscar, cracked the top 10 with $31,713, bringing its total box office revenue to $1.1 million.
Over the weekend of Dec. 19-21, the top 10 films grossed $15.2 million, up from last weekend’s $9.5 million.
