'The King and I' Dominates with 4.17 Million During Lunar New Year Holiday... The Bright and Dark Side of Korean Film Box Office Results

Three Korean films targeting the Lunar New Year holiday received their respective report cards.

First, 〈The King and I〉, which opened a week earlier than other competitors to generate buzz, saw significant results. The story of the deposed young king Lee Hong-wee (Park Ji-hoon) and his loyal subject Eom Heung-do (Yoo Hae-jin) has attracted 4.17 million viewers by February 18. 〈The King and I〉 recorded box office No. 1 for all five days of the holiday, with 600,000 daily viewers on both Lunar New Year and the following day.

Released on February 11, 〈Humint〉 weaves a tale of National Intelligence Service agent Jo (Jo In-sung), North Korean security agent Park Geon (Park Jung-min), North Korean consul Hwang Chi-sung (Park Hae-joon), and North Korean resident Chae Sun-hwa (Shin Se-kyung) entangled in organized crime in Vladivostok, blending espionage and romance. Directed by Ryoo Seung-wan, the film topped the box office on its opening day but remained in second place thereafter. Nevertheless, it surpassed 1 million viewers on the seventh day of release, Lunar New Year, and recorded 1.28 million viewers by February 18.

Released on February 11, 〈Number One〉 took a chance with a modest story compared to other competitors but unfortunately fell behind formidable opponents. It consistently maintained third place from the opening day but dropped to fourth place starting February 16. The story follows a son, Ha-min (Choi Woo-shik), who discovers that the numbers appearing one day represent the remaining meals with his mother Eun-sil (Jang Hye-jin). It recorded 180,000 viewers by February 18.