Na Hong-jin's 'Hope' sets record for highest Korean film opening this year

Director Na Hong-jin's new film 'Hope' has achieved overwhelming box office success from its very first day of release, setting a new record for the highest opening for a Korean film this year. Having raised expectations by setting new records for pre-sales before its release, the film has proven its explosive drawing power at theaters, instantly dominating the summer peak season box office landscape.

According to the Korean Film Council's integrated computer network for film ticket sales, 'Hope' climbed to the top of the box office by drawing 333,918 viewers on its opening day, the 15th. The cumulative number of viewers reached 351,276.

This performance marks the highest opening score among Korean films released this year. It significantly surpassed the opening day audience of 199,762 for 'Colony', which held the previous record, and also slightly exceeded the opening day performance (330,118) of 'Exhuma', which surpassed 10 million viewers last year. By leaving a meaningful record in the opening day results, which are evaluated as a barometer for success, expectations for long-term box office success are growing.

Taking second place on the same day was Universal Pictures' 'MINIONS & MONSTERS'. This work started with 31,728 viewers, while the Disney animation 'Moana' took third place with 13,025 viewers.

The success of 'Hope' was predicted even before its release.

The film emerged as the most anticipated release of the year, with pre-sales exceeding 600,000 tickets. Following 'The Outlaws 4' and 'The Outlaws 3', 'Hope' is the third Korean film released since the COVID-19 pandemic to surpass 500,000 in pre-sales. This is evaluated as an indicator of its box office potential, showing that it secured interest from a wide audience even before its release.

The excitement continued as of 8:20 AM on the 16th, the second day of release.

'Hope' maintained its first place in reservation rates, recording 552,560 real-time reservation viewers, and continued its unrivaled dominance by ranking first in reservation rankings across the three major domestic multiplexes: CGV, LOTTE CINEMA, and Megabox.

The film is the first feature-length work from director Na Hong-jin in about 10 years, having been evaluated as opening new horizons for Korean genre films through works such as 'The Chaser', 'The Yellow Sea', and 'The Wailing'. In particular, it is drawing attention as a work that demonstrates the director's genre scalability by building a new worldview that combines SF imagination beyond the crime thriller and occult genres.

The film centers on the process where Beom-seok (Hwang Jung-min), the head of the Hopo Port branch office near the Demilitarized Zone, encounters events that are difficult to believe as reality after hearing news of a tiger sighting from village youths. The narrative, which explores the boundary between reality and unreality amidst the collision of unknown entities and human society, promises a unique genre experience combined with Na Hong-jin's signature tension-filled directing.

The cast also drew attention with a super-luxurious lineup spanning both domestic and international stars.

Hwang Jung-min, Zo In Sung, and Jung Ho-yeon form the central axis, while Hollywood actors Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender joined to complete the scale of this global project. The fact that Korean and international actors are working together in one film is also evaluated as a factor that enhances the international competitiveness of the work.

Distributor Plus M Entertainment has recently proven its strong competitiveness in the domestic distribution market by consecutively succeeding with 'The Outlaws' series. Industry experts predict a high possibility that 'Hope' will settle into a long-term box office success based on the explosive influx of viewers and high reservation rates in the early stages of release.

Director Na Hong-jin and lead actors such as Hwang Jung-min, Zo In Sung, and Jung Ho-yeon are expanding their connection with the audience through active promotional activities, including stage greetings and radio appearances. Attention is focused on whether 'Hope', which set the highest opening record of the year on its first day, can maintain this upward trend and establish itself as another 10-million-viewer film for Plus M.