SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – The time-traveling fantasy-adventure film “Alienoid 2” continued its stronghold on the South Korean box office during the weekend, securing the top position for the second consecutive week. Despite a 42% decline in earnings from its opening weekend, the movie still garnered $2.06 million from Friday to Sunday, as reported by Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). This brings the film’s total to $7.96 million after 12 days in theaters.
The initial installment, “Alienoid,” faced critical disappointment in 2022, opening with a promising $5.19 million weekend in July but ultimately concluding its run with a meager $12.2 million due to unfavorable reviews.
The potential success of “Alienoid 2” hinges on market timing and competition, given the traditionally subdued January cinema landscape in South Korea. The absence of major blockbuster releases vying for screen space could work in favor of “Alienoid 2.”
However, the overall box office experienced a substantial 34% decline over the past weekend, reaching just $6.04 million—a figure reminiscent of the weakest weekends observed in 2023. While all three weekends in the new year have seen box office figures below those of the corresponding sessions in 2023, it’s important to note that the outset of the previous year was buoyed by the impact of “Avatar 2,” making it an atypical benchmark.
“Wish” maintained its second-place position, accumulating $968,000 over the weekend and reaching a total of $8.72 million since its release in Korea on January 3. Meanwhile, “12.12: The Day,” the standout film of 2023, secured third place with $688,000 over the weekend and a cumulative total of $94.6 million since its release on November 22.
“Migration” climbed to the fourth spot, earning $473,000 over the weekend and amassing a total of $1.69 million after 12 days in theaters. It surpassed the previous occupant of the fourth position, “Noryang: Deadly Sea,” which slipped to fifth place. “Noryang” earned $452,000 over the latest weekend, bringing its five-weekend total to $33.3 million.
Maintaining a solid position, the Japanese animation “New Dimension! Crayon Shinchan the Movie: Battle of Supernatural Powers – Flying Sushi” held onto sixth place with a weekend score of $246,000, pushing its cumulative total to $6.34 million.
In a notable debut, the drama “Citizen of a Kind” by Park Young-jo claimed seventh place in the chart through preview screenings alone, earning $165,000 over the weekend and accumulating $220,000 to date.
The political documentary “Kim Dae Jung On the Road” earned $148,000 in its second weekend of release, reaching a running score of $668,000. “Dumb Money,” a U.S. financial drama centered around meme stock GameStop and the actions of Roaring Kitty, emerged as the highest-placed film to officially open over the weekend, earning $99,000 during the weekend and $174,000 over its opening five days.
Closing the weekend charts, the Japanese drama film “Monster,” present since late November, earned $74,000 over the latest weekend, bringing its cumulative total to $3.51 million.
