The fantasy film “Wonka,” starring Timothee Chalamet, opened nearly two months later than many other areas but nevertheless managed to take the top spot in South Korea’s box office rankings over the weekend. It gave the theatrical market, which was otherwise sluggish, a slight shock.

Data from Kobis, the Korean Film Council’s tracking service, shows that “Wonka” made $3.97 million in Korea between Friday and Sunday. (Kofic). Over the weekend, it accounted for 53% of movie ticket sales. “Wonka” made $5.67 million in its first five days of distribution, following its Wednesday Korean premiere.

That’s a respectable start in a normally quiet month and in the currently downturning Korean box office business. The countrywide movie market grew by 25% per week, reaching a $7.46 million weekend size.

A week after topping the movie office list, the comedy-drama “Citizen of a Kind,” which tells the story of a lady who takes matters into her own hands after falling victim to a fraud, dropped 36% to grab second place. For a 12-day total of $6.47 million, it contributed $1.65 million.

In its fifth weekend, the fantasy action movie “Alienoid 2” dropped to third place. It brought in $354,000 from Friday to Sunday. The total amount of money it has earned since its January 10 release is $10.1 million. (The first installment made $12.2 million when it was released in 2022).

“The Birth of Korea,” a biographical film about a Catholic priest in the 19th century, earned $270,000 in its first five days and $219,000 over the weekend, placing it in fourth place.
“Wish,” an American animated film, dropped to fifth position with $172,000 during the most recent weekend. With its January 3 release, the movie has made $9.88 million.

With a $158,000 weekend, “12.12: The Day,” the political-historical drama that was the largest movie in Korea in 2023, came in sixth. The increase brought the movie’s total earnings since its November 22 release to $95.3 million.

“Anatomy of a Fall,” which won the Cannes Palme d’Or and was nominated for many Oscars, began the weekend in seventh place with $129,000. Throughout its first five days since Wednesday, it has made $230,000.

The cartoon feature “The Jungle Bunch 2: Operation Meltdown,” which was released in Korea under the name “The Jungle Bunch: World Tour,” also had a French title and made $123,000 in its first five days of release.

Since opening in Korean theaters on January 10, “Migration” has brought in $96,000 throughout the weekend. It has $2.26 million in total.

Taking tenth place with $73,000 was the Japanese animation “New Dimension! Crayon Shinchan the Movie: Battle of Supernatural Powers – Flying Sushi.” With its December 22 release, it has earned $6.68 million.