Korean film-admission record

▲ A poster for the Korean historical film "12.12: The Day" is displayed at a movie theater in Seoul on Dec. 22, 2023. (Yonhap)

▲ The director and cast of the Korean historical film "12.12: The Day" pose for photographers during a promotional press event for the film at a movie theater in southern Seoul, in this file photo taken Nov. 9, 2023. (Yonhap)

Korean film-admission record

'12.12: The Day' surpasses 10 mln admissions

SEOUL, Dec. 24 (Yonhap) -- "12.12: The Day," a historical saga about South Korea's military coup in 1979, topped 10 million admissions on Sunday, the film's local distributor said, becoming the second film ever to hit the milestone this year.

The cumulative ticket sales of the title topped 10 million, 32 days after it was released, according to Plus M Entertainment.

Since its release on Nov. 22, the film has been rapidly gaining popularity on rave reviews, topping the local box office for 28 straight days.

Its box-office reign ended only Tuesday, when "Noryang: Deadly Sea," the final installment of director Kim Han-min's trilogy about Yi Sun-sin, the legendary Korean naval admiral, opened.

Directed by Kim Sung-su, "12.12: The Day" recounts the heart-pounding nine hours of confrontation between Chun Doo-kwang, head of the Defense Security Command, who orchestrates a military coup to seize power on Dec. 12, 1979, and Capital Defense Cdr. Lee Tae-shin, who risks everything to oppose the coup.

The movie is based on real events but incorporates fictional elements and characters. Actors Hwang Jung-min and Jung Woo-sung play the two main roles.

The period drama became the second 2023 film seen by more than 10 million people, following "The Roundup: No Way Out," the third installment of the crime action comedy series starring Ma Dong-seok.

"No Way Out" exceeded 10 million admissions July 1.

"12.12: The Day" is now the 31st film ever to hit the milestone in South Korea and the 22nd among Korean films.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, it is the fourth film to reach 10 million admissions, following "The Roundup" (2022), "Avatar: The Way of Water" (2022) and "The Roundup: No Way Out" (2023). Of these, "12.12: The Day" is the only film that is not part of a series.

All eyes are on how far the film, with over 10 million tickets sold, will climb up the box-office charts.

Even a month after its debut, it is still drawing crowds, making it highly likely to surpass the total admissions of "No Way Out" (10.68 million). If it does, it would become the most-viewed film among those released in the country this year.

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