Cinema Recovery Momentum Falters... 120 Million Moviegoers Last Year

Downturn After Four Years... Lack of Blockbuster Hits During Peak Season Among Causes
Korean Films Perform Relatively Well... Audience Up by 17.6%

The number of moviegoers visiting theaters last year was recorded at 123.13 million, which is fewer than the previous year.

On the 12th, ahead of the second impeachment vote of President Yoon Seok-yeol, citizens crowded the Wangsimni CGV in Seoul to watch the film "First Lady," which focuses on Kim Geon-hee. This documentary film was made after long-term coverage of her, who is at the center of controversies such as carrying an expensive Dior bag, the route change of the Yangpyeong Expressway, and allegations of civilian involvement in state affairs. Photo by Jo Yong-jun

According to the film industry report released by the Korean Film Council on the 16th, this represents a 1.6% (2.01 million) decrease compared to the previous year. The recovery trend seen after escaping the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has weakened. Theater attendance was 59.52 million in 2020, 60.53 million in 2021, then increased to 112.81 million in 2022 and 125.14 million in 2023.

The Korean Film Council cited the absence of summer blockbuster hits and the weakness of foreign films as reasons for the decline after four years. In August last year, the number of moviegoers was 11.78 million, falling short of the same month the previous year (14.56 million).

Foreign films were unable to be released in large numbers due to factors such as the Hollywood writers' and actors' strikes. In particular, the lack of blockbusters led to a reduction in special screenings like IMAX and Dolby theaters, which generally have higher ticket prices. In fact, last year's box office revenue was 1.1945 trillion won, down 5.3% (66.9 billion won) from the previous year. The decrease in revenue is more than three times the decline in attendance.

In this unstable trend, Korean films performed relatively well. Last year, the number of viewers for Korean films was 71.47 million, an increase of 17.6% (10.72 million) compared to the previous year. The market share of Korean films in total attendance also rose by 9.5 percentage points to 58.0%.

Two "10 million viewer" films, Pamyo and Crime City 4, led the box office success, while Pilot and Veteran 2 also attracted many viewers. Among the top 10 highest-grossing Korean films last year were seven titles including Pamyo (11.91 million viewers) and Crime City 4 (11.50 million viewers). Among foreign films, Inside Out 2 drew the largest audience with 8.8 million viewers.

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