Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits 7 million fastest this year

The summer box office is seeing a continuous run of hits from Hollywood blockbusters. Following Spider-Man: Brand New Day starring Tom Holland, which surpassed 7 million viewers at the fastest pace among this year's releases, Christopher Nolan's new film The Odyssey has also exceeded 4 million viewers just 12 days after its release.

According to distributor Sony Pictures on the 16th, Spider-Man: Brand New Day surpassed a cumulative audience of 7 million on this day. This record was achieved on the 19th day since its release on the 29th of last month.

Compared to director Jang Hang Jun's The King's Warden, which surpassed 7 million viewers earlier this year by reaching the milestone on its 24th day of release, this is 5 days faster. Spider-Man: Brand New Day has now officially become the fastest film to reach the 7 million mark this year.

Interestingly, this work is also within sight of surpassing the box office records of its predecessors in the series.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is closely chasing the final audience numbers of Spider-Man: Homecoming, which was released in 2017 with approximately 7.25 million viewers, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, released in 2021 with approximately 7.55 million viewers. If the current trend continues, there remains a possibility that it will set a new record for the highest box office performance among the Tom Holland-led Spider-Man series in Korea.

The film depicts the story of Peter Parker, whose existence was erased from everyone's memory in the previous installment, as he once again seeks his identity and the meaning of life. While maintaining the outward form of the massive Spider-Man franchise, it centers on the question of how an individual confirms and reconstructs their own existence.

In opposition, director Nolan's epic The Odyssey is forming another pillar of the box office success.

Released on the 5th, The Odyssey surpassed 4 million viewers on its 12th day of release. The film translates Homer's ancient epic The Odyssey into modern cinematic language, telling the story of King Odysseus, who embarks on a long journey to return to his home, Ithaca, after the Trojan War.

Matt Damon takes on the role of Odysseus, and the film features a massive lineup of top-tier Hollywood actors, including Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, and Robert Pattinson.

In particular, The Odyssey drew interest from film fans starting from its production method. For the first time in film history, all scenes were shot on IMAX film, maximizing director Nolan's signature overwhelming scale and visual experience.

Through works such as Inception, Interstellar, Dunkirk, and Oppenheimer, director Nolan has consistently emphasized the physical sensation of visuals and sound that can only be experienced in a theater. The Odyssey also makes the act of watching in a theater a cinematic event itself, as it prominently features the presence of a large screen that is difficult to fully realize in a streaming environment.

Audience response is also positive. The Odyssey is showing high satisfaction, recording a 98% Egg Index at CGV.

As a result, the summer box office is being driven by two Hollywood blockbusters that attract audiences in different ways.

While Spider-Man: Brand New Day continues its popular success with familiar characters and an expanded universe, The Odyssey is drawing audiences to theaters by combining classical narrative, overwhelming visual beauty, and director Nolan's cinematic ambition.

Notably, both works share the commonality of emphasizing the experiential value of being 'a movie you must see in a theater.' From the large-scale action of a superhero franchise to an ancient epic realized through IMAX film, movies that prioritize the physical experience of a large screen are being chosen by audiences.

Whether Spider-Man: Brand New Day can surpass the box office records of its predecessors to set a new series record, and how far The Odyssey will expand its audience beyond 4 million, are becoming the next points of interest for this summer's box office.