Historical drama The King’s Watcher continued its record-breaking trajectory over the weekend of March 27-29, surpassing the 15 million viewer milestone at the South Korean box office.
Already the highest-grossing movie of all time in South Korea, the film added $3.3 million last weekend, bringing its total box office gross to an unprecedented $99.4 million, just shy of the historic $100 million mark.
The film, directed by Jang Han-joon and starring Yoo Hae-jin and Park Ji-hoon, recorded 511,901 admissions over three days, bringing the total number of viewers to 15,615,948. It has already taken the absolute revenue crown (topping “Extreme Job’s” $93.7 million) and is now rapidly approaching the all-time attendance record. The film currently ranks third in terms of total attendance, with less than 650,000 tickets left to overtake “Extreme Job” (16.26 million) and become the second-largest movie of all time.
In second place, Hollywood science fiction blockbuster “Project Hail Mary” maintained a strong presence, earning $2.9 million with 391,882 admissions. Since its release on March 18th, the film has attracted a total of 1,150,694 admissions and grossed $8.6 million at the box office. This adaptation secured a revenue share of 37.57% and continued to perform well as the main alternative to the local leader.
Japanese animated feature Detective Conan: The Last Magician debuted in third place with $330,899 over the weekend. The story revolves around the heist of a newly discovered Imperial Easter Egg (a priceless Romanov family relic), which becomes the target of Kaito Kid. Conan’s investigation uncovers deeper mysteries about the Russian Revolution and the deadly assassin known as Scorpion. The film has grossed $360,912 since its March 27 release.
Pixar’s “Hoppers” came in fourth place, adding $289,973 for a total of $4.6 million. It was followed by the revival of “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba: Mugen Castle”, which earned $187,608 on 25 screens. The film’s total box office revenue in South Korea currently stands at $40.8 million.
The Japanese anime “Attack on Titan: THE LAST ATTACK” came in sixth place, earning $131,936 for a total of $7 million. French animated adventure “Pets on a Train” (Volez-vous!) debuts in seventh place with $57,094. In eighth place was the action thriller “The Protector,” which grossed $54,214 over the weekend and has earned $104,344 since its March 25 release.
Peter Chan Ho-sung’s 1997 Hong Kong classic “Comrades: Almost A Love Story” resurfaced at No. 9 after its re-release, earning $51,022 for a total of $103,081. Rounding out the top 10 was the family musical “The Bath Fairy,” which earned $40,749 over the weekend for a total of $51,186. The film, based on Baek Hee Na’s bestseller, captures a live stage performance of the story of a young girl who encounters a magical elderly fairy in her neighborhood’s old bathhouse.
The overall market total for the weekend was $7.9 million, down significantly from the previous week’s $15.5 million.
