'Hansan' and 'Top Gun' Box Office Hits Drive Lotte's Big Smile...

16.29 Million Visitors, 170.4 Billion KRW Revenue
3 Consecutive Months of Recovery Before the Pandemic
52 Billion KRW 'Top Gun' Ranks No.1 in July Box Office

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] In July, the box office saw consecutive releases of Korean films and Hollywood blockbusters, generating sales of 170.4 billion KRW. Lotte Entertainment, which achieved double-hit success with 'Hansan: Rising Dragon' and 'Top Gun,' smiled brightly.

According to the Korea Film Council's July 2022 Korean film industry report, total sales increased by 149.4%, or 102.1 billion KRW, compared to the same month last year. However, it decreased by 7.4%, or 13.7 billion KRW, compared to July 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. The total number of viewers was 16.29 million, an increase of 133.4%, or 9.31 million, compared to the same month last year, but a decrease of 25.7%, or 5.63 million, compared to July 2019.

On the 20th and 27th of last month, 'Alien+1' Part 1 and 'Hansan: Rising Dragon' were released and met with audiences. Korean film sales reached 66 billion KRW, marking the highest July sales for Korean films in six years since 2017, and the number of Korean film viewers was 6.36 million, the highest since 2018.

July Korean film sales increased by 219.2%, or 45.3 billion KRW, compared to the same month last year, and by 160.0%, or 40.6 billion KRW, compared to July 2019. The number of Korean film viewers increased by 199.6%, or 2.4 million, compared to the same month last year, and by 90.3%, or 3.02 million, compared to July 2019. The market share of Korean film viewers increased by 8.6 percentage points to 39.0% compared to the same month last year, while foreign films accounted for 61.0% of viewers.

Foreign film sales last month were 104.5 billion KRW, an increase of 119.1%, or 56.8 billion KRW, compared to the same month last year. However, compared to July 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, sales decreased by 34.2%, or 54.3 billion KRW. The number of viewers was 9.93 million, an increase of 104.5%, or 5.07 million, compared to the same month last year.

Thanks to foreign films such as 'Top Gun: Maverick,' released at the end of June, and 'Thor: Love and Thunder,' released in July, sales and audience numbers increased compared to the same month last year during the pandemic. However, compared to July 2019, when films like 'Spider-Man: Far From Home,' 'The Lion King,' and 'Aladdin' were hits, sales and audience numbers decreased.

The cumulative total sales from January to July 2022 reached 623.3 billion KRW, an increase of 144.8%, or 368.7 billion KRW, compared to the same period last year. The cumulative total number of viewers was 61.22 million, an increase of 126.7%, or 34.22 million, compared to the same period last year.

On the 10th, when the scorching heat was at its peak, citizens visited a movie theater in downtown Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

'Top Gun: Maverick' ranked first in overall box office in July with sales of 52 billion KRW and 4.87 million viewers, recording cumulative sales of 75.3 billion KRW and 7.05 million viewers by the end of July. 'Thor: Love and Thunder' ranked second with sales of 29.4 billion KRW and 2.71 million viewers.

'Hansan: Rising Dragon,' released on the 27th of last month, recorded sales of 23.4 billion KRW (2.27 million viewers), ranking third overall and achieving the highest performance among Korean films in July. 'Decision to Leave' ranked fourth with sales of 15.6 billion KRW (1.48 million viewers). Fifth place was the animated film 'Minions 2,' with sales of 14.7 billion KRW (1.51 million viewers). 'Alien+1' Part 1 ranked sixth with sales of 14.2 billion KRW (1.36 million viewers).

Lotte Cultureworks (Lotte Entertainment) and CJ ENM ranked first and second respectively in the overall distributor rankings for July, marking the first time in 11 months that domestic distributors appeared in the top monthly distributor rankings.

Lotte Cultureworks ranked first among distributors in July with sales of 75.4 billion KRW and a market share of 44.3%, distributing four films including 'Top Gun: Maverick' (52 billion KRW) and 'Hansan: Rising Dragon' (23.4 billion KRW). CJ ENM ranked second with sales of 34.3 billion KRW and a market share of 20.1%, distributing six films including 'Decision to Leave' (15.6 billion KRW), 'Alien+1' Part 1 (14.2 billion KRW), and 'Detective Conan: The Bride of Halloween' (4.3 billion KRW).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.