Korea Box Office Splits as The Intern Leads Tickets, The Odyssey Leads Cash
South Korea's box office produced two winners over the Sept. 18-20 weekend. The Intern sold the most tickets. The Odyssey earned the most money.
The split comes from figures from KOBIS, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council, reported by Variety. Admissions, a straight count of tickets sold, put The Intern on top. Revenue, the cash taken at tills, kept The Odyssey in front.
The Intern drew 275,183 admissions in South Korea across the three-day frame. That run across 1,428 screens generated $1.9 million. It claimed 26% of the weekend market.
The Odyssey drew fewer viewers. It sold 256,789 tickets across 1,253 screens. But it generated $2.3 million in South Korea over Sept. 18-20, or 30.7% of total weekend revenue.
The new arrival is directed by Kim Do-young. It is a Warner Bros. Korea adaptation of Nancy Meyers' 2015 Hollywood comedy, starring Choi Min-sik and Han So-hee. It opened wide in South Korea on Sept. 16.
Its early total is building fast. Including weekdays, The Intern has drawn 403,903 admissions in South Korea for a cumulative gross of $2.8 million, according to the same KOBIS data reported by Variety.
The Odyssey keeps organising its long run around big totals. Since its Aug. 5 launch in South Korea, it has grossed $91.1 million. That comes from 11,217,639 ticket buyers.
Further down the chart, Obsession ranked third in its third weekend. It added $1 million in South Korea over Sept. 18-20 from 131,467 admissions across 762 screens. Since its Sept. 2 rollout, it has reached $5.4 million from 701,713 viewers.
Resident Evil opened in fourth place. It took $623,228 in South Korea over the weekend from 80,779 admissions across 679 screens. Since its Sept. 17 premiere, it has accumulated $783,336 from 103,654 viewers.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day placed fifth in its eighth weekend. It added $214,082 in South Korea from 33,636 admissions across 540 screens. Its cumulative gross stands at $67.1 million.
What makes this stand out is the rarity of the divide. One film moved more people through doors. Another moved more money through tills. For fans picking a film, this means the No. 1 depends on which list you read.
