Box Office Revenue Hits All-Time High for March

연합뉴스 / 2024-04-09 10:46:58

▲ Posters for Korean supernatural thriller "Exhuma" are seen at a Seoul theater in this undated file photo. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, April 9 (Yonhap) -- Thanks to the success of director Jang Jae-hyun's occult film 'Exhuma,’ South Korea’s theater attendance and revenue saw significant growth last month.

According to the report from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) released on the 9th, theater revenue in March reached 1.166 trillion won, a 45.7% increase (366 billion won) compared to the same period last year.

This figure surpassed the average March revenue from 2017 to 2019 (1.143 trillion won) before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The total number of theatergoers also increased by 56.5% (4.22 million people) from March last year to 11.7 million people. This recovery represents 84.9% of the pre-pandemic average attendance (13.78 million people).

KOFIC stated, "Thanks to the mega-hit success of 'Exhuma', March revenue was able to surpass the pre-pandemic average revenue," and announced that it was the second-highest March revenue level after 2019.

Released on February 22nd, 'Exhuma' recorded a revenue of 707 billion won and 7.26 million viewers in March alone. Its market share reached 60.7%.

With the success of 'Exhuma', Korean film revenue in March hit a record high of 803 billion won, the highest ever for March in history.

Compared to the same period last year, this was a 274.1% increase (588 billion won), and it was 159.0% higher than the pre-pandemic average Korean film revenue (505 billion won).

In contrast, foreign film revenue and audience numbers both decreased.

Foreign film revenue in March totaled 363 billion won, a 38.0% decrease (223 billion won) compared to March last year, staying at 56.9% of the pre-pandemic average revenue (638 billion won).

The number of foreign film viewers also decreased by 39.1% (2.19 million people) to 3.41 million people, representing only 44.9% of the pre-pandemic average attendance (7.59 million people).

Apart from 'Dune: Part 2', which ranked second in March with revenue of 191 billion won and 1.62 million viewers after 'Exhuma', there were no other notable hits during the month.