November Korean Films Earn 41.1 Billion Won... 70% Recovery from Pre-Pandemic Levels

Half of Korean Moviegoers Watch 'Seoul-ui Bom'
'The Marvels' Ranks 3rd Lowest MCU Box Office

The success of the movie 'Seoul Spring' has helped the revenue of Korean films recover to 70% of the pre-COVID-19 pandemic (global pandemic) level.

According to the Korea Film Council's November report on the Korean film industry released on the 14th, the total revenue last month was 73.2 billion won, an increase of 15.4% (9.8 billion won) compared to the previous year, and 8.6% (5.8 billion won) higher than the revenue in the previous month (67.4 billion won). Additionally, the total number of viewers was 7.64 million, up 19.9% (1.27 million) from the previous year.

On the 44th anniversary of the December 12 military coup, the film "Spring in Seoul," which is based on the December 12 military coup, is being screened at a movie theater in Seoul on the 12th. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The revenue from Korean films in November exceeded 41.1 billion won, with the number of viewers surpassing 4.32 million. Half of these viewers watched 'Seoul Spring.' Released on the 22nd of last month, 'Seoul Spring' surpassed 27.7 billion won in revenue and 2.95 million viewers within just ten days. As of the 12th, its cumulative revenue reached 69 billion won, with a cumulative audience of 7.16 million.

Korean film revenue has shown some recovery. In November, the number of viewers for Korean films was 4.32 million, and revenue was 41.1 billion won. This represents 70.2% of the pre-pandemic (2017?2019) average revenue (58.6 billion won) and 60.2% of the audience number (7.17 million).

The Korea Film Council analyzed, "The movie provided such a thrilling cinematic experience that the 'heart rate challenge,' where viewers check if their heart rate rises throughout the film, became popular," adding, "There are opinions that it will be the second film this year to reach 10 million viewers, following 'The Outlaws 3.'"

The MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) film 'The Marvels' recorded disappointing results with 6.8 billion won in revenue and 690,000 viewers. 'The Marvels' ranked as the third lowest-grossing MCU film released domestically, following 'Captain America: The First Avenger' (2011) and 'The Incredible Hulk' (2008).

The Korea Film Council stated, "The strong fandom culture that used to head to theaters according to the MCU film release schedule no longer applies as a universal rule for box office success."

In November, foreign film revenue was 32.1 billion won, representing 42.1% of the pre-pandemic average (76.1 billion won). This was an increase of 7.4% (2.2 billion won) compared to the previous year. The number of viewers was 3.33 million, which is 36.4% of the pre-pandemic average (9.13 million).