Top stars Hyun Bin and Song Joong-ki alone are not enough. With the confirmed box office failure of Song Joong-ki's 'Bogotá: The Land of Last Chances', Hyun Bin's 'Harbin' is effectively marking the top of the New Year box office. Unfortunately, 'Harbin' is also on a downward trend, making it difficult to surpass the break-even point (approximately 6.5 million). Can Kwon Sang-woo, Song Hye-kyo, and Do Kyung-soo, who are launching in completely different genres, brighten the gloomy New Year box office?
According to the Korea Film Council's integrated ticket sales network, 'Harbin' attracted 48,250 viewers on the 9th, bringing its cumulative audience to 3,826,320. Although it ranks first in advance bookings, the number of tickets sold remains in the 40,000 range.
Released on the 24th of last month, 'Harbin' depicts the intense chase and suspicion between those heading to Harbin for a single purpose in 1909 and those pursuing them. It maintained its position at the box office, surpassing 1 million viewers on the second day, 2 million on the fifth day, and 3 million on the ninth day of its release. However, its box office momentum has sharply declined, and it is slowly approaching the 4 million mark.
Song Joong-ki's 'Bogotá: The Land of Last Chances' has dropped to fifth place, overshadowed by new releases ('It's a Fairytale but Rated R' and 'Ferrari'). It recorded 82,982 daily viewers, with advance ticket sales of about 12,000, bringing its cumulative audience to 355,668. The break-even point for the film is approximately 3 million, marking it as a box office failure.
The disappointment must be soothed with excitement for the upcoming releases. The anticipated films for January are Kwon Sang-woo's 'Hitman 2', Song Hye-kyo's 'The Black Nun', and Do Kyung-soo's fantasy melodrama 'The Secret That Cannot Be Told'.
First up is 'Hitman 2', set to release on the 22nd, featuring Kwon Sang-woo alongside comedy masters Jung Joon-ho, Lee I-kyung, and Hwang Woo-seul-hye in a human comedy action film. The story revolves around 'Jun' (played by Kwon Sang-woo), a once-great hit writer who falls from grace and becomes embroiled in a terror incident mimicking his ambitious new webtoon, leading him to be falsely accused overnight.
The previous installment delivered comfortable yet addictive laughter and exceptional teamwork, raising expectations for 'the younger brother who surpasses the older brother'.
On the 27th, 'The Black Nuns', a sequel to 'The Priests' and Song Hye-kyo's first foray into the occult, will be released. This mystery occult drama tells the story of people who embark on a forbidden ritual to save a boy possessed by a powerful evil spirit. The combination of actors like Song Hye-kyo, Jeon Yeo-bin, and Han Dong-hee, who are expected to showcase new transformations, along with fresh material and unpredictable developments, is generating high interest among prospective viewers.
The very next day, on the 28th, Do Kyung-soo and Won Jin-ah's beautiful fantasy melodrama 'The Secret That Cannot Be Told' will grace the screens, wrapping up January with lyrical sweetness. Based on the legendary fantasy romance of the same name, the film depicts a miraculous magical moment that begins when Yu-jun and Jeong-ah accidentally meet in a campus practice room where the secrets of time are hidden.
